Imagine a school with a diverse student body where every student feels safe and valued, and all students—regardless of race, culture, home language, sexual orientation, gender identity, academic history, and individual challenges—have the opportunity to succeed with challenging classes, projects, and activities. In this school, teachers notice and meet students' individual instructional needs and foster a harmonious and supportive environment—and students feel empowered to learn, to grow, and to pursue their dreams. This is the school all our students need and deserve. In Building Equity, Dominique Smith, Nancy Frey, Ian Pumpian, and Douglas Fisher, colleagues at San Diego's innovative Health Sciences High & Middle College, introduce the School Equity Taxonomy, a new model to clarify the structural and interpersonal components of an equitable and excellent schooling experience, and the School Equity Audit, a survey-based tool to help school and teacher leaders uncover equity-related issues and organize their efforts to better address: Physical integration; Social-emotional engagement; Opportunity to learn; Instructional excellence; Engaged and inspired learners; Built on the authors' own experiences and those of hundreds of educators throughout the United States, this book is filled with examples of policy initiatives and practices that support critical standards of equity and high-quality, inclusive learning experiences.

Introduction -- CHAPTER 1. Physical Integration Separate Is Not Equal -- CHAPTER 2. Social Emotional Engagement Students Don't Care How Much You Know Until They Know How Much You Care -- CHAPTER 3. Opportunity to Learn Just in Time Supports Meet More Needs -- CHAPTER 4. Instructional Excellence Teach Well and Students Will Learn -- CHAPTER 5. Engaged and Inspired Learners Students Taking Responsibility for Their Futures -- CHAPTER 6. From Acquisition to Action The Review the Audit and Beyond -- The Building Equity Audit Staff Version -- The Building Equity Audit Student Version.