Simi Valley Unified School District developing new curriculum to implement “equity and inclusion”; partners with Panorama to implement Social-Emotional Learning (SEL)

Simi Valley Unified School District has embraced the idea of “equity and inclusion” and is in the process of implementing it into the district’s curriculum for students. The school district’s website states that it is “review[ing] existing curriculum and develop[ing] new curriculum that supports a culture of inclusion and acceptance in our schools.” The school district also states that it is training teachers on “bias, inclusion and equity.” The school district’s “Equity and Inclusion” page mentions that the curriculum already “includes the historical contributions of diverse groups, including African American, Latino, LGBTQ, Indigenous Americans, women and more.”

Simi Valley Unified School District offers LGBTQ resources on its website that link to organizations like the Diversity Collective. The Diversity Collective offers resources for children as young as nine years old in a program called “Little Unicorns.” The organization’s website states that “Little Unicorns is for young LGBTQ+, Questioning, and Allies, ages 9-12.” It says it seeks to promote “mental and physical health” in the LGBTQ community in Ventura County, Calif.

The school district’s website has a page promoting Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) and promoting the school district’s partnership with Panorama to implement SEL. The school district explains that it issues a survey to students at the start of every school year with the help of Panorama: “Panorama Education gathers the data from the survey and provides us with that information so that we can best tailor programs and intervention services for our students.” Panorama Education Inc. claims that it uses surveys to “help schools and districts track the progress of equity initiatives through the lens of students and staff, identify areas for celebration and improvement, inform professional development, and signal the importance of equity and inclusion to the community.”