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DISMANTLING RACISM: A MORAL IMPERATIVE
Conversations around racism in America hit a fever pitch in 2020. When students, alumnae/i and faculty of color began detailing their experiences of racism that they said took place at Masters, the School took bold action with the goal of becoming an anti-racist and anti-bias institution.
The summer of 2020 brought the United States to a moment of reckoning with regard to pervasive racial injustices. The high-profile and violent deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery precipitated a national movement that called on every individual and every industry to confront legacies of racism.
In light of growing tensions in the country, Head of School Laura Danforth addressed the community on May 30 with a message of unity and a reminder of the School’s mission. “The work of recognizing, confronting and dismantling racism should be a moral imperative for all of us,” she stated. “I urge all of us in the Masters community to actively educate ourselves and our families on an ongoing basis with regard to the pervasive and toxic presence of racism in our world and to commit to being active proponents of social justice. Without this commitment, none of us can reach our potential as powers for good in the world.”
—LAURA DANFORTH, HEAD OF SCHOOL
In addition to protests taking place across the United States, conversations about race also coursed through social media. An Instagram movement called @blackat brought together the voices of students, alumni and other members of school communities who shared experiences of racism that they said had taken place at their schools. An account created for The Masters School, @blackattms, highlighted painful and searing testimonies of Masters community members.
Maddy Blake ’22 shared that, after seeing @blackat accounts created for other schools, she expected one to be created for those who wanted to share their experiences at Masters. “I just thought it was a matter of time before someone in the community decided it was something they wanted or had to do,” Blake explained. “The stories that are shared are extremely important.” Vincent Madera ’05 said that he was “surprised and devastated” while reading the stories on @blackattms. Madera, who has remained close to Masters since graduating, works at Children’s Village, a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving at-risk children and underprivileged families. “I work with children now in foster care. The first thing I think about is especially kids of color going to boarding schools,” he said. “You want to feel safe and protected, especially when you don’t have the direct support of your family in a traditional high school where you go home every day. I felt for them.”
He also recalled his years at Masters as ones that included both painful and positive experiences: “I started thinking about my time at Masters and how two things can be true: I did have a wonderful time at Masters living in the dorms, and I also experienced microaggressions and overt racism.”
—EDITH CHAPIN ’83, CHAIR OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES
— MADELINE SEGUINOT P’20, ’24
Madeline Seguinot P’20, ’24, who co-chairs the School’s Parent Association Equity and Inclusion Committee, was aware that students were not always understanding or empathetic toward the experience of students of color. But, she said, “I was not aware of how widespread it was, including the impact it had on alumni.” She noted that, painful as it was to read the stories on the account, “I admired our courageous members of our school community who used this platform to express themselves and their experiences.”
In a heartfelt letter to the community sent via email on June 26, Danforth responded to the stories shared on the @blackattms account with an unequivocal apology and a clear message of support and empathy for those who shared their testimonies. “First and foremost, on behalf of the School, I deeply apologize for the pain and suffering that Black students and other students of color have endured at Masters, whether in the past or in the present.” She added: “To those raising their voices to call for change: We hear you and are determined to regain your trust. We will use your testimonies to further provide equity and belonging for all the members of our community.” Following Danforth’s call for change, The Masters School leadership embarked on a comprehensive review of every area of school life. The result of this process was the creation of A Better Masters, the School’s anti-racism and anti-bias action plan. A Better Masters addressed six key areas in the School: governance; admission; racial diversity among faculty, staff and administrators; policies and procedures; curriculum and pedagogy; and community and belonging. It also conveyed clear timelines for accountability. The plan was announced to the community on July 13 by email and social media, with some of the actions enacted immediately.
Creating the action plan involved conversations with parents, alumnae/i and students of color. Seguinot and fellow Parent Association Equity and Inclusion Committee Co-Chair Irma Pereira-Hudson P’21 spearheaded a meeting among families of color, Danforth and board member Mirna Valerio ’93. During the meeting, which included a preview of the action plan, “we provided feedback and had deep and personal discussions with Ms. Danforth and Board of Trustees member Mirna Valerio ’93 about our own experiences and concerns,” Seguinot recalled. “They listened attentively and vowed to lead by example.”
In addition to essential conversations with and feedback from a variety of constituents, the plan would not have been possible without the thoughtful expertise of Director of Equity and Inclusion Karen Brown P’16. “I am hoping that our collaborative endgame will be one of hope, healing, reconciliation and resolution,” Brown said as the plan was released to the community. “We have come together to make sure that this school is an anti-racist, anti-biased institution.” Specifically addressing both current and former students, Brown added: “We are here for you, we are rising up alongside you.”
—KAREN BROWN P’16, DIRECTOR OF EQUITY AND INCLUSION
A COMMITMENT TO DO BETTER
— MADDY BLAKE ’22
In a video accompanying the plan, Chair of the Board of Trustees Edith Chapin ’83 referenced systemic racism in the country as an unacceptable reality that has been ingrained in society for hundreds of years. “Addressing these issues in our community is both central to our mission and mission-critical,” Chapin said. “Our mission is to educate, inspire and prepare students to be a power for good in the world. In order to live up to that mission, we must set an example. We must do better — we will do better.”
