The TEMS Theme for February is Equity, so at the beginning of February, the TEMS Guardian students participated in a workshop to learn more about equity and why it is important. Equity means that instead of everyone getting the same thing, everyone gets what they need. People don't always need the same thing, and that is okay. So getting what you need is better than getting the same thing as everybody else.

To learn about this, students were separated into small groups. Every group got the same set of instructions, but different sets of blocks. Some groups instructions matched their blocks, so it was easy to build their structure. But other students didn't have the right blocks for their instructions, so it was impossible to build. 

Students learned that if they got the right set of instructions to match their blocks, they could build the structure successfully. So it was more important to get the instructions they needed than to get the same instructions as everyone else.

In February students learned more about and practiced equity by volunteering for social justice organizations. 
By researching and presenting their group's organization, students learned about how these groups promote equity and social justice for vulnerable groups, and how students can also participate in these efforts in their own communities.

Because of the new semester starting, Guardian students participated in pathway meetings again. In the pathway meetings, students discuss their current progress and goals with the Guardian Management team to make sure students are on the right path to reach their goals. 

In February's pathway meetings, students had the opportunity to receive more equitable support by being grouped by how much and what kind of support each student needs. Students had the opportunity to explain the level of support they thought would be best for their goals and current progress, and discussed with the management team the best plan for them.