Giving Compass' Take:

• Senegal Alfred Mabry, writing for Governing Magazine, believes we can achieve equity in education through comprehensive policy that engages students of color in the policy-making process. 

• How can we create more opportunities for people of color to be present in education politics? Are policymakers addressing root problems of access and accountability within the education system adequately?

• Read about the importance of using a growth mindset when approaching equity issues in schools.

As all successful hospital administrators know, the relationship between the patient and the hospital is vital. Involving your stakeholders before you design or reinvent your product is essential.

Now imagine you are designing an elementary and secondary education system that does not engage its most important "patients": students. This is the reality faced by students across the country, particularly those from disadvantaged communities. They are required to receive a treatment that does not take their needs -- or their talents -- into account.

But it does not have to be this way. We have come to this "treatment design" through choices made over generations. Some of those choices have been purposefully harmful for young people like me.

As a young man of color born and raised in the Bronx, I have seen these consequences first-hand. When young men and women in communities like mine are left out of the education policy conversation, we lose the opportunity to be a part of the larger society. Some of us lose years of our lives to the criminal-justice system -- or even lose our lives to violence.

Every student should have the opportunity for deep and nuanced engagement. Policies with broad ownership among students have an increased chance of long-term success and can help those who craft education policies be more effective. Proactively building relationships and creating policy in partnership with us helps ensure that our education system is designed to address our needs and aspirations.

Together, policymakers and students can design equity-focused education policies that address issues students face at home, in their communities and within their schools -- barriers that are often ignored to the detriment of student achievement and college and career readiness.

Read the full article about equity in education by Senegal Alfred Mabry at Governing magazine