Fall 2018 Connections

FOCUS ON FACULTY
Taking the Next Steps in Cultural Competency
Seven Hills’ commitment to fostering an inclusive and diverse
learning environment for our students, parents, faculty, and staff
is at the heart of our mission. Throughout the 2017-18 year, faculty
and staff continued their deep-dive into cultural competency work
with the theme of “Building Community through Courageous
Conversations” and reflected on the questions:
• What do we need to learn from and about each other?
• What do we need to learn about ourselves?
• What skills can we continue to build with cultural competency
training?
• How does the larger national climate impact us, our work, our
own families, and families at Seven Hills?
Expanding on the 2016-17 school year’s work of identifying our own
“blind spots” and stereotypes, faculty and staff continued the shift
from awareness to action as a learning community.
Seven Hills believes this work is crucial to becoming culturally
competent leaders, educators, and community leaders. As we lean
into our areas for growth, we give each other the space and grace
for candid, caring, courageous conversations to happen.
Highlights from 2017-18
• Over several training days with educational consultant Dr. Derrick
Gay, faculty and staff explored their own values, attitudes, skills,
and behaviors which enable effective work across cultures, and
planned ways to expand their language and inclusivity.
• Ten faculty members and administrators attended the National
Association of Independent Schools’ People of Color Conference
(PoCC) in Anaheim—the flagship event of NAIS’ commitment to
equity in teaching and learning—packed with inspiring speakers,
relevant workshops, and important identity work.
• Seven Hills signed on as an early leader in Harvard’s Caring
Schools #CommonGood Campaign, which mobilizes middle and
high schools across the country to take action to help prepare
young people to be citizens who create a better world.
• To collect community feedback, Seven Hills engaged the
entire community in the NAIS Assessment of Inclusion and
Multiculturalism (AIM). This survey will provide the school with a
deep understanding of the campus climate, with tangible data to
measure progress and set goals.
Inclusive book selections in
The Julian Rettger Memorial Library
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