PPS briefly revisited its Racial Educational Equity Policy — and once again, the contradictions are hard to ignore.

As Cascade president John Charles noted in his letter to the board, the District’s Equity Funding Policy has been in place for more than ten years, yet PPS has never shown whether it improves student achievement.

Despite that, the Board continues to insist on “equal outcomes” for all students — a goal no school district can deliver because the premise itself is flawed.

Parents know this. Teachers know this. You can offer equal opportunities, but you cannot guarantee identical results. PPS controls instruction, not the untold variables that shape achievement.

Declaring achievement gaps “unacceptable” simply guarantees that staff will always be branded as failures for an impossible metric.

Even more troubling, the policy treats unequal outcomes as proof of discrimination — without providing evidence. When asked for documentation of systemic bias, PPS produced nothing beyond generic national reports from activist groups. Meanwhile, the District faces a federal civil rights lawsuit and still hasn’t evaluated its own equity programs.

And the policy goes further, claiming adults — not students — are responsible for all disparities. That erases student agency and ignores factors like family structure, effort, strong teaching, and disciplined classrooms.

When a policy can’t be implemented, measured, or defended, it should be repealed or rewritten.

For Cascade Policy Institute, I'm Naomi Inman.

www.cascadepolicy.org