diversity, equity, and Inclusivity

A Collective Sense of Purpose and Commitment

Our mission “to inspire girls and young women to become game changers and ethical leaders who forge an equitable, sustainable, and joyous future” compels us to see that equity and community life is everyone’s work at Hewitt. Diversity, equity, and inclusivity stand as foundational commitments that guide every aspect of our teaching and learning. These institutional values inform our pedagogy, foster personal growth, and cultivate belonging. We believe that a diverse, equitable, and inclusive community is essential to educating girls and young women to be positive contributors and citizens of the world.

Hewitt empowers and expects our community members to embrace multiple points of view, to engage others with empathy and integrity, and to champion equity and justice in all areas of our lives.

Diversity, Equity, & Inclusivity Programs

At Hewitt, we believe that we cannot give children what we as adults do not have. As such, to give our students what they need to become game changers and ethical leaders, we engage all parents, guardians, faculty, and staff in ongoing diversity, equity, and inclusivity programming. We recognize that the work of creating a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive community is ever evolving, never completed, often difficult, and deeply rewarding. All diversity, equity, and inclusivity initiatives at Hewitt ask the community to remain fully present, develop empathy, establish a collective purpose, and employ research-based practices for educating girls in a richly varied and globally interconnected world.

Community Education

Our faculty and staff participate in in-house professional development focused on building knowledge, skills, and tools to put into practice to spot and address bias, bigotry, and racism. This work is designed to deepen our commitment to teaching with the Learning for Justice standards. Hewitt also hosts a series of workshops for parents and guardians in alignment with the professional development being done by faculty and staff and with the input of the Equity and Community Life Committee of the Parents’ Association.

Equity and Community Life Team

Hewitt’s director of equity and community life oversees the diversity, equity, and inclusivity work of the entire community. Our equity and community life coordinators facilitate our National SEED group and affinity groups for faculty and staff, work with employees to identify relevant professional development opportunities for continued growth and learning, and serve as a trusted resource for day-to-day student questions and concerns. Coordinators also help to develop a student affinity group program that is aligned with best practices and work closely with educational access organizations (Prep for Prep, TEAK Fellowship, Oliver Scholars, Early Steps, A Better Chance) and prospective students and their families to ensure that they are informed about our commitments to equity and a community that centers dignity and belonging for all.

Affinity Groups

Affinity groups facilitate positive identity exploration and empower participants, particularly those from underrepresented groups, to feel a greater sense of agency and belonging. Hewitt hosts affinity groups for students, faculty and staff, and parents and guardians. Composed of those who share a similar social identity such as gender, race, ethnicity, or religion, these affinity spaces encourage participants to build authentic relationships across a range of identities in our community. During affinity groups, participants have the opportunity to share and talk about their experiences or focus on working toward a particular mission or goal.

National SEED Project

Inspired by the ongoing work of the National SEED Project (Seeking Educational Equity and Diversity), Hewitt’s SEED group comes together once a month to listen, reflect, share, learn, and build a stronger, more inclusive school culture. Together, SEED participants explore how to support the Hewitt community by deepening self-awareness, expanding the knowledge of others, analyzing the world, and becoming leaders who work to make Hewitt a more conscious, equitable, aware, and informed institution. SEED work engages the head, heart, and soul. Participants develop ways of understanding race, class, gender, sexual orientation, physical ability/disability, and cultural experience.

Workshops and Conferences

Hewitt has long partnered with experts in the field of educational equity and inclusion. We maintain ongoing relationships with professional organizations like the Center for Racial Justice in Education and CARLE Institute (Critical Analysis of Race in Learning and Education), host our own SEED group, and send a cohort of faculty, staff, and students to the annual NYSAIS Diversity Conference, NAIS People of Color Conference, and Student Diversity Leadership Council.

OUR K-12 CURRICULUM

At Hewitt, diversity, equity, and inclusivity are not separate from our mission; they are a part of it. As such, our K-12 program intentionally and consistently invites students to engage with questions of equity and justice.

Lower School

Starting in lower school, our K-12 program affirms the tremendous impact of diversity and inclusivity work on healthy identity development, cross-cultural relationship building, and empathy. In our lower school literacy, social studies, and social-emotional learning curricula, essential questions help learners think critically about who they are and their place in the world around them.

Middle School

Throughout middle school and across disciplines, girls consider global histories and traditionally marginalized communities as part of their studies of literature, social studies, languages, sciences, and arts. In particular, the humanities, English, and history curricula incorporate voices from a wide breadth of cultures and experiences, and the language department incorporates texts by writers from across the Spanish-speaking and Francophone world in all middle school courses.

Upper School

As students enter the upper school, they consider their future place in the world and take on leadership roles. We challenge young women at Hewitt to consider multiple perspectives as they explore everything from feminism to globalization, current events to ancient civilizations.

Student leaders and activists shape the nature of these nuanced and complex conversations and provide student-facilitated discussion groups on issues of relevance to young women today. We encourage upper school students to take a stance on matters they find important, from proposing affinity spaces to participating in marches, writing to elected officials, or attending local and national conferences.