Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

DEI at Breck

Breck is committed to the values and work of diversity, equity, and inclusion within every aspect of school life. We know that a thriving community is one that is diverse, embracing the richness of varying perspectives and leaning into the discourse that comes with difference. While diversity is an expression of different identities, both visible and invisible, equity is the work to ensure that all of our community members have access to all the opportunities our institution provides. And inclusion is the work to ensure that every community member has a deep sense of belonging within our school community.

We believe that it is only through a commitment to DEI work that all of our graduates will embrace a life of intellectual curiosity, self knowledge, and social responsibility. When this is not achieved for one, this is not lived for all.

Guiding Documents

Following a year-long discovery process with equity partner Design Impact, Breck has developed our Community Commitments. These are specific action steps that were developed by community members, for community members and articulate our work toward a school culture of equity and belonging.

Read the Full Community Commitments

Following a year-long discovery process with equity partner Design Impact, Breck has developed our Community Commitments. These are specific action steps that were developed by community members, for community members and articulate our dream for our school culture and practice of our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion work. For a quick summary, check out this document.

Read the ONe-Page Introduction

We know as an educational institution that the practice of healthy discourse is essential to the learning environment. Over a two-year period, we spoke with students, teachers, and parents about what discourse should look and feel like. Our Discourse with Dignity document outlines our commitment to honor the dignity of one another as a part of our culture of discourse.

Read the Statement of Philosophy

Melrose Center's DEI Role

The Melrose Family Center for Leadership and Equity is a cross-divisional brave space where students, faculty, and staff explore crucial issues of equity, leadership, joy, and restoration, shaping the daily health of our school community. At the intersection of leadership and equity, we center our initiatives and efforts in service to the whole Breck community. Through community programming, affinity groups, leadership curriculum, professional development, and more, we work to increase the capacity of all community members to engage in critical conversations about identity, equity, and social justice.

Questions connect with Dr. Chéleah Googe, Melrose Center Director of Leadership and Equity and Jordan Zickermann, Dean of Equity.

Email Jordan ZicKermaNn

Email Chéleah GoogE

Leadership Training

Breck is committed to providing anti-bias, anti-oppression, and anti-racism training for leadership, faculty, and staff. Trainings include, but are not limited to sessions facilitated by Work Beyond the Work, the Center for Racial Justice in Education, Kelly Holstine, Dr. Charlotte Jacobs, and the Melrose Family Center and will continue to be an ongoing process.

Leadership Training

100% of Board Trustees
100% of the Inclusion Committee of the Board
100% of school leadership (Senior Leadership Team, Academic Leadership Team, Deans, Counselors)

Faculty and Staff Training

For the last two decades, Breck has committed to capacity building in the area of DEI for faculty, staff, and school leaders in a variety of forms including extensive work in Multicultural Education, Social Justice Education with Teaching Tolerance, and Culturally Responsive Teaching as presented by Zaretta Hammond. In the 2020-2021 school year, 100% of faculty, including newly hired faculty, received anti-bias, anti-oppression, and anti-racism training. Other individual and small group experiences and training include:

People of Color Conference
National Association of Episcopal Schools Diversity and Inclusion Conference
National Association of Independent Schools Diversity Leadership Institute
National Indian Education Association Conference and Minnesota Indian Education Association Conference
White Privilege Conference
Stanton and Adams Diversity Institute
Columbia University's Reimagining Education: Teaching in Racially Diverse Schools Summer Institute
YWCA Facilitator Training
Center for Racial Justice in Education training
Me and White Supremacy Faculty Bookclub

Student Affinity Groups

Exploring intellectually and interpersonally crucial issues of identity, community, and difference, Breck's numerous affinity groups provide a brave space for students to share their experiences, support the experiences of others, and build leadership skills critical to the daily health of our school community and our empathy-grounded academic program.

Lower School

Kaleidoscope - All BIPOC students grade 2–4 are welcome.

