During her career as a pioneering edtech school leader, Lorrie Owens has stood up to racism and sexism.
Sometimes it’s been subtle things like man’s explanation. “Some of my subordinates have tried to explain technical terms to me in very elementary terms,” says Owens, who has been the Director of Technology for the San Mateo County Office of Education since 2004.
In other cases, discrimination has been more overt. “I’ve had vendors refuse to talk to me but talk to my male subordinates,” Owens says. “It’s just a plethora of things that made me uncomfortable and it’s mostly because of my gender. Although on certain occasions I have had people, usually salespeople who have been a little distant or worse, and I can tell that it was because I am black.
Through it all, Owens persevered, and the micro and macro assaults he has endured have diminished, though not disappeared.
Along the way, Owens has worked to make edtech a more inclusive space for staff and students. She is the first woman, and still the only black woman, to lead the technology division of a California county office of education. She is a member of CoSN’s DEI committee and is a civil rights advocate who constantly fights for the disenfranchised. For these efforts, she was awarded Best Example of Providing Equity and Access at a recent Tech & Learning. Regional Leadership Summit in California.
Owens’ Advice for Women and People of Color in EdTech
“As hard as it is not to take it personally, don’t take it personally,” says Owens. “I did it for many years, and all it does is eat you. It really is a matter of ignorance, or maybe ignorance is a harsh word, but the conditioning of the person you’re interacting with.”
However, not taking it personally does not mean giving up bias. “Don’t let it go,” she says. “I do call it out, but I try to do it in a way that doesn’t put the person on the defensive and makes them aware. In some cases, people do it on purpose and they just don’t like you because of your gender or your race or whatever, and that’s just the way they are. But in many cases, they are not aware of what they are doing.”
K12 leaders who have displayed bias or inappropriate behavior that Owens has dealt with generally did not intend to be offensive. “What I found is that most people, when told, will stop those behaviors,” she says.
What school leaders can do to support DEI
K12 leaders need to be aware of the inherent biases that they themselves have. “Most people still have an unconscious bias that the most technically competent people are male and they are white or Asian,” says Owens.
Being aware of this potential for bias itself can help leaders begin to address it and treat employees more fairly. Owens says school leaders need to make sure that when they interact with or evaluate or engage with a person of color or a woman, they do it strictly on merit, strictly on what that person brings to the table, what their qualifications are and not on preconceived notions.
Owens also mentors women and people of color who work in technology to engage with students and model careers in edtech. “I’m a firm believer that you can’t be if you can’t see it,” says Owens. “There are many very talented young people who could do very well in this profession. But if you ask the average young person, say in elementary school, middle school, or in some cases even high school, have they thought about CTO, CIO, or seeking a leadership role in technology? ? Many of them have not thought about it because they do not see it.
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