Shawnee Mission brings on first-ever coordinator of diversity, equity and inclusion

For the past several years, a group of Shawnee Mission parents have been urging the administration to improve diversity and inclusion efforts across the school district. On July 1, a new staff member joined the district with the task of addressing just that.

Tyrone Bates, Ed.D., is the school district’s first ever coordinator of diversity, equity and inclusion.

Bates comes to Shawnee Mission with nearly two decades of experience as a classroom teacher and administrator. He spent the bulk of his career as a teacher and building administrator in Kansas City, Kan., Public Schools, and spent a year as the principal of the African-Centered College Preparatory Academy in Kansas City Public Schools. The past three years, he was the principal of Banneker Elementary in KCKPS.

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