At The Seven Hills School, we believe in the power of connections and community. We strive to promote an environment where every student feels welcomed and supported. We embrace the importance of developing relationships and we search for the bridges that connect us. Our students feel a sense of belonging because peers, teachers, and administrators support an atmosphere where, regardless of similarities or differences, they are an integral part of the fabric of the school community.
Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Guided by our mission and values, The Seven Hills School is committed to preparing its students to play an active role in making the world a more just and equitable place.
Accordingly, we seek to build and sustain a learning community that is equitable, inclusive, and diverse in the broadest possible sense: with respect to race, gender, religion, ethnicity, socio-economic status, sexual orientation, physical ability, family composition, learning style, political opinions, as well other characteristics, abilities, and perspectives that contribute to one’s view of the world.
We seek, also, to provide rich learning experiences that help students understand themselves and others, cultivate cultural competency, and explore complex issues of equity and justice. Our goal is to foster in our students the habits of mind and heart they will need to thrive in a complex, pluralistic, and interconnected global community.
We are, therefore, committed to:
- Enrolling a diverse student body, from a wide variety of backgrounds, whose varied perspectives can enrich our learning community.
- Attracting and retaining a more diverse board, faculty and administration.
- Sustaining a supportive and inclusive school culture that affirms and values the uniqueness of each individual, honoring our differences while embracing shared values.
- Seeking continuous feedback to better understand the experiences of stakeholders from diverse backgrounds and using it to challenge and refine our own practices.
- Encouraging all members of the community to explore honestly their assumptions and biases and to modify them when appropriate.
- Training our teachers to recognize and respond to a wide range of needs and learning styles among our students and to use inclusive and culturally responsive pedagogies.
- Ensuring equitable access to all of the school’s programs and enabling all students to thrive academically, artistically, athletically, socially, and emotionally.
- Exposing students to a varied, multicultural curriculum that explores the rich diversity of human experience and gives all students chances to see themselves in what they read and study.
- Enriching the curriculum to provide experiences – both in and out of the classroom – that deepen students’ understanding of the world and foster informed and engaged citizenship and service to others.
In pursuit of these goals, the Board of Trustees commits to providing on-going strategic direction and oversight, allocating the resources necessary to ensure continuing progress, and holding itself, as a governing body, to the highest standards of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Learn more about our Strategic Plan for DEI here.