Over 1,000 Mercer Island School District (MISD) students, alumni, teachers, staff and parents have co-signed a letter demanding the district update its curriculum to more effectively address systemic racism by the end of the summer.

The letter was circulated periodically among students and community members earlier for signatures this month until it was submitted June 4.

The letter was sent to Superintendent Donna Colosky, the principals of each school in the district and other district stakeholders.

The letter opens with three demands: that the district crafts a comprehensive curricula plan to address systemic racism, police brutality and privilege at all levels of education; develops the latter plan alongside the Island community; and put in place these curricula by the beginning of the upcoming 2020-2021 school year.

The letter invokes the recent wave of protests that have broken out regionally and nationally in response to the police killing of George Floyd and other black Americans. It notes that many MISD students have taken part in recent protests in neighboring Seattle and Bellevue.

“The American people are heartbroken and angry at the loss of another black life at the hands of police, and they are speaking up powerfully,” the letter states.

It adds that conversations and education about endemic racism shouldn’t just be happening in the streets.

“Competitive and wealthy districts, including MISD, have a responsibility to examine the roles that privilege and bias play within its walls,” the letter states. “MISD is a predominantly white school district and community. Students should be encouraged to examine and question their own role in supporting structural racism and the ways in which it benefits the majority of the student body. MISD has the power and responsibility to broaden students’ understanding of the world. And it must. MISD takes pride in preparing the next generation of leaders, and those leaders must understand how far our country is from racial equity.”

The letter goes on to refer to a recent letter shared by Colosky in which she brought up the district’s Equity and Diversity policy, which “commits our education system to focusing on addressing issues around racial diversity as it remains a key issue in American society.”

The writers of the letter are asking that this policy be enacted tangibly.

The letter, ostensibly penned by district students, closes with a preliminary list of items the district should realize in the classroom.

The list of demands, and the rest of the letter, can be read here.

Kendall Taylor, executive assistant to the superintendent, said in an email that while “the district has not made a formal statement in response to the referenced letter, the district continually reflects on its practices related to equity, diversity and inclusion.”

In the email, Taylor again pointed to the superintendent’s June 1 letter as well as a June 4 school board meeting to discuss the protests, the impacts to the schools in the district and how it is monitoring ongoing curriculum work in regard to anti-racism, multicultural awareness and equity.

The June 4 letter acknowledges that many teachers have been engaged in anti-racist teaching methods. But it adds that this should no longer be an “optional” addition to a lesson.

“At this moment in time, it can no longer be about saying the right thing; it is about doing the right thing,” the letter concludes. “Words must be accompanied by sustained action. We are counting on you to take this on with us and to help us enact lasting change.”