Hundreds Attend Street Data Fundamentals Workshop

The Southern Coast Regional Technical Assistance Center (SC R-TAC) recently hosted the Street Data Fundamentals Workshop.

Renowned authors Jessica Huang and Shane Safir presented to more than 200 educators from across the Southern Region. The workshop focused on street data fundamentals – what it is, how to gather it, and how it can complement other forms of data to guide schools’ and districts’ equity journeys.

Throughout the workshop, participants engaged in self-reflection, explored epistemology, understood the fundamentals of the street data approach, and learned how to create change through action that reflects on building trust, having clarity, and clear intention.

Street data is asset-based qualitative and experiential data about students and families that educators can use to dig deeper into the barriers and identify underlying causes of inequities. By focusing on what is working for students and communities and what might be getting in their way, educators can develop strategies to better serve historically marginalized communities.

Workshop attendees reflected on centering voices from the margins and how to address missing the mark when operating from a deficit mindset. Presenters offered some considerations for districts that will use street data to monitor and evaluate projects and seek true alignment with the Local Control Accountability Plan.

Participants left the workshop with a better sense of understanding data and its impact. They also gained knowledge about how to create a network that leverages the strengths of community institutions to sustainably fund and implement integration and equity work in schools and the larger community.

Attendee Reactions

Sonia Taylor from San Diego Unified School District shared why she participated in the workshop, “I want to impact change for my students and hear their voices and to learn some real strategies on how to do that,” she said. 

Maria Miller, also from San Diego Unified, noted, “Seeing data as a flashlight and not a hammer is one of the most impactful things I learned today. Street data gives us more, humanizes the person behind it, and moves away from just numbers, which is important today.”

Joe Smith from the Lemon Grove School District was honored to be in attendance and learn more about how to engage in a more cultural stance by humanizing the families and student voices by putting them at the center of work. “This is going to be transformative in our ability to build trusting working relationships and authentic partnerships with community partners,” he said.

Prior to attending the workshop, participants indicated that they were not familiar with the street data term and didn’t have a clear understanding of what it looks like and how to apply it in the field of education.