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![Oberlin City Schools administrators, parents, and community members assembled for the second-ever Superintendent Coffee Chat Thursday evening. The event employed a unique model that uses dialogue and collective brainstorming to discuss potential solutions to problems faced by the district, and was facilitated by volunteers from the College’s Yeworkwha Belachew Center for Dialogue.
“We’re bringing in some different people, some fresh ideas in a space where people are really willing to share,” said William Baylis, director of curriculum for the district.
The Coffee Chat addressed specific facets of the district’s educational programming, including college and career readiness, special education, gifted programs, and medical wellness. Attendees split up into small groups based on their primary area of concern and engaged in discussion with administrators including Superintendent David Hall and Oberlin High School Principal Chris Frank. YBCD volunteers mediated the breakout sessions and transcribed discussion points; these notes will help serve as guides for the implementation of new policies and programs in the district.
“Our goal [was] to provide a context for all who attend to be able to contribute ideas, ask questions, to be informed,” Ombudsperson Kimberly Jackson Davidson wrote in an email to the Review. “We trust that such opportunities lead to informed voting and motivation for engagement that will benefit the students who are and who will be educated in Oberlin City Schools.”
Bethany Hobbs, a community member with a son in the district, expressed her appreciation for the opportunity to directly interact with high-level district stakeholders.
“I think it is really nice to be able to connect with the administration and feel like we’re being heard as parents and community members,” she said.](https://oberlinreview.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/SuperintendentsCoffeeChat_MallikaPandey_WEB-900x601.jpg)
