OUR PEOPLE

OUR ACTION PLAN FOR RACIAL EQUITY: TRACKING OUR PROGRESS

MAKING STRIDES IN THE AREA OF

OUR PEOPLE

MORE THAN A YEAR AGO, Pace Academy published its Action Plan for Racial Equity, a living document created to “eradicate racism and its legacy, and to dismantle any racial hierarchies within our school community.”

To accomplish these goals, foster true racial equity and ensure that every community member feels supported, valued and safe, we have since embarked on an examination of institutional practices, policies and procedures—and are implementing meaningful changes.

The Board of Trustees, Head of School FRED ASSAF, Chief Equity and Inclusion Officer JOANNE BROWN and Director of Equity and Inclusion NIRVANA SCOTT are working alongside dedicated students, faculty, staff, administrators, parents and alumni to realize the action items detailed in the plan.

The plan focuses on six areas: Teaching & Curriculum, Our Community, Listening & Learning, Our People, Joining Our Community and Our Pledge. In each issue of this magazine, we report on strides made in one of these areas. Up next? Our People.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON OUR PROGRESS IS AVAILABLE AT www.paceacademy.org/diversity-inclusion. “To foster a sense of belonging in our school community, all students must see themselves reflected in our leadership, faculty and staff, and must experience meaningful, intentional and authentic support,” the Action Plan for Racial Equity states.

To ensure that Pace is a safe, supportive space in which to work, the plan calls for regular training for all faculty and staff, with specific antiracist and anti-bias trainUniversity of Virginia Vice President for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Community Partnerships Kevin McDonald spoke to all faculty and staff during the 2021 pre-planning week. He is pictured with current faculty and staff who are also UVA alumni.

The Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion kicked off the year with a full day of training for faculty and staff.

ing for school leadership, admissions committees, department chairs and new faculty mentors.

That work began prior to the start of the 2020–2021 school year, when all faculty and staff took part in mandatory training during the pre-planning period. To build upon the learning inspired by those educational sessions, the Office

of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion presented professional development programming related to antiracist pedagogies and practices throughout the school year. And, in the wake of acts of violence against people of color, the team shared with faculty and staff resources for discussing difficult events with students and offered both students and adults on campus spaces for dialogue and reflection.

In addition, to better recruit, hire, support and retain faculty and staff members who identify with groups historically underrepresented at Pace, Chief Human Resources Officer STEPHANIE CANTILLO worked closely with Brown to update the language used in job postings, on the employment page of the Pace website and in interviews with finalists. In an effort to be more intentional and inclusive, she also widened the net when it came to posting positions.

“Pace is fully committed to a culturally diverse faculty and student body and actively seeks candidates from historically underrepresented populations,” job descriptions now read. They go on to include as an essential responsibility “ongoing training, professional development and education in antiracism, diversity, equity and inclusion.” Candidates applying for faculty positions now understand that they must effectively incorporate principles of diversity, equity and inclusion into their teaching; further, belief “in the critical importance of diversity in the life of a school” is listed among the qualifications for all employees.

Potential employees took notice. “Throughout the hiring process for the 2021–2022 school year, we heard time and time again—from candidates of all backgrounds—that our stated commitment to racial equity was one of the things that led them to apply,” Cantillo reports.

To further support inclusive hiring practices, Brown and Cantillo engaged Strategenius, a search firm for independent schools seeking diverse candidates for teaching and leadership positions. Strategenius provided anti-bias hiring training to the administrative team prior to the start of the hiring season. “Already, we’ve seen that these efforts are paying off,” Cantillo says. “The changes we’ve made have helped us hire faculty and staff who we know understand our community’s values, standards and expectations—who truly believe in our Action Plan for Racial Equity—and I’m excited to report that 31% of those new hires are people of color.”

As new faculty and staff come onboard, their orientation includes a session regarding school culture as it pertains to diversity, equity and inclusion, and those who identify as BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and people of color) will participate in check-ins with BIPOC mentors to support their transition to Pace.

“To truly create prepared, confident citizens of the world, the Pace community must reflect our global community,” Brown says. “Our students should see themselves reflected in their teachers and their teachers’ experiences—and vice versa. I’m excited about the progress we’re making and look forward to continuing our work in the coming school year.” l

DEI TEAM

In July, Lower School Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Coordinator NIRVANA SCOTT assumed a new role: Director of Equity and Inclusion. The new position is part of an expansion of the DEI team, which also includes the addition of coordinators in the Lower, Middle and Upper Schools—bringing the total number of DEI coordinators to six, two in each division. All coordinators are Pace employees who will continue to serve in their primary roles while supporting DEI initiatives and programs.

LOWER SCHOOL

AMY UNDERWOOD

Lower School Director of Curriculum and Professional Development

ASHLEY ZOMALT

Lower School Counselor

MIDDLE SCHOOL

ASHLEY CLAY

Middle School Counselor

SCOTT SHUPE History Teacher

UPPER SCHOOL

NIKKI MCCRARY

Assistant to Head of Upper School, Transitions Advisor

DUKE SHERRELL

History Teacher