Holton's faculty and staff participated in an all-day professional development workshop dedicated to issues of identity, diversity, and equity. Gordon School Middle School Director and Holton alum Lynn Wells Bowman '84 and Gordon's Head of School Ralph Wales facilitated the professional day with breakout collaborative sessions and conversations. Gordon School has been recognized as a leader in multicultural practices and was awarded the NAIS Leading Edge in Equity and Justice Award.
The entire faculty and staff engaged in a two-part session titled: Who are we? People, Mission, Vision: Beginning the Conversation and Connecting the Dots: Mission, Identity, and Creating an Inclusive Community. Bowman and Wales navigated Holton's diversity objectives and fostered conversations between faculty and staff on personal stories of diversity and equity and how to learn and move forward with creating a comfortable space for students at Holton.
One of the many objectives of the day was, "To examine how our own beliefs, backgrounds, and experiences impact how we see the world and how we experience our school, interact with our colleagues, and engage with students and families."
The faculty participated in additional hands-on academic training involving curriculum and biases titled, "Exploring Windows and Mirrors and Creating an Anti-Bias Curriculum."
This day of self-reflection provided thought-provoking conversation with hopes to further the well-being of all of our students and for Holton to continue to be an evolving, inclusive community.
