Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
Westridge was built on a mission to provide gender equity in education. Today, we draw upon the spirit of our founder, Mary Lowther Ranney, to expand diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) on our campus. These essential components of the Westridge program are imperative to the wellness of students in underrepresented populations and central to academic excellence for all Westridge students.
We are actively working to:
- Identify and eliminate biases and gaps in our programs and policies.
- Make the programmatic changes and do the community-wide education and growth necessary to make Westridge a school where all students, families, and faculty and staff feel they belong and are affirmed, valued, and supported.
- Increase diversity of all kinds, especially racial and socioeconomic, because we know that all students benefit social emotionally and academically from learning in a more diverse environment.
DEI is one of four focus areas of our strategic plan published in January 2020, prioritizing resources of time and funding to make substantive and meaningful change at our school. Importantly, events this spring have energized many people across the generations of Westridge to join us in working for change. Recent conversations with Black members of the Westridge community have caused the School to reflect on who we have been and who we want to be moving forward. Additionally, we know our families have been impacted by anti-Asian prejudice during the COVID-19 pandemic. We recognize that students of color, including Black and African American, Latinx, Multiracial, and Asian students, are having different experiences at Westridge. Students deserve to be in a learning environment where racism is explicitly addressed, and white students must understand their role in challenging racism and how they can be advocates for change.
Priorities for Summer/Fall 2020
- Anti-racist education for all faculty, staff, and board members.
- Collaborating with Black/African American students, parents, faculty & staff, and alumnae to make a more inclusive learning environment.
- Community education on racism, anti-racist practices and broader topics within the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
- Data analysis to uncover gaps, inconsistencies, and bias in our program and school.
- Conducting a comprehensive curriculum review to identify areas for greater anti-bias teaching and learning.
- Increasing racial diversity at Westridge.
- Creating a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Oversight Committee.
Anti-racist education for all faculty, staff, and board members.
Collaborating with Black/African American students, parents, faculty & staff, and alumnae to make a more inclusive learning environment.
Community education on racism, anti-racist practices and broader topics within the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Data analysis to uncover gaps, inconsistencies, and bias in our program and school.
Conducting a comprehensive curriculum review to identify areas for greater anti-bias teaching and learning.
Increasing racial diversity at Westridge.
Creating a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Oversight Committee.
These commitments are work that we have prioritized for the second half of 2020. However, they are not comprehensive—our work will be ongoing and far reaching.
If you are interested in learning more about our work in DEI over the past several years, please click below.