From curating a whole day of professional development to partnership with divisional leaders to thought sharing with colleagues, these invitations legitimized the purpose of Brooklyn Friends’ DEB office and makes visible the integrity of this community’s commitment. Values of equity, community, wholeness, imagination, learning and justice enacted in authentic ways through the collective responsibility we all hold in our hands.
In the spirit of centering all the ways we do the work, here are some snapshots from divisional life which illustrate the ways souls, humanity, character, and criticality are nurtured in our school—not necessarily as guided through the DEB office—but as a collective experience; work that is the heart of the Brooklyn Friends School mission and takes us from where we have always been in ways that are grounded in the “now” of our world for learning that is timely and enduring.
Preschool
The foundational learning for Preschool was developing community and friendship which incorporates the NAEYC anti bias goals. Query: How are we the same and different and how do we celebrate each other and learn what is fair? Evidence of this is embedded in the curriculum, particularly in the choice of books and ongoing team reflection. Activity: AntiBias Principles in Early Childhood, Identity exploration, representation and conversations about family and what kindness truly means.
Lower School
In the Lower School, Kindergarten Head Teacher, Laleña Garcia, and Associate Teacher, Olivia Sweet, engaged in an activity at morning meeting reflecting on the meaning of Collective Value. “The goal was to show that everybody is important and has the right to be safe and happy, no matter what religion they are, how much money they have, where they come from, their abilities or disabilities, or who they love. “Just like in our community, everyone has to be safe!” one child exclaimed. Children then took some time to think about things that are important to their KC community and work collaboratively on posters demonstrating the values as a community. As noted in class news, many children were moved to write words, as well as draw pictures, demonstrating their growing understanding of the power of words. After the activity was completed, the children looked at them together to share what they noticed, and discuss why they chose the images and words they did.”
Middle School
The Middle School’s Affinity Club Program included G.A.Y.E.S.T. LGBTQIA+ and IMANI for Black and Brown Girls of Color, were spaces for affirmation and identity development of youth. Connection, community, voice, justice, and awareness building transpired. As one student named: “We found each other, and that feels good.” Marching in Brooklyn Pride, an activism act, was the culmination of the school year!
Upper School
For Spanish language learning in the Upper School, there were activities in amplifying a “single story” of a chapter of Dominican History and Culture. By inviting partnership in planning, Vanessa incorporated narrative and interview with Dominicans introducing counter-narratives and personal stories to impact the singular story of the Trujillo era.
The Office of Diversity, Equity, and Belonging explores various aspects of diversity through three different lenses: Comprehensive, Intersectional, and Power & Privilege.
- Comprehensive- Critical analysis of the various aspects of diversity and the way in which it impacts us as individuals as well as interpersonally.
- Intersectional – is a concept often used (in critical theories) to describe the ways in which oppressive institutions (racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, xenophobia, classism, etc.) are interconnected and cannot be examined separately from one another.
- Power & Privilege: Privilege is defined as benefits and resources gained by any person(s) or groups of people who have access to a larger dominant culture within a society due to any one of their social identifiers. Power is defined as the possession of control or command over others; exercising authority or being able to impact/influence a perceived reality or external environment.
