Diversity, Equity, Community

“Building community requires truth-telling, bravery, courage, and grace.”

-Nikki Young, PhD, Bucknell University

At Far Brook, our diverse community fills each of us with so much invaluable knowledge – important truths that challenge stereotypes and affirm our best ideals. And so, we share a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion in all aspects of school life.

As a community, we represent a spectrum of identities, heritages, family configurations, cultures, interests, and perspectives, and believe this diversity makes us the strongest kind of learning environment – one that invests in understanding the experiences of others, develops the capability for critical thinking, and instills in each of us a sense of belonging and a thirst for equity and social justice.

Here, we believe that “childhood happens once” and know we have a great responsibility as these are the years when our students are forming early impressions and gaining knowledge that will serve as the foundation for their future engagement as global citizens in an ever-changing world. Our curriculum provides both windows and mirrors with which to support students’ emerging understanding of the world, and our beloved “arts” inspire and inform, offering rich opportunities for empathy, self-expression, shared experience, and joy. Through a myriad of diversity initiatives beyond the classroom, we encourage students to adopt a wider lens through which to view their own possibilities and those of others.

Far Brook’s Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Social Justice acknowledges the work we have committed to. Diligence, honesty, flexibility, compassion, resilience, and hope are required to be the community we aspire to be. And this is an all-school effort. An active, committed parent community partners with our skilled and compassionate faculty in this daily pursuit. Join us, as we learn and grow together, joyfully celebrating our commonalities and our differences, forming relationships, and sharing experiences that inspire and guide us during our Far Brook years and beyond. Read Far Brook’s Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Social Justice.

Widening the Lens: The Far Brook School Diversity Conference

Below are the topics and keynote speakers for each Widening the Lens Diversity Conference since its inception in 2016.

2016: Race: Creating a Generation of Inclusive Thinkers and Community Leaders. Keynote: Howard Stevenson
2017: LGBTQ+: Illuminating the Spectrum and Cultivating Pride. Keynote: Charles Blow
2018: From Attending to Belonging: Re-Imagining Independent Schools for our Intersectional Communities. Keynote: Richard Blanco
2019: Class in the Classroom: Exploring Socioeconomic Diversity in Our Schools. Keynote: Dr. Anthony (Tony) Jack
2020: Lift Every Voice: Centering the Student Experience in Building Anti-Racist Communities. Keynote: Zerlina Maxwell. Guest Facilitator: Dr. Rodney Glasgow
2021: Where Do We Go From Here? Affirming Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Independent Schools. Keynote Conversation: Jim Best and Jason Craige Harris
2022: Defining, Designing, and Delivering Equity in Independent Schools. Keynote: Paul Gorski
2023: Community: The Power of Empathy in Action. Keynote: Charles Vogl

Please enjoy this slideshow of images compiled from each conference (2016-2022)

Empowering Student Awareness and Advocacy

Pollyanna Racial Literacy Curriculum (Grades K-8)

“When equipped with the knowledge, tools, and skills of racial literacy, we believe today’s students will shape a more racially just and equitable world.” Pollyanna, Inc.

For Grades K-8, Far Brook uses the Pollyanna Racial Literacy Curriculum, which presents students with opportunities to examine and explore fundamental values related to identity, community, and justice. Additionally, the curriculum ensures that students develop concrete academic and leadership skills that result in a more robust vision of social responsibility and global citizenship.

Community (Grades 5-6)

In the Fifth and Sixth Grades, Community groups form to provide an opportunity for small group conversations across the grade levels. Led by Fifth and Sixth Grade faculty, students explore how community connects us to one another through a variety of relationships. Both as an individual and a collective group students have influence as helpers and leaders in their class, the Middle School, the Far Brook community, and beyond. During Community students may explore many DEI topics, such as Social Identity; Race, Ethnicity, and Nationality; Science of Skin Color; Origins of Race; and more.

Advisory (Grades 7-8)

Advisory facilitates students’ development of caring, creative, and competent approaches toward academics and relationships. Mixed-grade groupings provide an opportunity for mentorship, leadership, and collaboration across the two Junior High grades. Advisors facilitate group conversations dealing with specific topics such as team building, character and integrity, healthy habits, diversity, organization, and transitions. Advisors also meet with students one-on-one and conference about academic and social areas.

Family Photo Project

In 2015, the Faculty/Staff Diversity Committee envisioned and launched an initiative to show the spectrum of families at Far Brook: large families, small families, those with two parents or one, two moms or two dads, families blended through marriage, formed through adoption, and all other expressions. Through the Family Photo Project, the racial and cultural diversity among and within families was also made visible, each unique configuration reinforcing our understanding that families are made of people who love and care for one another.

Families are made of love.

In 2018-2019 we once again created the Family Photo Project to celebrate the beautiful mosaic that is our current community.