Our Programs
Diversity and Inclusion Center for Equity
Land Acknowledgments need to do more. However, they do not need to be completely scrapped. They are a powerful way to acknowledge the space, the land that we reside in and vocalize how we are able to be here today. They should be personal as we interact with and learn from the land and space we live in differently. I am also aware that acknowledgment without the action of reconciliation doesn't work. I can take someone's water bottle and acknowledge it's theirs. I cannot heal someone by simply saying this is yours. This is my acknowledgment, but I also intend to do the work alongside it. You can find ways to do so in the resources link further down this page.
All people not indigenous to North America living on this continent are settlers on stolen land. I acknowledge that multiple locations worldwide, but for our location, specifically Canada, the United States of America, Mexico, and Central & South America, were founded through genocide and colonization of First Nations peoples–which continues today and from which settlers directly benefit. Not all settlers benefit equally, nor did they emigrate here of their own free will. Specifically, I see slavery, hetero-patriarchy, white supremacy, market imperialism (the use of military and diplomatic power to force underdeveloped or militarily weaker countries to grant access to their markets to more powerful states), and capitalist class structures as among the primary tools of colonization.
I acknowledge that settlers are not entitled to live on this land and that I am an unwelcome guest to these lands. I accept that decolonization means the revitalization of indigenous sovereignty, the reclamation of lands that they have stewarded since time immemorial for which their presence and legacy are still felt and seen today, and an end to the domination of life, lands, and peoples in the so-called “Americas.”
DICE
List of 1 items.
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Diversity & Inclusion Center for Equity
A commitment to equity and inclusion lies at the heart of Northwest Academy’s culture, and we strive to carry it out through our arts and academic partnerships. We value the uniqueness of each student, family member, teacher, and staff member; their diverse backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives create a culture rich with mutual respect and authenticity. The Northwest Academy community values all ethnicities, races, cultures, religions, economic backgrounds, family structures, sexual and gender identities, and abilities. Ongoing efforts related to diversity, equity, and inclusion are essential to our staff and to our students’ abilities to develop into thoughtful and creative global citizens. Reach out to the DICE team at dice@nwacademy.org.
Resources
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DICE resource Google sheet
We regularly update this Google Sheet with information from our Heritage Month/Affinity Group speakers, students, families, and organizations in the area. Check back regularly, and feel free to add a suggestion for this via email at dice@nwacademy.org.
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75 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice
Medium
- Anti-Racism Resources for White People
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How to Survive, Be Safe and Thrive at a Predominantly White Institution
The Root
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Scaffolded Anti-Racist Resources
Anna Stamborski, Nikki Zimmermann, and Bailie Gregory
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“Seeing White”
Scene on Radio
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What Educators Should—and Should Not Do—in Response to George Floyd’s Death
Education Week
Our Team
List of 4 members.
Definitions
List of 7 items.
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Ally
Someone who makes the commitment and effort to recognize their privilege (based on gender, class, race, sexual identity, etc.) and work in solidarity with oppressed groups in the struggle for justice. Allies understand that it is in their own interest to end all forms of oppression, even those from which they may benefit in concrete ways. -
BIPOC
Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. The term BIPOC highlights and aims to undo the Indigenous invisibility and anti-Blackness that is so pervasive in our nation. -
Diversity
Diversity includes all the ways in which people differ, and it encompasses all the different characteristics that make one individual or group different from another. It is all-inclusive and recognizes everyone and every group as part of the diversity that should be valued. -
Equity
Equity is the condition that would be achieved if one’s identity no longer predicted, in a statistical sense, how one fares. This includes the elimination of policies, practices, attitudes, and cultural messages that reinforce differential outcomes by race or fail to eliminate them. -
Inclusion
Authentically bringing traditionally excluded individuals and/or groups into processes, activities, and decision/policymaking in a way that shares power. -
Racism
- Racism = race prejudice + social and institutional power
- Racism = a system of advantage based on race
- Racism = a system of oppression based on race
- Racism = a white supremacy system
Racism is different from racial prejudice, hatred, or discrimination. Racism involves one group having the power to carry out systematic discrimination through the institutional policies and practices of the society and by shaping the cultural beliefs and values that support those racist policies and practices. -
Structural Racism
The normalization and legitimization of an array of dynamics – historical, cultural, institutional, and interpersonal—that routinely advantage Whites while producing cumulative and chronic adverse outcomes for people of color. Structural racism encompasses the entire system of White domination, diffused, and infused in all aspects of society including its history, culture, politics, economics, and entire social fabric. Structural racism is more difficult to locate in a particular institution because it involves the reinforcing effects of multiple institutions and cultural norms, past and present, continually reproducing old and producing new forms of racism. Structural racism is the most profound and pervasive form of racism – all other forms of racism emerge from structural racism.
Definitions from: RacialEqualityTools.org
Affinity Groups @ Northwest Academy
Affinity Groups (AGs) have run since 2020. You would think during a time of a global pandemic and quarantines in place students wouldn't want to spend another second in front of the computer. However, maybe due to the pandemic and a strong need for connection or maybe due to this being a space students have wanted for a long time, we saw many students gravitate to this space and thrive in it. Affinity Groups are a place where groups of people with common interests and backgrounds come together to support each other and share their experiences. It’s a designated “safe space,” where everyone in that group can speak from the "I" perspective about an identity that they share. This identity can be based on race, gender, or sexuality. Currently, Northwest Academy has the following AGs:
High School
- LGBTQIA2S+ - Tyler Buswell
- Neurodiverse - Arius Ruiz, Ariel Williams
- BIPOC - (HS/MS) Joanne Kim, Nia Johnson
- Woman Identified - Kelli Pennington
Middle School
- LGBTQIA2S+ - Jordan Marzka, Ava Swanson, Rebecca Koon, David Berkson
- Neurodiverse - Arius Ruiz
- AAPI - (HS/MS) Archie Matta, Sarita George
- Woman Identified - Bella Brown
- Jewish - Revan Williams
- Ally - Dan Dunning
All Affinity Groups have staff/faculty advisors who are able to identify with the AG they help supervise. Some AGs have or will have student leaders who lead discussions, plan trips, or bring in organizations to talk to AGs. Affinity Groups are optional! For students in the Middle School who do not attend, they take part in Affinity Group Flex discussions with the head of the DICE program. In this space, students have the opportunity to learn in a group setting about societal structures and how our varying identities such as, race, gender, sex, and economic class can affect our ability to move through them, make a living, meet people, and feel at home.
Below is a video of staff advisors who came together to talk about some of the tough conversations that have come up in their groups and about AGs in general. This is a part of a series we hope to have more of in the new year (2024)!
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2023 Affinity Group Flyer (1)
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