Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, & Community

Diversity Statement

We affirm that a diverse community of students, faculty, administration, staff, trustees, and alumni is essential to who we are as a school. We respect and value diversity, which includes, but is not limited to, race, ethnicity, religion, national origin, family structure, age, physical ability, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic background, as the basis for fostering a strong sense of self, community, and global understanding.

GSB is mission-driven to be an inclusive, multicultural community that respects individual differences, inspires commitment to one another, and prepares students for the colleges, workplaces, and neighborhoods of their futures.

Recognizing that diversity is essential for creating an environment that is conducive to excellence in education, GSB fosters and supports meaningful diversity throughout our school and community by deepening our students' understanding of differences in race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual identity, ability, age and socioeconomic status.

We believe a school community should reflect a variety of ethnic, racial, economic, religious and social circumstances; all are fundamental to a 21st century education. Among its core values, Gill affirms that a diverse learning community of students, faculty, administration, trustees, alumni and staff is an essential element to who we are as a school.

Beginning with the early childhood program and culminating in the Lower School, Middle School, and Upper School, GSB students respect and value individual differences, seeing them as the basis for fostering a strong sense of self, community, and global understanding.

Tracey Goodson Barrett

Director of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion; Student Internship Coordinator; 9th-Grade Seminar

908-234-1611, Ext. 202
tbarrett@gsbschool.org

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, & Community (DEIC) Action Plan

In response to the continuing racial heartache that is befalling our nation, Gill St. Bernard’s School openly embraces and accepts its responsibility for resetting curriculum, programs, policies, and practices as the basis for long-term, comprehensive, and sustainable change. In collaboration with the broader GSB community, including students, parents, faculty, staff, alumni, senior administration, and the board of trustees, we are intentionally listening to and learning from all voices, including those who have been marginalized and often unheard. Aligned with the school’s 2019-2024 Strategic Plan, we created the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Community (DEIC) Action Plan to serve as a guiding framework for improving and enhancing the racial, ethnic, and multicultural climate in our school and in creating an authentically inclusive anti-racist community.

Read the full action plan

Black Student Union Podcast

Guiding Principles

The concept of diversity encompasses acceptance and respect. It means understanding that each individual is unique, and recognizing our individual differences. These can be along the dimensions of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, age, physical abilities, religious beliefs, political beliefs, or other ideologies.

It is the exploration of these differences in a safe, positive, and nurturing environment and that we move beyond simple tolerance to embracing and celebrating the rich dimensions of diversity contained within each individual.

Diversity is a reality created by individuals and groups from a broad spectrum of demographic and philosophical differences.

It is important to support and protect diversity because by valuing individuals and groups free from prejudice, we foster a climate where equity and mutual respect are intrinsic. "Diversity" means more than just acknowledging and/or tolerating difference.

Diversity is a set of conscious practices that involve:

Understanding and appreciating interdependence of humanity, cultures, and the natural environment;
Practicing mutual respect for qualities and experiences that are different from our own;
Understanding that diversity includes not only ways of being but also ways of knowing; and
Building alliances across differences so that we can work together to build a more supportive community.

Diversity includes knowing how to relate to those qualities and conditions that are different from our own and outside the groups to which we belong, yet are present in other individuals and groups.

These include but are not limited to age, ethnicity, class, gender, physical abilities/qualities, race, sexual identity, as well as religious status, gender expression, educational background, geographical location, income, marital status, parental status, and work experiences.

Finally, we acknowledge that categories of difference are not always fixed but also can be fluid, we respect individual rights to self-identification, and we recognize that no one culture is intrinsically superior to another.

Student & Community Engagement

Lower School

Lower School

Middle School

Middle School

Middle School Town Meetings

Each month, Middle School students participate in Town Meetings. These meetings are opportunities for the Middle School community to gather and discuss the Virtue of the Month or other character education-related topics. This is also a time to host speakers and discuss timely current events while practicing civil discourse skills.

Middle School Current Events Club

Open to all Middle School students, the club is a space for students to discuss current news events and practice civil discourse skills.

Gender & Sexuality Alliance (GSA)

The club is an affinity space for students to receive support, socialize, and educate the community on topics related to the spectrum of gender and sexual identities.

Half the Sky

Half the Sky Club is open to girls in grades 5-8 who are seeking to raise awareness of human rights issues for women and girls around the world. “Women hold up half the sky,” in the words of a Chinese saying, and their empowerment is thought by many experts to be the potential key to alleviating poverty and extremism. Students work to understand the global rights disparities that girls face in other countries, with the eventual goal of designing a campaign to promote awareness and fundraise to support the education of girls in Nepal.

Upper School

Upper School

Asian Culture Club (ACC)

The ACC is an affinity space for Upper School students centered on the cultural affinity experience in our community. Club members and their allies co-sponsor forums concerning issues about race, heritage, identity, and current events.

