The Brunswick Trust Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging

body or your mind works differently from other people’s. Some disabilities are visible, and some are invisible.”

The story brought boys to the conclusion that asking intrusive questions can be difficult and upsetting for disabled people. Boys brainstormed better ways to react when encountering disabled people in our communities.

Newly elected leadership for Upper School Diversity in Action visited the Middle School in May to talk to rising freshmen about goals and expectations for next year.

DIA is totally integrated into the culture of both the Upper and Middle Schools; both clubs bring awareness of contemporary issues as well as “courageous conversation” around diversity issues.

At the Upper School, DIA club meets on Tuesday evenings and is instrumental in planning and preparing for the “A Global Brunswick” annual event, National Hispanic & Latino Heritage Month, Martin Luther King Jr. celebrations, and much more. Upper School DIA members also attend the National Student Diversity Leadership Conference (SDLC), where they have the opportunity to discuss varied diversity issues and initiatives and bring ideas back to campus.

First graders have been thinking about disability after reading What Happened to You? by James Catchpole and Karen George.

The book, shared by Lower School Librarian Beth Barsanti in April, introduces the theme of disability to young students in a matterof-fact way.

“We had a discussion about what a disability is,” said Barsanti. “It means your continued on page 4

Pre and Lower School boys are marking Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in May through My Day With Gong Gong, a picture book by Sennah Yee that details a budding connection between a Chinese American girl and her Cantonese-speaking grandfather.

The girl, May, spends the day being dragged around Chinatown by her grandfather, understanding and being understood little — until the two make special connections even without being able to speak the same language.

Alecia Thomas, director of diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging, and Sean Stanley, associate director of DEIB, have been visiting both the Pre and Lower School to share the book with the boys.

Jason Kennedy ’16 served as speaker for the final get-together of the 2022-23 Black Student Mentorship Program, which brings together Brunswick African American students with an active and engaged cohort of African American alumni.

Kennedy spoke to a gathering of about 35 who turned up for some food and fellowship at the Lower School in May. After the talk, groups of mentors and mentees broke off into small clusters and made their way into nearby classrooms for conversation about success in school, college, and beyond.

Patrick Andrén ’93, chief operating officer at Brunswick, said alumni engagement with BSMP has been strong.

“Just as we always do at Brunswick, the goal is to foster a community for life,” he said.