Head of the Class

Given that ACPS serves more than 15,400 students who hail from more than 100 countries, speaking 121 languages, the emphasis on staff recruitment and retention is paramount to ensure that the division’s teaching and learning is delivered by highly qualified candidates who students can relate to and who look like them. 

What is so interesting about this surge in diversity in the city of Alexandria is the contrast it represents to the city’s painful legacy of racism that permeates the school division and has been highlighted in recent years. While much work remains for the school division’s staff to truly reflect the broad diversity of its students, ACPS is on a journey that includes a commitment to diversity in staff and leadership as well as in its mission, vision and core values. The school division’s 2025 Equity for All Strategic Plan places racial equity at the center of all decisions and serves as a road map for its vision to empower all students to thrive in a diverse and ever-changing world. 

Implementation of the plan has included an equity dashboard measuring progress for all students, an annual equity climate survey and partnerships with cultural organizations to strengthen diversity in hiring staff.

ACPS has 18 schools, including the internationally recognized Alexandria City High School, which, at more than 4,400 students, is the largest high school in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

The ACPS student body is 38 percent Hispanic, 27 percent White, 26 percent Black and 6 percent Asian, with the remaining students identifying as multiracial or Native American/Hawaiian/Native Pacific Islander. The majority of ACPS students (60 percent) are eligible for free and reduced school meals and a third qualify for English learner services.

Diverse team leading FM & operations

It is not typical in the field of facility management to have a diverse team of women in key leadership positions, as most senior facility professionals tend to be male. In an article published by Zippia, only 23.1 percent of U.S. FM professionals are women. ACPS' commitment to diversity is reflected in the female-led, racially diverse team for FM, maintenance, capital planning and nutrition operations, which includes Department of Facilities and Operations Chief Dr. Alicia Hart, Director of Maintenance and Custodial Services Amanda Ou, Director of Capital Programs, Planning and Design Erika Gulick and Director of Student Nutrition Services Cynthia Hormel.

The women leading the planning, management and maintenance of ACPS school facilities, as well as the school nutrition program, recognize that they serve as role models for girls and young women who have an interest in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) or hospitality fields. They see that their perspective makes a difference in schools, as they communicate with teachers and administrators on the needs of young children in planning and managing facilities and providing nutritious meal offerings for students. They feel optimistic that the facilities management field and nutrition operations will draw more female professionals in the future.

“STEM careers are becoming more popular with female students today. We work closely with our human resources team at ACPS to strengthen their outreach to young women, to include women of color, who are starting their careers and bring in a diverse pool of candidates when we have openings in our department,” said Dr. Hart.

Recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce takes time, effort and a strategic approach to build the relationships and showcase the existing diversity that can help a range of job candidates envision themselves joining an organization's workforce. It is a worthwhile endeavor. According to a Harvard Business Review study of the male-dominated financial industry, the success rate of business impact proved higher for diverse groups when compared to groups of individuals who shared various similarities. “The success rate was lower, on average, for investments by partners with shared school backgrounds than for those by partners from different schools. The effect of shared ethnicity was even stronger, reducing an investment’s comparative success rate by 26.4 percent to 32.2 percent.” (Gompers & Kovvali, 2018).

Diversity of employee and leadership teams increases innovation and creativity and can make a difference in project success. This was the case for ACPS on a recently approved capital improvement program (CIP) initiative led by Dr. Hart and her team. For this CIP project, the FM team collaborated with stakeholders and colleagues within ACPS and the City of Alexandria to purchase a former office building that will be modified for use as a swing space while other school facilities are rebuilt and eventually as a new 600-seat school. Purchasing this building meant that the planning logistics became more complicated than would have been the case in building a new school; however, it allowed ACPS to support instructional success with its facilities while saving US$39.2 million.

“Collaboration and stakeholder engagement are vital in facility management and support operations. Having the opportunity to work with people from various racial, gender and professional backgrounds helps in understanding how to provide superior services that address the needs of all in the community,” said Dr. Hart. “We all bring unique experiences and perspectives to the table, and this allows us to contribute creatively, build on each other’s ideas and work through problems to produce the best outcomes for our students.”

Recruitment & retention efforts

While ACPS is still working to strengthen staff diversity throughout its schools and offices, the division has built a good foundation by increasing recruitment efforts overall and developing more targeted recruitment campaigns. Under the leadership of new Chief of Human Resources Dr. Melanie Kay-Wyatt, ACPS has held 40 percent more staff recruitment fairs than in the past and targeted outreach to Latinx candidates and graduates from historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs). This has strengthened partnerships with universities, resulting in more internship placements and a pipeline for educator applicants and student teachers. ACPS is going into the 2022-23 school year having hired 60 percent more applicants as of July 2022 when compared with the number hired the previous year, and continues to recruit throughout the summer, for critical positions such as teachers, bus drivers and substitute staff. 

Director of Recruitment and Retention Margaret Browne points to the many groups with whom the human resources team has built relationships and shares job opportunities and encourages applicants to consider ACPS. Browne’s team prioritizes outreach and partnerships with diverse and diversity-focused universities and colleges, professional organizations and media outlets, as well as advertisements in their communication channels, aligning ACPS’ recruitment strategy with its focus on equity. Human resources staff attend recruitment events at HBCUs and collaborate with local organizations whose members may be interested in careers at ACPS, including the City of Alexandria Workforce Development Center, the Ethiopian Community Development Council which supports refugee and immigrant communities, LATCareers, and groups that serve former military members.

“Creating a diverse workforce requires deliberate and strategic planning, so we have shifted from our more generalized recruitment efforts to a more targeted process,” said Browne. “With an incredibly diverse student population in race, ethnicity, country of origin and home language, it is paramount that we seek and hire talented and diverse educators and support staff. As a result of our efforts, we expect to see a continual rise in the diversity of our applicant pool including our high-needs content areas.”

In addition to niche-focused recruitment efforts, ACPS recognizes the importance of retaining staff once they have been hired. The human resources team developed new onboarding procedures for full-time employees and substitute staff and revitalized an employee wellness program. They also launched a new high-profile, nationally recognized Vision, Integrity, and Passion (VIP) awards employee recognition program, which honors staff who stand out in their contributions to students in the categories of nutrition services, transportation, building engineers, licensed specialists, support staff and leadership. The VIP program received an award of excellence in July 2022 from the National School Public Relations Association.

“Understanding what employees value and creating regular methods of acknowledging their dedication to the organization leads to higher morale between colleagues as well as higher employee retention rates,” explained Dr. Kay-Wyatt. “The previous award program worked well to highlight our outstanding teacher, principal and support person but did not provide the opportunity to recognize the valuable contributions at all levels of staff and the many ways they support the school division and our students.” 

Alexandria City Public Schools is fortunate to serve students and staff from a variety of cultures and backgrounds. While there is still much work to be done, the school division continues to bring in diverse talent, retain good staff and encourage new perspectives and innovative ideas within its workforce. ACPS leadership believes that a conscious effort to address diversity disparities will lead to a workforce that reflects the diversity found in its student body.

“The varied cultures, backgrounds and views in our school division’s workforce help us meet the needs of our diverse students and families. I am proud of our facilities management team – they are among the many superheroes who are vital to the successful operations of our schools,” said Dr. Hutchings. “It is so important for our leadership and staff to reflect the diversity of our students, and we are doing the work necessary to continue to hire employees who bring diverse backgrounds and perspectives to our school community for the benefit of our students.”