Anya Tanyavutti resigned as a member of the Evanston/Skoky School District 65 School Board at a meeting Monday.
The board also swore an oath to Tracy Olasimbo, Family Engagement Coordinator at Evanston Public Library. Olasimbo succeeds former Executive Vice President Marquis Wetherspoon, who resigned in August.
Tanyavutti served on the school board for six years. She served two years as president and three years as vice president. She said she was likely the first black woman to serve as chairman of the board.
At the meeting, Tanyavutti said he came to the district with hope. But after her two-year-old heard racist comments at daycare, she said she began to realize the magnitude of the racial achievement gap in District 65.
“District 65’s educational caste system, human rights violations, were normalized as good schools,” Tanyabutti said. “‘For whom?
This incident prompted me to join the board, filling the vacancy left by Jennifer Phillips in 2016. But in the early days, Tanyavutti said he felt dismissed and neglected.
During her time on the board, she said anti-racist activism began through initiatives like School Action Week, LGBTQ+ Equity Week, and Latino Heritage Week. He also noted the creation of parent groups such as the Parent Advisory Council, African American, and the Black and Caribbean Family Group. Bilingual Parent Advisory Committee as an indicator of progress.
“We have sown and nurtured the seeds to close the gap of opportunity to achieve in District 65,” said Tagnabutti. “Our early childhood outcomes are racially unpredictable for the second year in a row. [the Joseph E. Hill Early Childhood Center]”
Tanyavutti now works on developing young people and says he will now focus on his own writing project.she recently Apply For the vacant 2nd Ward City Council seat after the pre-Aldo.Peter Braithwaite Retired in July, but the city council appointed Aldo.chrissy harris instead.
Current Chairman Sergio Hernandez He took the previous job at Tagnabutti in April, I called her an inspiration.
“You are the perfect director,” he said. “You were able to find the time and the strength to do incredible things for equity across our school district.”
Superintendent Devon Horton I echoed his comments and commended Tanyavutti for her commitment to equity and thanked her for leaving the district in better shape than she found it.
“I said I was a disruptive leader, but I didn’t know I was disruptive until I met you,” Horton said. “Look at how we have guided the Board and this district through governance through our relentless approach to being fair in everything we do.”
The Board is given 60 days to fill Tanyavutti. He will serve until the April 2023 election.
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