This fall, we have formed a group consisting of the head of school, parents, faculty, and a representative from the advisory committee. Clerked by the head of school, the mission of the group is to keep channels of communication open between administration, parents, and teachers when it comes to areas of progress, areas of block, incidents or discouragements, signs of hope, need for further study, and ideas for change. Examples of topics discussed include: ways of talking to your child about race in an age-appropriate way, or facing a moment where a racial microaggression happened with your child present and you didn't know what to do.
A few parents and faculty offered their perspective of these monthly meetings:
“As I am growing in my own racial identity I am grateful for spaces like the RJAWG where I can connect with other people committed to addressing injustice and supporting each other on our journeys. ”
“My hope is that this group will help keep racial justice work at the forefront of our minds and lead to collective action. It can feel vulnerable to talk about such difficult things, but I think we must.”
“For me, this group is about coming together as members of the FSP community to “walk the walk” of our values. We engage in inquiry around the theme of racial justice, with the intention of cultivating a school community that truly embodies the practices of equity and inclusion. As a parent, participating in this group is a way for me to contribute and model the kind of engaged citizenship that I hope an FSP education inspires in my child, as well as an opportunity to connect more deeply with other members of the community in a meaningful way.”
“I committed to participating in the working group because meaningful systemic change takes time and usually starts with the individual. It has been exciting to see how teachers’ deep thinking has shifted curriculum, personal language, and classroom conversations. I think that continuing the conversation will help drive systemic change as well as support teachers.”
Sarah Halley, one of the facilitators for the faculty training this year called White People Confronting Racism, is on the planning committee for a parallel/mentor group at Greene Street Friends School (GSFS) in Philadelphia, The Parents and Caregivers Association Committee for Advancing Racial Equity in Our School (PCA CARES). This group “helps families promote the positive racial identity of our children and to develop skills to recognize and counter structural racism, unintentional racism, and microaggressions, and to undo white supremacy. We support and hold GSFS accountable for continuing to cultivate a racially just learning community.” Last year, their group read My Grandmother's Hands by Resmaa Menakem. They organize and host a session every year Called Martin Luther King Day of Action. A few years ago on MLK Day they gave a workshop on understanding and dismantling White Supremacy. As Sarah Halley explained: “The biggest challenge is getting folks to attend something else in the evenings. We used to meet at the school and the school would provide childcare and pizza but since Covid we have been meeting virtually... I can only speak to the white experience but it has been great to talk with other white parents about race challenges at school.”
Our group meets on the last Tuesday of every month, over Zoom for the time being. Our meetings begin with the review of group norms. Next, in keeping with the idea of accountability, individuals and subcommittees share out how their initiatives are progressing. There might then be an open discussion of an institutional query. At the end of each meeting, those of us who are reading Heather McGhee’s book The Sum of Us (two chapters per month), stay on to discuss the book.