Dear GUSD Families, Staff, and Community Members,
An Opportunity for Your Voice to be Heard
Strategic Listening Sessions Promoting Community Dialogue Launched by Glendale Unified
On November 7, the first in a series of five sessions was held to engage parents and other stakeholders in open dialogue addressing concerns about school culture and safety at Hoover High School. The 90-minute sessions from 6:00 – 7:30 PM are being held on Wednesday evenings at Hoover High School in Room 12101. The remaining sessions have been scheduled for November 14 & 28, and December 5 & 12. GUSD has contracted with The ASPIRE Group, independent consulting firm, to facilitate crucial conversations in response to the disruptions on the campus in October.
“It occurred to me that last night’s work was so important if we are ever to stem the flow of hatred coursing through the veins of our society. It’s to prevent these awful acts of violence toward one another, that we need to understand each other and heal the wounds that we bring with us culturally or that are inflicted on us in the course of our lives.” Laura Frimershtein, Hoover Parent
On November 7, about 25 parents and guardians engaged in small group conversations led by The ASPIRE Group facilitators. GUSD staff were present in each group as note-takers to ensure that the experiences, suggestions, and concerns all parent/guardians' were noted.
Our goal is to:
- Better understand the concerns of parents
- Discuss changes/solutions parents feel are necessary
- Create opportunities for parents to hear and learn from other parents
- Shift perceptions of the District from adversary to ally for effective approaches and successful outcomes
The notes from these small group listening sessions are being analyzed and summarized to inform District and School Site leadership for future planning and action steps. Bilingual facilitators and support staff were available in Armenian, Korean and Spanish. The ASPIRE Group ensured that the facilitators represented the ethnic/cultural make-up of Hoover High School so that all parent/guardians would be ensured that their concerns were heard.
"We know that effective problem solving starts with a sincere and accurate understanding of the concerns. This process that the Glendale Unified School District and Hoover High School have engaged in provides an opportunity for parents to honestly share what their concerns are and know that they are being understood by District and school leadership as they work together to effect positive change for the students and Hoover community." Diane Burbie,The ASPIRE Group
Parent/guardians who are new will engage in the first level listening sessions to ensure that all of their experiences and concerns are noted. Parent/guardians who attended on November 7 are also invited back to engage in separate deeper facilitated conversations to address what was shared the week before.
Background on our facilitator
Diane Burbie is the owner and Managing Principal of The ASPIRE Group. She is an experienced trainer, facilitator, and coach. Ms. Burbie has done extensive work related to cultural diversity, inclusion, leadership, strategic planning, team building, conflict resolution, sexual harassment prevention, and organizational communication with numerous and varied organizations. Diane designs and facilitates group processes that create safe places for honest engagement, exploration of difficult issues, and group problem-solving.
She was educated in the Los Angeles public schools. She holds a BA (with honors) from Stanford University and a MBA from the University of Southern California, School of Business, with an emphasis in Human Resource Management. She has certificates in Negotiation (Harvard Law School) and Managing Multi-cultural Work Environments (CSU Fullerton). Burbie served as Vice Chair of the Pasadena Human Relations Commission. Ms. Burbie is consultant to several national human relations/human rights organizations including the Simon Wiesenthal Museum of Tolerance.
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