Under the governance section of the plan, the School committed to creating a Board of Trustees committee on diversity, equity and inclusion. Valerio, an alumna, trustee and former Masters teacher, agreed to chair the committee.
Valerio was also involved in crafting the anti-racism plan and, upon its release, she emphasized the need for quick and thoughtful action “to ensure that all Masters community members — particularly our students of color, and even more specifically our Black students and faculty — feel loved and are loved wholly, are respected, and are acknowledged in all of their various identities.” She also called on the community to hold the School accountable: “It is in this way, and only in this way — doing it with our might — that we will continue to be the power for good we all know Masters inspires within us.”
A Better Masters was received with both praise and skepticism from members of the Masters community. Many appreciated the effort and thoroughness of the plan, while eagerly awaiting concrete actions and meaningful change. Others felt that, until they see changes implemented, the plan is simply words on paper.
In fact, during the interview conducted for this article, Madera highlighted the importance of the School’s including dissenting voices, rather than just those who are in full alignment with the plan. “We’re not going to please everyone,” he explained. “The voice of the people that are not pleased needs to be heard just as much as those who were, because that’s when good, constructive feedback comes.”
THE COMMUNITY RESPONDS
Masters has co-hosted the Saturday Summit on Social Justice for the past three years. Nearly 200 students, faculty and administrators from 12 peer schools gathered on The Masters School campus for the third annual Saturday Summit on Social Justice on November 2, 2019.
Danforth agrees. “This needs to be in the center of our work, and in what we learn, and in how we treat one another. As has become starkly apparent, anything less makes us complicit in structural racism that so persistently and insistently conspires against people of color, and Black people in particular,” she said.
Blake is a co-founder of Students of Color Empowering Excellence and Mentorship (S.C.E.E.M.), a newly formed program dedicated to supporting and empowering students of color at Masters. In the wake of the @blackattms account, she participated in conversations with school leadership and provided input as the action plan was being prepared. “It’s our job now to make sure that the cycle breaks,” Blake said. Her response to A Better Masters was: “It was planned out well — you can tell that they took their time to specify every single point of it.” In addition, and echoing the voices of other students of color, Blake said that she felt it was important that the School recognize and realize “what’s going on and that it has been going on for years. We all love Masters, but no place is perfect. Every place is going to have their issues. I think that it’s just important how we deal with those issues.”
Cameron Lovett ’23, who also took part in conversations with school leadership about the plan, had a similar response. “I am very pleased and happy these issues are being addressed at our School,” he said. “This is definitely a big step forward.”
Seguinot echoed a similar sentiment, noting that she was particularly pleased with the inclusion of the online name bank, where students and faculty will record their names so that community members will know how to pronounce their names correctly. She also noted, “As an educator and parent, the commitment to diversify the faculty and the Board of Trustees is important to me.”
—LAURA DANFORTH, HEAD OF SCHOOL
In June 2020, Nina Hylton ’17 created the Black Alumni Network, which she explained was formed “to support and uplift future generations of Black students at Masters as well as to give back to our alma mater.” Hylton hopes that the nascent network will continue to grow and serve Masters’ students and alumni of color. “Going forward, I plan for the Black Alumni Network to stay connected, grow in size and partner with current students looking for alumni mentors. I would also love it if we could support one another in our personal endeavors!” she enthusiastically stated.
At the time of its creation, the network welcomed 42 members. The group compiled a list of actions that it believed were essential for the School’s anti-racism plan and remained in contact with Danforth to provide feedback both before and after its release.
Hylton recognizes that the goal of the action plan is ambitious, but she appreciates the commitment from the School. She said: “There will always be more work to be done, but I personally feel that Masters has shown that they are devoted to hearing the concerns of the student body and addressing any injustices.”
A COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION
The goals laid out in A Better Masters build upon initiatives that have been implemented over the past five years, including expanding the Equity and Inclusion Office to have a full-time director and division coordinators and creating the diversity ambassador program; affinity groups for students of color, LGBTQ+ students and Asian students; the Middle School’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion leadership group; and the Parent Association Equity and Inclusion Committee.
Additionally, the School has significantly increased its student, faculty and administrator participation in the annual People of Color Conference, the Student Diversity Leadership Conference and the MOSAIC Conference, and has offered ongoing professional development around issues of diversity, equity and inclusion. These opportunities have included trainings and presentations from consultants Dr. Derrick Gay, Tim Wise and Alex Myers.
Since 2017, The Masters School has successfully co-hosted the annual Saturday Summit on Social Justice. The School also conducted its first NAIS AIM survey in 2017 and used its results to better understand the diversity, equity and inclusion climate on campus.
With a comprehensive action plan now overlaying these initiatives, the School is on a path toward becoming a more inclusive and welcoming environment — something that is at the heart of its mission statement: to be a power for good in the world. “The ultimate destination of anti-racism is a joyous one for the human family,” Danforth said in a video message that was released with the action plan. “This is the journey toward goodness, connection, fairness, kindness and respect. I intend to steer the Masters community toward equity and inclusion, carrying those qualities in my heart, and I invite you to do the same.”
