Diversity and Inclusion
Anti-Racism Work
As a result of our anti-bias training in September 2020, we (the ped council) were asked to add to our list of “essential qualities” and define our anti-racist work as follows.
1. PLAY - a joyful world of play and imagination are at our core
2. RHYTHM - the rhythms of the seasons, days and weeks are rooted in relationship with the natural world
3. EXCELLENCE - attention to thoroughness in all of our work, from children, teachers and community leaders
4. WHOLENESS + GOODNESS - children, adults and the world are essentially good
5. STRENGTH - as human beings, we are strong and capable
6. BEAUTY and MAGIC - the world of beauty and magic nourishes and inspires
7. A CULTURE OF KINDNESS - we aspire to experience and grow our personal and communal capacity for kindness
8. PRACTICE OF ANTIRACISM - we commit ourselves to discovering and dismantling practices and systems that result in racial inequity, striving for a free, just, safe community for all
Catalyzed by the difficult experience of a former TJS family of Color and sustained by the public movement surrounding racial justice in the Summer and Autumn 2020:
-The pedagogical council of teachers engaged in conversations with community stakeholders around our successes and failures in regards to anti-racism.
-Lead teachers worked with colleagues throughout the U.S and Canada to share and further examine best-practices in offering anti-racist, decolonized curriculum to our students.
-The Juniper School faculty engaged in anti-bias training with an eye on examining our current classroom and leadership culture, power dynamics and curriculum and conflict biases.
-The Board of Education re-examined and re-committed to priority enrollment for Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC). Additionally, full and partial scholarships were prioritized for BIPOC.
- First Anti-Racist Town hall
- Faculty further engaged in meetings around what is working/what might work with regards to engaging an anti-racist curriculum in individual classrooms.
- Antiracism training and scholarships will be a priority when seeking grant funding.
Because commitment to anti-racism is an essential quality at the Juniper School, the Pedagogical Council and Board would like to formally invite the community to look into other ways that we can be in good communication/collaboration around this work. This may look like a board position or formal anti-racist committee.
The Pedagogical Council would also like to further define our commitment. We commit ourselves to humbly and openly doing the personal work of education and training around our held biases and racism. We also commit to working together locally and alongside our national colleagues to learn best-practices in further decolonizing the curriculum and supporting children in conversations that arise around race. We also ask our parents to give us feedback, thoughts and/or support around this work.
This update was written in January 2021. Please check back as we continue to further communicate updates with our community.
The Juniper School is committed to a policy of nondiscrimination and equal opportunity without regard to race, color, religious creed, ancestry, age, gender, marital status, national origin, disability or handicap, protected genetic information, veteran status, sexual orientation or any other factor protected by law.
The Juniper School gives priority enrollment to Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC). Additionally, full and partial scholarships are prioritized for BIPOC.