In September 2020, Washington Township hired a Director of Equity and Inclusion as a district-wide leadership position. Dr. Erica Buchanan-Rivera served as the first Chief Equity and Inclusion Officer for Hamilton Southeastern Schools before accepting the equity and inclusion role in Washington Township.

For the 2023-2024 school year, Dr. Woodson adjusted her cabinet to no longer include a Director of Equity and Inclusion Officer.

Dr. Erica Buchanan-Rivera’s last day in Washington Township was June 30, 2023. On her personal website, Buchanan-Rivera shared:

Near the end of the school year, my school district leadership team and I learned that our roles for the upcoming year would potentially change. When a meeting was held to discuss the reorganization of roles, I noticed that my position was not listed on any of the tentative organizational flow charts…In the weeks to come, I learned that I would be reassigned to a different leadership role (e.g. title, responsibilities, etc.) while still being held responsible for district DEI efforts. Therefore, I made the hard choice last month to not accept the newly revised role. 

When Dr. Buchanan-Rivera left HSE, Dr. Nataki Pettigrew served as the second HSE Chief Equity and Inclusion Officer. Pettigrew’s two-year HSE contract was not renewed earlier this year and would have ended in June 2024.

When Washington Township eliminated its DEI position at the end of the 2022-2023 school year, it was initially unclear if there would be a district-level DEI role since shortly following the elimination of the role, the district added DEI systems oversight work to the job responsibilities of several district-level cabinet members. In September, Washington Township shared on its Facebook page the following message, “WTS is pleased to announce the posting and launch of the hiring process for a Chief Academic & DEI Officer, a new position reimagined for maximum support of our District’s goal of equitable achievement.”

In a press release on November 16, 2023, Washington Township revealed that Dr. Pettigrew would take on the “reimagined” role of DEI plus district-wide academic supervision through leading the Teaching and Learning and Student Services Departments.

Currently, Emily Dills is leading the district’s DEI work. Washington Township entered into a one-semester agreement with independent consultant Emily Dills at Lemon Oasis LLC from August 1 – December 31, 2023. Dills previously worked in the Washington Township as a social emotional learning coach supporting the district’s elementary schools. The district will pay Dills $8,000 per month according to the contract. Historically, Dills’ consulting work and most recent school employee role focused mostly on social and emotional learning, not DEI work.