Black Students Union (BSU)

BSU is an affinity space for Upper School students centered on the Black, African American, and Latinx experience in our community. BSU members and their allies have co-sponsored forums concerning issues about race, identity, and current events.

Gender & Sexuality Alliance (GSA)

The club is an affinity space for students to receive support, socialize, and educate the community on topics related to the spectrum of gender and sexual identities.

Gender Equality Club

The Gender Equality Club provides students with a space to learn more about current topics related to gender equity and presents an opportunity for students to support and educate members in our community about these issues.

Gill For Diversity Club (GFD)

The Gill for Diversity Club (GFD) is a leadership group for students who have attended various conferences and summits, participate in facilitation skills training, and demonstrate an interest in working with other students on issues of diversity and social justice. Their mission is to educate their peers about issues concerning diversity, equity, and inclusion that impact the school community and the broader world.

Hispanic Heritage and Culture Club

Affinity space for Upper School students centered on the cultural affinity experience in our community. Club members and their allies co-sponsor forums concerning issues about race, heritage, identity, and current events.

Middle Eastern Student Club

Upper School Student Forums

Student-organized and facilitated, the forums provide a safe space for upper school students with the opportunity to openly discuss current events, issues, and concerns of the GSB community, as well as those of the larger world.

Parents

Parents

Parents support the mission of the school both at home and through active participation in school programs. The Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion works closely with parents to organize discussions, readings, presentations, and dialogues with students and families. The Parents' Association meets with the Director of Diversity throughout the year to envision programs and share concerns. Families new to the school benefit from outreach and orientation provided by the Parents' Association.

GSB Parents of Color Forum

GSB Parents of Color Forum is a supportive collaboration and network of GSB parents of Color and parents of students of Color to foster equity and inclusion in our belonging and community.

Cross-Community Conversations

At GSB, we believe that, while sometimes imperfect, we must remain on the path toward building a stronger community and, ultimately, a better world. These regular conversations are coordinated and facilitated by our Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion to promote dialogue and self-reflection across our various community groups.

Parents’ Association Diversity Committee

The committee promotes and engages parents in activities, conversations, and special events to support the diversity, equity, and inclusion within our community.

Parents’ Association Book Discussions

Coordinated in partnership with the GSB Head Librarian, the PA President, and the Director of Parent Relations & Special Events, the discussions promote and engage parents in lifelong learning centered on reading select texts and books.

Parents’ Association Community Through Conversations

Sponsored by the Parents’ Association, the Community Through Conversations engage parents and guardians in conversations on topics that are relevant to the development of our children and helps to strengthen our community understanding, respect, and appreciation of perspectives different from our own around difficult topics.

Faculty & Staff

Faculty & Staff

The Equity and Inclusion team is a resource on diversity issues for faculty and staff in their work with students and in their development of curriculum and programs. The team leads professional development workshops, initiates programs, advises student groups and collaborates with parents and faculty.

Faculty and Staff Diversity Dialogues

Monthly dialogues open to all faculty and staff with the goal of allowing space for open and direct conversations around timely topics.

Faculty and Staff of Color Affinity Group

This group provides an affinity space for faculty and staff of color to network and support each other.

Trustees

Trustees

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, & Community News

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GSB Students Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month

Broader Community Connections

The diversity of our community is matched by our emphasis on multicultural education and our ongoing focus on the lived experience of our community members inside and outside the walls of the school. At GSB, we are aware that we live in a global community and that contributions to our society have come from every corner of the globe and every strata of society.

Middle School Equity and Inclusion Summit

Hosted by GSB, this conference brings together seventh and eighth grade independent and public-school students to engage in discussions centered on inclusion and belonging in their schools. The conference aims to help student leaders become agents of change in their communities.

Alumni of Color Network

In partnership with the Director of Alumni Affairs, the Alumni of Color Network provides an additional space for our alumni to connect with each other across interests, professions, and graduation class, as well as to stay connected to the current student community.

For Parents and Students

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, & Community Team

Tracey Goodson Barrett

Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion; 9th-Grade Seminar

School: 908-234-1611, Ext. 202

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Candace Pryor Brown

Assistant Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion; Upper School History

School: 908-234-1611, Ext. 485

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Manuel Hercules

Math Department Chair; NJ SEEDS Liaison

School: 908-234-1611, Ext. 340

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Camille Bonds

Digital Communications and Technology Specialist, Upper School Computer Science

School: (908) 234-1611 ext 407

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Monique Brown

Middle School Spanish Instructor, Middle School DEIC Coordinator

School: 908-234-1611 ext. 310

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Jill Fedon

Lower School Assistant Director

School: 908-234-1611, Ext. 382

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