Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) Circle

You can download a PDF of the David Lubin Statement of Commitment to Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion here.  If you are interested in learning more about or joining the DEIB Circle, please email lubinptgDEI@gmail.com.

DAVID LUBIN STATEMENT OF COMMITMENT TO:
JUSTICE, EQUITY, DIVERSITY, AND INCLUSION

“There will be no equity without solidarity[1]. There will be no justice without a social movement.” -Dr. Joia Mukherjee, Physician, Partners in Health chief medical officer, an associate professor in the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School, and an associate professor in the Division of Global Health Equity at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. “An Introduction to Global Health Delivery: Practice, Equity, Human Rights” is her first book.

We are committed, at David Lubin School, to create a learning environment that is rooted in solidarity, where all students, staff, and families feel honored, seen, heard, respected, and supported. We believe that justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion are our core strengths, and we must ensure everyone has the right to learn and grow in a safe and responsive community. To this end, we have developed a statement that outlines our commitments to justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion.

We believe in cultivating spaces and opportunities for building trust, having fun, experiencing joy, and learning side by side. This work also calls upon everyone to be brave and authentic in reckoning with hard truths, and engaging in difficult conversations that help the community process conflict, discrimination, racism, trauma, and harm in our school. As we co-develop opportunities and activations, we commit to regularly evaluating and improving our practices to ensure that everyone feels seen and valued.

 RACIAL JUSTICE

“Our ultimate objective in learning about anything is to try to create and develop a more just society than we have seen.” -Yuri Kochiyama, Civil Rights Activist

We are committed to support learning at David Lubin that creates a more just society. This begins with recognizing that racism is a pervasive and harmful force, and our school has a responsibility to do our part to dismantle it. We will provide our students with opportunities to learn about the history and impact of racism. We will work to ensure that our curriculum is anti-racist[2], inclusive, and representative of all students, prioritizing those historically and systematically excluded. We will work to build trust so that our school provides a place where students can practice their solidarity by dreaming of a world that is more racially just.

DIVERSITY

“In diversity, there is beauty and strength.” -Maya Angelou, Author, Poet, Memorialist, Civil Rights Activist

We are committed to celebrate the diversity of our students, staff, and families/caregivers at David Lubin, as well as the communities surrounding our school. We honor the various ways that our school is diverse, including race and ethnicity, national origin, primary language, culture, family systems, ethnicity, religion, spirituality, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, physical ability, learning differences, and socioeconomic status. Understanding that representation is the first step in honoring diversity; we strive to create a learning environment that reflects the diversity of our community and provides opportunities for all students and staff to see themselves represented in the curriculum, school culture, and community. We also seek to create a school that supports the growth of student agency and honors their diverse voices, stories, and opinions and encourages all to act in solidarity to achieve a more just society.

 EQUITY[3]

“That’s at the core of equity: understanding who your kids are and how to meet their needs. You are still focused on outcomes, but the path to get there may not be the same for each one.” -Dr. Pedro Noguera, Professor and Dean of Education at University of Southern California

We are committed to create a learning environment where every student has access to the resources, support, and opportunities they need to reach their full potential. We recognize that students come to us with valuable wisdom, cultural wealth, lived experiences, histories,  backgrounds, desires, and needs.  We are committed to listening and responding to the needs of students, families, and caretakers in a timely and thoughtful manner so that true collaboration is possible. We recognize that our efforts are especially important when we act in solidarity and serve those in the school community who are most vulnerable.

INCLUSION & EMPATHY

“Inclusion is not bringing people into what already exists. It is making a new space, a better space for everyone.” -Dr. George Dei, Professor and Chair, Department of Sociology and Equity Studies, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto.

We are committed to co-create the David Lubin School community as a place where everyone feels included and has the power to shape the space. Instead of just hoping students will find a sense of belonging at our school, we will work towards shaping a space that students feel that our school belongs to them. Along with a welcoming and supportive environment where everyone feels comfortable to bring themselves, we seek to guide to also honoring the right of others to do the same. This includes learning from each other through deep listening, critical dialogue, holding boundaries, and humanizing one another. Inclusion at our school should be rooted in empathy, love, and solidarity.

 Additional Understandings:

  • We understand there is a need to provide our teachers with ongoing professional development opportunities that support their understanding of justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion. We will provide our teachers with the tools and resources they need to create a learning environment that is responsive to the needs and well-being of all students and fosters a sense of belonging for everyone.
  • We understand that the experience of equity in a school will be informed by the institution’s disciplinary systems, communication, protocols, procedures, and policies. As such, we commit to systematically examining these to minimize disparate impacts, including periodic consideration of alternative design methods.

In conclusion, our David Lubin school community-  in and beyond all classrooms, programs, and partnerships is committed to creating a just, equitable, diverse, and inclusive learning environment where all students, staff, and families feel honored, valued, seen, heard, respected, and supported. We believe that our commitment to solidarity is crucial to creating a learning environment that meets the needs of all students and prepares them for success in a diverse and interconnected world. To ensure that we are living up to our commitments, we will regularly evaluate and improve our practices in a transparent manner.

 

Footnotes

[1] Solidarity is action that represents an individual’s or group’s commitment to collective liberation. (CRE Ethnic Studies Consultants, 2020)

[2]An anti-racist school is one that does not tolerate racial discrimination on an individual or a systemic level. (Tintiangco-Cubales, 2023)

Anti-racist actions may take the form of:

  • Confronting racism, disenfranchisement, and discrimination
  • Acknowledging the inequitable effects of power and privilege structures based on race
  • Interrupting and challenging oppression
  • Building community that values all members
  • Building systems of equitable access, experiences, and outcomes
  • Conscious, structured, and deliberate actions

— from the Due East Educational Equity Collaborative

[3]Equity requires providing members of a community what they need in order to thrive, with particular attention to  systemic barriers they may face due to group membership(s). “Equity is not equality; it is the expression of justice, ethics,  multi-partiality, and the absence of discrimination” (NAIS.org).