Middle School

Asian and Pacific Islander Affinity Group.
Cove/Lighthouse - Open to all Black/African/African American students.
Jewish – Open to all Jewish practicing and/or identifying students grade 6 and up.
Mosaic – Open to all multi-racial students.
Muslim – Open to all Muslim practicing and/or identifying students grade 6 and up.
Native American - Open to all indigenous students.
PRISM - Open to all LGBTQ+ students.

Upper School

Asian and Pacific Islander Affinity Group
Jewish – Open to all Jewish practicing and/or identifying students grade 6 and up.
Latiné – Open to all Latiné students
Muslim – Open to all Muslim practicing and/or identifying students grade 6 and up.
Native American – Open to all indigenous students.
Oasis: African American Affinity – Open to all Black/African/African American students.
PRISM – Open to all LGBTQ+ students.
Shades – Open to all multi-racial students

Affinity Group List 2023-2024

Programming and Capacity Building Experiences

We recognize that student learning and leadership are enhanced by engaging with the world beyond Breck's campus. Our students participate in programming that invites them to explore compelling issues with the people and places that are at the forefront of community development and historical change.

Programming and Capacity Building Experiences

Civil Rights Tour
Student Diversity Leadership Conference
“It’s time to talk”
“It's time to act”
Dr. King yearly symposium
World Culture Night
Special Olympics
HBCU trip

Increasing Faculty Diversity

Breck is committed to increasing diversity among our faculty. Our goal is to recruit and retain highly qualified and diverse faculty to Breck in order to better reflect the demographics of our student population. Diversity of thought, experiences, and perspectives promotes academic excellence and better prepares Breck students for college in an increasingly diverse world.

Breck includes assistant teachers in our faculty diversity calculations. Breck's 2020-2021 diversity data will be posted January 2021 in alignment with INDEX schools.

Updates, News, and Events

Breck's 2020-2021 DEI Audit

During the 2020-2021 academic year, Breck engaged in consulting relationships with Design Impact, a firm that uses human-centered design to build a more equitable culture, and EnGenderED, a firm that reviewed Breck's policies and pedagogical practice. The two firms guided Breck through a facilitated process that will result in long lasting change in the area of diversity, equity, and inclusion at the school. We are excited to have partnered with them during the 2020-2021 school year.

Design Impact is a social innovations firm that uses human-centered design to create equitable change. The process they use will engage all constituencies at Breck and facilitate the co-creation of a strategy for cultivating long lasting social change within the school. In addition to evaluating all existing data the school has collected in recent history, including items like the school’s accreditation report from ISACS, the Blueprint for Strategic Plan, and Mission/Values articulation, the process will include a ladder up to action phase. During this phase of restorative discovery, community members will connect about Breck’s equity work, honor the past, name existing challenges, collect input into new ways of working and being together, and give room to heal. Breck will build toward identifying strategic goals and an action plan for accomplishing those commitments. An internal core team representing our key constituencies will help guide the process. Caitlin Behle, Dr. Curtis Web II, and Sarah Roberson will be the Design Impact team that will work with Breck.

Find out more about Design Impact

Dr. Charlotte Jacobs and Dr. Katie Clonan-Roy of EnGenderED Research Collaborative will be our partners throughout Breck's audit process. Dr. Jacobs is an adjunct assistant professor from University of Pennsylvania Graduate School for Education. Her research focuses on issues of identity development and gender in education concerning adolescent girls of color, teacher education and diversity, and youth participatory action research. Dr. Clonan-Roy is an Assistant Professor at Cleveland State University in the College of Education and Human Services Department of Curriculum and Foundations. Her research focuses on the intersections of education, adolescent development, and gender and sexuality studies. Dr. Jacobs and Dr. Clonan-Roy will accompany the schoolwide process by building capacity at every level of school leadership including but not limited to the Board of Trustees, Senior Leadership Team, Academic Leadership Team, Faculty, and Parents. Their expertise in curriculum and pedagogy will be tremendous resources as we do a deep inquiry into our practice with an anti-racist/anti-oppression lens.

Find Out More About EnGenderED