DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION
Statements of Belief
Equity, inclusion, and human dignity are at the heart of the community we aspire to be. We therefore commit to the following beliefs fundamental to our Mission:
A Life of Learning
A community diverse in identities, experiences, and perspectives leads to a life of learning, when each of us is willing to listen, to reflect, and to work toward developing richer understandings of ourselves and of the world around us.
A Life of Integrity
A life of integrity is an ethical life — a commitment to stand up for what’s right and just — and a coherent life — a commitment to be the same best version of ourselves in all settings and in our treatment of all people.
A Life of High Purpose
A life of high purpose means giving at least as much as we receive, loving at least as much as we hope to be loved, showing at least as much patience and kindness as we hope to be shown. It means seeking to create a world that assures all human beings the unalienable dignity that is their birthright.
Inspiring the Best in Each
In order to inspire the best in each, we must engage in a culture that actively rejects racism. We can achieve a more just and equitable community when we invest fully in ourselves and in those around us — and when we expect the same in return.
The Lawrenceville School continued to make important strides toward the commitments outlined in the School’s DEI strategic plan, Belonging. Building. Becoming., released in June 2021. This report reflects initiatives from January-June 2023.
Please review our DEI progress dashboard to see specific areas of impact.
BECOMING.
Great schools are aspirational and transformational. Our teachers nurture and cultivate learners who are reflective and curious, open to new ideas, and hungry for lifelong growth. The educational experiences we design invite community members to work collaboratively across a broad range of cultural traditions and identities in a spirit of mutual respect, humility, and expanded understanding. Having lived in and helped shape a community built on this respect and understanding, our graduates take the faith and belief in this possibility out into the world as agents of positive change and, with their confident voices and principled minds, confront the important challenges of their time.
Professional Development and Community Awareness
Create training opportunities and DEI awareness programs for all community members.
n Restorative Justice:
• Trained 30 early adopters including faculty, staff, and senior administrators, in restorative practices. The training advanced the immediate goal of equipping adults and students with the language and skills to strengthen community bonds and with the long term goal of building capacity for alternative approaches to addressing harm in the community. The training empowered participants to begin pilot these practices in the classroom, Houses, and co-curriculars.
• Developed The Restorative Justice Leadership Team, a group of employees across the school tasked with envisioning the ways that restorative practices can be incorporated into the school community. The team met biweekly to engage in Circle Practice and develop recommendations.
• Provided weekly circle practice opportunities for early adopters.
• Offered circles for students during Community Day.
n Implicit Bias Training for Trustees:
• Rev. Dr. Bryant Marks of the National Training Institute on Race and Equity facilitated training for the Board of Trustees during their spring meeting. The presentation title was “The Hidden Bias of Good People: Implications for Board of Trustee Members and the Institutions They Serve.”
n Cultural and Heritage Celebrations:
• Black History Month: Held second annual Afro-Fest, which celebrated the arts and culture of people of the African Diaspora. Offered a wide array of food, crafts, games, and trivia. Students led a school meeting honoring the self-fashioning and performance culture of Black people as well as celebrated in affinity with dinner and conversation.
Professional Development and Community Awareness
• Women’s History Month: Welcomed Shaezmina Khan ’19, who spoke to students about her work to move past "self-essentialization'' in order to create space for freedom of self-expression. Other Women’s History Month programming included a women’s empowerment workshop led by cultural worker Amaryllis Lopez on the importance of friendships and coalition building between young women and girls.
• Pride Week: Highlights of the week included an annual Pride Flag raising and Day of Silence. The Office of Multicultural Affairs supported student and faculty attendance to New Hope (Pennsylvania) Pride at the end of May.
• Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month: Invited poet Cathy Park Hong, author of “Minor Feelings,” to speak to the School community. In conversation with English teacher Sujin Seo, Hong examined race and emotion. Her series of essays aided the community work in mental health and well-being through the lens of memoir and cultural criticism.
• Executive Director of the Hutchins Institute for Social Justice Zaheer Ali offered several music listening sessions called “Listening as a Creative Act”----a curated music listening series that invites participants to expand and deepen our listening as a way to explore identities, share histories, build community, and expand our imaginations. Students attended a communal listening experience for Women’s History Month, AAPI Month, and Wellness Day.
• Jewish American Heritage Month: Celebrated Shavuot in partnership with the Jewish Student Organization with a fun and refreshing water fight at the Crescent Green followed by a cheesecake dessert.
• Juneteenth: Juneteenth was observed on June 19 with a School-wide holiday, educational resources, free historical texts, and a list of Juneteenth celebrations in the area.
• Step Afrika Trip: Cosponsored with the Hutchins Institute for Social Justice, more than 30 students attended the Step Afrika performance in Philadelphia which honored the percussive dance styles practiced by historically African American fraternities and sororities and traditional West and Southern African dances.
• Let’s Talk About (LTA): Guided by new student leadership, LTA meetings were held several times during the spring term to discuss topics such as reproductive rights, relationship building, and body image and identity.
Professional Development and Community Awareness
• Lunch and Dialogue: Met biweekly and partnered with Sustainability Council and PanAsian Alliance
• Community Day: Students developed a Community Day titled, “What the L: ReVisioning Who We Are.” The theme was meant to inspire all Lawrentians to not only imagine change at Lawrenceville, but begin to achieve that vision. The keynote was a panel discussion moderated by Barbara Odae ’23 and featured Jane Ferguson ’04, Donna Rizzo ’04, Dwight Draughon ’04, Don Kao ’69, and Barry Gonzalez ’82. The panel was followed by 40 interactive workshops on a wide array of topics that reflected on or furthered the theme of the day by community members. The day ended with dessert food trucks and a community barbeque.
Please review our DEI progress dashboard to see specific areas of impact >
