Dear Providence Day Community,

 

In this moment of national reckoning on systemic racism, there is a call to action to recognize the need to effect meaningful change in our country and in our PD community. On behalf of the school leadership and with the full backing of the Providence Day School Board of Trustees, we recognize that in order to pursue further change, we must acknowledge and attend to those who are hurt.

 

As an institution we have prided ourselves in championing our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, which makes it all the more painful that we have fallen short of making our professed values a lived reality for our Black students, alumni, families, faculty, and staff. We have not always recognized the ways that racism has done harm to the Black members of our community. In recent weeks this has been detailed by one-on-one feedback from our alumni and families, as well as the @blackatprovidenceday account on Instagram. The experiences of current students, alumni, parents, and employees leave no doubt that we must take action to move from not being racist to being an anti-racist school. For the Black members of our community, we see you, we hear you, and we will act. We are truly sorry.

 

It is important to note this feedback is not occurring in a vacuum - public dialogue as well as Instagram accounts such as the one devoted to Providence Day are a national trend, and independent schools and many colleges and universities are being called upon in similar ways. We take heart that the intention of those who are sharing their stories is to help our school be better. 

 

Over the past few weeks we have heard from many of you. We appreciate your willingness to assist with the difficult work ahead as well as your commitment to hold us accountable. We have been listening closely to your suggestions on how to move our community forward in an intentional and authentic way. Many of the suggestions made have been in progress over the past year as part of our five-year action plan, but your feedback has helped us to identify key action steps that we are ready to relay to you now.

 

• Explicitly address and teach the school's founding  and acknowledge its role as a white flight school and the impact this history has had on Black communities.
• Create an incident form that allows students, faculty, and staff to report incidents of racial bias without fear of retribution.
• We will use advisee and other small group forums for students to share their stories and learn how to be anti-racist.
• Continue our ongoing review of curriculum, particularly with a lens of how and where the history, culture, and experience of marginalized and oppressed groups are taught. 
       --Implementation will begin this year with adjustments finalized by the end of the 20-21 school year. 
       --Continue our annual reviews of our TK-12 curriculum in relation to the PD Passport.
• Ongoing anti-racist training for faculty, staff, and administration.
• Continue review of hiring practices to ensure the process is equitable and free of bias.
       --Create a revised guideline for hiring managers that emphasizes cultural competency as well as knowledge and experience with culturally responsive pedagogy that will be implemented this school year.
       --Form hiring committees to ensure bias does not affect the process.

These action items are by no means exhaustive. Our commitment to addressing racism will include a thorough review of our policies and processes. We realize we have difficult work ahead of us to create an equitable and inclusive environment where all who attend and work here feel that they truly belong. We know our efforts will not be perfect or above reproach, but we understand that not trying would be far worse. We welcome your input and partnership.

 

With gratitude,

 

Dr. Glyn Cowlishaw

Head of School

Dr. Chris Mullis '90

Chair, Board of Trustees

On behalf of the

Providence Day School Board of Trustees