Former student, advocate for people of color is Modesto schools’ new equity specialist
A former student has returned to Modesto City Schools in a newly created position to help school leaders advance their equity goals and build relationships with families of color.
The district hired Fallon Ferris, who has advocated for Black students’ academic and professional success since she was a Modesto student herself. She hopes to draw on her experience growing up as an economically disadvantaged student to support young people in similar circumstances.
“I understand, from my own perspective, what a lot of students might be going through,” she said.
As the equity and intervention specialist for Modesto’s largest school district, Ferris plans to identify inequities through school-specific teams, offer input as district leaders execute equity goals and increase each high school’s Black student union membership.
“We are truly, truly fortunate to have her in this district,” said Mark Herbst, associate superintendent for student support services.
Ferris started Aug. 1 in the second year of the district’s focus on equity and racial justice, Herbst said. The position is funded through federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) dollars, district spokeswoman Krista Noonan said in an email.
Ferris will support associate superintendents as they carry out the district’s six equity goals, which trustees approved in April. She’ll sit in on decision-making meetings and offer input. She also will participate in teams of teachers and administrators developing strategies to create more equitable outcomes specific to individual schools, Herbst said.
Including Ferris in high-level decision-making meetings “speaks volumes to the level of commitment the district has, the level of respect for what her position is,” Modesto City Schools trustee John Ervin III said.
Product of Modesto City Schools
Ferris attended Modesto’s La Loma Junior High School and Downey High School, graduating in 2013. She is one of three children and grew up in a single-parent household, she said.
“We were on every financial service and government assistance program you could think of,” she said. “And because of that, that’s where my passion lies.”
Ferris was involved in Downey’s Black Student Union throughout high school and was the first Modesto student to run for office in the statewide BSU organization. She won.
She studied business at Utah State University before moving to Florida, where she worked as a manager for Walt Disney World while earning her master’s degree in marketing communications.
During her time away, Ferris returned for seven summers to mentor high school students in Black student unions, she said. She sat in on meetings, offered advice and drove students to meet with public defenders in San Francisco to learn about law careers — part of an effort to connect Black students to high-achieving professionals who look like them.
“I’ve seen a lot of students then envision themselves in those roles,” Ferris said.
Last year, Ferris got a call from her former high school BSU adviser asking if she’d be interested in returning to Modesto to continue to elevate the community’s Black voices.
She said yes, and co-founded the Stanislaus County Youth Empowerment Program, a nonprofit organization designed to connect young people of color to academic and career opportunities.
“She does so much, she takes chances,” said Renaldo Rucker, who made the call to Ferris.
Students need career exposure
Rucker, who teaches special education at Davis High School, said he views cultural- and career-related differences as the biggest equity gaps in Modesto City Schools.
Black and Native American students are not exposed to as many career opportunities as most students are, he said. “I want them to have healthy careers that they really care about,” Rucker said. “Not just trying to survive.”
He also said Black students don’t learn about their history through general school programs. “You pretty much have to be in BSU to learn about your own culture,” Rucker said. “That’s detrimental to a Black student.”
Ferris spotted the position with Modesto City Schools about a year after she returned to Modesto. It seemed like a perfect fit, she said. She plans to continue volunteering with the Youth Empowerment Program on weekends.
Ferris said she’s excited to work for a superintendent who places equity at the forefront of the district’s future. Any barriers to closing equity gaps are not the fault of district employees, she said.
“I think every meeting that I’ve sat in, equity has been brought up,” Ferris said.
Asked to imagine looking back on Ferris’ job, years into the future, Rucker’s hope is simple: “That they wouldn’t need her position anymore.”
This story was originally published August 31, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
