What is the vision of SATISA?
SATISA’s vision is to provide an opportunity for educationalists to define the national standard of the level of work, ethics and experience in the diversity and transformation space.
It will also give an opportunity for those who are new to the work to be mentored and developed. SATISA’s vision is to alleviate the excess load that individual schools carry as they try to address the complex human dignity issues that seem to evolve on a daily basis. We want to make sure that no child goes to school and feel a sense of not belonging, or alienated because of difference. We want difference to be celebrated and shared.
What does the organisation do?
The organization facilitate membership of ISASA schools who have the portfolio of diversity and transformation. It engages staff that are committed in contributing skills and understanding of this work. It is committed to social cohesion and drives projects that include disadvantaged communities.
How did you come to this idea and why?
The idea came with requests from many educators who were thrown in onto the deep end in their schools, and most of them wanting to do the work but had no background or understanding of what the work entails.
The misconception that if you are black, you understand historical perspectives and social justice issues. Whilst many of our ISASA schools have not changed their staff demographics, their student intake has changed significantly. Most racially sensitive cases are difficult to deal with without fair representation.
Our contribution in starting SATISA is to prevent the one size fits all approach for our schools, and to allow people to learn with their management teams through embracing their differences. How do you begin to highlight those differences? How do you do your gaps analysis? This organization need to make heads aware that your appointed staff in this role can never do this work alone. Create an understanding that this work is emotive and raises triggers all the time, and therefore the need for care, mental health and wellness is as important in it.
What do you want to achieve from this initiative?
Collective effort, in every possible way. People of all races, background, creed etc, coming together to find solutions that will make the school environment a better one for all our children and generations to come. SATISA should give hope, relationships, connections that will last a lifetime.
SATISA and ISASA
SATISA is an affinity group for staff at ISASA member schools.