Create a Healthy, Inclusive, and Equitable Campus Climate and Culture Words Matter

Words Matter

By Bina Neumann, Sixth-Grade Language Arts/Social Studies teacher, and Middle School DEIB Co-Coordinator

A recent Middle School program co-led by Bina Neumann, strongly articulates the current work happening to create an environment in which all community members are welcomed and supported and seek and value differing perspectives and contributions. Here, she shares a little about the program and its impact.

With the DEIB goals and strategies as the foundation, the stage was set to engage in a thoughtful discussion on Words Matter in Middle School. It started with our usual advisory instruction and discussion but ended with a powerful and inspirational moment that has already made an impact in our community.

In preparation for our Town Meeting on October 4, students reflected on the school’s Affirmation of Community and reviewed key vocabulary including affirm, inclusive, commonality, and hate speech, involving all the different ways that it exists.

Faculty also led students through lessons on “intent” versus “impact.” Intent is what you aim to achieve through an action, and impact is how a person or community receives that action. The effect does not always match the intent. Good intentions do not always result in a positive impact. Students were encouraged to engage in candid discussions and did!

Armed with that knowledge, students and faculty headed into the most impactful part of this DEIB Words Matter program—the Town Meeting. Upper School Junior Class President Alex Connors shared a personal experience in Middle School involving a racially charged joke. The entire gymnasium was silent as Alex bravely and eloquently described the impact this event had on her, not just at that moment but still today. She was filled with hurt, confusion, and doubt. She impressed upon our Middle School community that “small words have big consequences, intention or not. So, this is why words matter.” She reminded us that “we need to think about what we say; we even need to think about what we’re thinking.”

As Alex’s former sixth-grade advisor, I found it difficult to hold back my emotions. Her fellow Buccaneers felt the same way. Alex’s speech motivated others to share their stories. One student, in particular, did so through tears. It was a powerful moment to see Alex wrap her arms around this student and acknowledge her sadness and bravery.

Our school’s Affirmation of Community states, “Awareness that living and embracing diversity are an active process, a continual journey which engages us in personal and institutional self-assessment, reflections, and openness to growth and change.” I am proud of the work we are doing in the Middle School toward living up to our Affirmation of Community and achieving our DEIB Strategic Planning goals, not only for today’s students but for the Alexes of the future.