Diversity at MB Diversity Mission Statement As a Friends school, we adhere to the Quaker value that every human being possesses a unique inner light reflecting dignity and worth. Our mission is to support education and teaching within our community by initiating activities and discussions that promote understanding and respect. We are responsible for building an environment of trust where each individual can feel safe. We are committed to the challenge of confronting issues of injustice, discrimination, and intolerance.
Defining Diversity At Moses Brown, “diversity” is understood to be defined as a series of identities including: abilities/disabilities, socio-‐economic background, ethnicity, gender, language, race, religious preference and sexual orientation. The School recognizes that every member of the Moses Brown community is identified in each of these ways and, as a school, Moses Brown is greatly enriched by this diversity. Why Diversity Matters At Moses Brown we believe that a welcoming and diverse community is essential for the full expression of our Friends (Quaker) mission and for the execution of our rigorous academic program. We purposefully seek to form a community whose members represent the greatest variety of backgrounds and identities possible. Why? Because we believe: • Students in a diverse environment learn to be accepting and are less likely to develop the biases and stereotypes which can form in the absence of diversity. • An environment that is safe and celebratory of difference allows us to address Friends (Quaker) testimonies, most particularly, those of equality, community, peace and integrity. • A diverse community gives our students the best chance to develop the skills that they will need to be leaders in the increasingly interconnected global world community. • The most successful global citizens will be those who are culturally literate, understand and value multiple perspectives, and who can work collaboratively with those different from themselves. Throughout the sweep of our nursery-‐12 grade program, our curriculum delivers on these goals by fostering in our students self-‐awareness, an actively ethical mindset, a respect for difference, and a willingness to confront injustice and make positive contributions in the world.
Diversity Work (How we do what we do) Each of the academic divisions at MB has a committee devoted to advancing the school’s diversity work for its particular age-‐group. An All-‐School Diversity Committee (ASCD) meets monthly and includes faculty, staff, parents, board members, division heads, and the Head of School. The ASDC, in cooperation with the divisional committees works to: • Ensure that the student experience is supported and that diversity discussions advance in the school’s three divisions. • Ensure best practices in admissions and hiring. • Assess Moses Brown School’s success and to make recommendations regarding its diversity-‐related goals and aspirations. Diversity work is also a constant presence in the classroom. Teachers strive to present a rich multicultural curriculum and are encouraged to weave learning opportunities around the eight identities into their program. Moses Brown students engage these topics from a young age and learn to recognize bias in themselves and the world around them. There are also times throughout the year when students get the opportunity to focus on a single topic in depth. This could take the form of diversity workshops run by lower school teachers, or special assemblies and speakers for students in the upper grades. Moses Brown School is committed to advancing the professional development of its teachers, staff and administrators in matters of diversity and inclusivity work. The school supports conference and workshop participation, in-‐service trainings, as well as independent projects such as topic-‐driven discussion groups and book-‐ clubs.