DEI News

From November 15-17, The ADL (Anti-Defamation League) hosted three, day-long trainings with the sixth, seventh, and eighth grade, providing our upper school students with anti-bias education designed to foster equity and inclusion.

November marked American Indian Heritage Month. We took a look inside two St. Hilda’s & St. Hugh’s classrooms to see how students study the Native Americans of Northeastern America and beyond.
 

Mark Boulas, Associate Director of DEI, Paula Lee, third grade faculty and DEIL member, and Naa Mor Aryeetey, senior kindergarten faculty, attended PoCC in San Antonio, Texas. 

Recently, Mr. Boulas, Associate Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and Gretchen Kane, Director of Admission, attended the RIISE Recruitment Event in Greenwich, CT.

Known as the “Festival of Lights”, Diwali is one of the major religious holidays in Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism. Every year, faculty across the school celebrate this important day with their classes by learning about Diwali and engaging through their curriculum in a meaningful and educational way.

Each month, Ms. Lee selects one to two books for lower school students that are chosen with an age-appropriate DEI lens in mind. Click below to read about our October selections

Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month by highlighting and sharing in the culture and history of the Hispanic and LatinX community.

This year, we will be offering three Student Affinity Space groups for students to participate in. Click below to read more.

This year, St. Hilda’s & St. Hugh’s welcomes Mark Boulas, J.D., to our administration as the new Associate Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. 

Last spring, we renewed our commitment to the cause of racial justice and our school's mission to recognize the sacred nature of everey member of our community. This letter outlines the work of the DEIL team to date, as well as some of the initiatives the school has planned for the coming year and beyond.

In Chapel, Lower Division French Teacher Deb Jordan-Levy discussed the importance of learning about different Francophone countries while studying the language.

 “For us, Black History is not just about February; it is every day.”

“This event is titled a ‘Gospel Celebration,’” Minister Irventz Garçon said. “However, it is much deeper than that.”

Students and guest performers put on a spectacular Lunar New Year performance which included singing, dancing, and fireworks. View photos from this beloved all-school event here.

A lawyer and criminal justice reformer, Janos Martin '96 began to explore his passion for activism in second grade at St. Hilda's & St. Hugh's. Janos is still driven by the values his teachers imparted—morality, civics, and service to community. 

As the second grade embarked upon their year-long study of the world, their technology class went along on the journey, with a stop-motion movie project to illustrate the movement of the continents, and a re-creation of the Q'eswachaka Rope Bridge in Peru.

Lower Division Learning Specialist Margaret Pennoyer began the new year by talking about different New Year's Eve traditions around the world. 

Senior Kindergarten teachers Ms. Clark and Ms. Washington share their knowledge and personal experience with Día de los Muertos during Chapel. 

During National Disability Employment Awareness Month, fourth and fifth grade science teacher Katie Behrmann talked with the upper division in Chapel about the challenges faced by people with disabilities and how the laws and practices of New York City and the entire nation affect them. 

In September, third grade teacher and DEIL member Paula Lee spoke about the Korean harvest celebration Chuseok during lower division Chapel. 

The head of school’s first Chapel address, which took place on the cusp of the school’s observance of Hispanic Heritage Month, highlighted the people and places of Washington Heights, a hub of Latinx culture overlooking the Hudson. 

Parents and faculty from St. Hilda's & St. Hugh's attended an April presentation and discussion facilitated by Dr. Sandra “Chap” Chapman (Director of Equity and Community at Little Red School House and Elisabeth Irwin High School) on “Parenting in the Age of ‘Isms.’” 

Student musicians from grades 1-8, including the Brass Band, Chorus, and Instrumental Ensemble honored the legacy of the Harlem Renaissance at St. Hilda’s & St. Hugh’s annual Gospel Celebration.

A second grader stepped up to the lectern at Chapel to share the story of the Jain religion and the ways he and his family practice their faith at home, in school, and when visiting India. “I feel special to be a Jain at St. Hilda’s & St. Hugh’s,” he said.