RACIAL LITERACY WITH VOGELSANG
Parents Explore Racial Literacy Issues with Pollyanna’s Monique Vogelsang On Tuesday, December 15, Gaynor parents, faculty,
“Tonight’s presentation is really in response to a lot of
and staff tuned in to a special Diversity, Equity, and
reach out that I think all of us [in the Parents’ Association]
Inclusion webinar.
received after our introduction a couple of months ago
The Parents’ Association Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee, co-chaired by Kathy Yang and Nina Norwood,
invited
Pollyanna
Curriculum
Specialist
Monique Vogelsang to help the parent community
to say, ‘I really want to make sure I’m connecting the dots between what my student is learning in school and what we want to talk about during dinner or the weekends,’” she said.
expand their racial literacy and provide tools for
After her introduction, Ms. Vogelsang joined the webinar
navigating future conversations about race at home.
and greeted the Gaynor community. She gave an overview
The
presentation
was
titled
“Racial
Literacy
101:
of what to expect from the evening and the goals.
Connecting the Classroom to Home Through the Power
“We’re here because of your children and because we’re
of Language,” and 50 people tuned in on Zoom to watch
really aiming to keep students and equity at the center
Ms. Vogelsang’s presentation and discussion.
of what we do,” she said. She explained that her remarks
This isn’t Ms. Vogelsang’s first time working with Gaynor on DEI initiatives. This fall, she worked closely with Gaynor faculty and staff to help carefully and thoughtfully develop Gaynor’s Racial Literacy
would be “anchored in the idea of racial literacy, the importance of expanding our awareness, thinking about the language that’s being used at school, [and] how to bridge the conversation from school to home.”
Curriculum. With the guidance of Ms. Vogelsang, and
She then went on to read Gaynor’s mission statement
informed by Pollyanna and other expert sources, Gaynor
and DEI statement, saying that the idea of recognizing
launched the curriculum in September.
and creating a diverse and inclusive environment is
The evening began with Head of School Dr. Scott Gaynor
embedded in these statements.
saying a few words before introducing PA President
“The language is there,” Ms. Vogelsang said. “I think this
Megan Hogan.
is something that we’re aiming to cultivate. Promoting,
“Your attendance tonight is a wonderful example of the importance of the community effort in making sure that DEI work stays at the forefront, and that we continue to take action and make progress,” Dr. Gaynor said. Ms. Hogan then talked about the importance of the evening and introduced Ms. Vogelsang.
advocating, and celebrating as part of what we’re doing in the classroom, which is really sound pedagogy. This is all part of the work of diversity, equity, and inclusion, and I would say racial literacy is a core tenet of that.” During
the
presentation,
Ms.
Vogelsang
reviewed
language and frameworks that promote racial equity.
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