Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Alliance Groups are student-led and faculty-advised organizations that are open to the entire community. While they aim to develop friendship among students who are interested in exploring together and being curious with others, alliance groups focus on topics on diversity. Through scheduled discussions and schoolwide events, students develop spaces and learning environments intended to be empathetic, respectful and collaborative.

Affinity Groups follow the best practices outlined by the National Association of Independent Schools. Although we may claim multiple identities, affinity groups are designed to encourage interaction among participants who share a similar identity. Because students and faculty participants can speak from the “I” and “we” perspective, these spaces affirm lived experiences and generate fellowship and empowerment.

Literature provides a window to the past, a filter for the present, and a portal to the future; but, most importantly, literature provides an opportunity for the reader to migrate into a liminal, empathetic space, where, for a brief moment, they are able to test the limits of their imagination's unique capacity to consider the internal and external landscapes of people other than themselves. But, is it ever possible to sufficiently understand and honor the life and experience of another when there may be worlds and oceans of time and circumstance between the reader and the author? That is, perhaps, the ultimate test of the reader in their ontological quest for a heightened connection with the lives of others: to read, to listen, and to try to understand. Westminster's English curriculum aims to help students to be aware of the inherent bias at the core of the self and to understand the complex and nuanced concepts associated with the narratives and histories of Otherization: to understand the paradox that the subjective self and personal experience are vitally important, and, simultaneously, veils that must be rent in order to approach the truths of lived experiences beyond one's ken. The English Department's signature visiting writer program enhances our curricular offerings with the work of six contemporary writers during each academic year; in addition, the winter and spring elective offerings for Sixth Form present a choice of eight different areas of literary study; this broad range of authors and texts allows students to read and discuss works from a wide and diverse range of backgrounds.

Above all, it is the goal of the History Department to provide a rich curriculum and to create a learning environment that encourages all Westminster students to see themselves in human history. Beginning with our Third Form Global History and Society course and continuing with Fourth Form Contemporary History, Fifth Form United States History, and our AP and other electives, the Department's curriculum introduces students to the human story in many ways.

 

Students progressing through the core curriculum participate in a close examination of the world's cultures and peoples, including issues of economic and political development, social hierarchies, divisions and disparities, gender equity, religion, and environmental issues.

 

 

The mission of the CT-SDLC is to bring together students from grades seven through 12 and adults from independent schools across the state for a day of peer facilitated workshops rooted in cross-cultural understanding and a call to action to improve our school communities and our world.

The NAIS People of Color Conference (PoCC) is the flagship of the National Association of Independent Schools’ commitment to equity and justice in teaching, learning and organizational development. The mission of the conference is to provide a safe space for leadership, professional development and networking for people of color and allies of all backgrounds in independent schools.

SPHERE is a consortium of independent schools from the greater Hartford area that came together in the early 70s because of a common commitment to diversity, originally expressed through summer enrichment programs for students from the City of Hartford. Today, the mission of SPHERE is to encourage and assist member schools as they collaborate in sustaining diverse, inclusive and culturally responsive environments for teaching and learning. Member schools seek to foster a respect for difference and an understanding of multicultural perspectives in curricular and extracurricular programs.

Horizons at Westminster students come from Hartford Public Schools for a six-week summer program — starting in first grade and returning every summer through eighth grade. This deep, long-term investment over eight summers is designed to serve the whole child — fostering academic and social development that benefits students, their families and the broader Hartford community.

On the second Thursday of each month, this outreach effort draws on several constituents from the Westminster community — faculty, staff, parents and students — and sends a contingent to help serve lunch at Loaves and Fishes, a soup kitchen which assists the very neediest people of Hartford.

During a week in the month of March, the Spring Break in Hartford program seeks to extend its outreach further by lending a hand to various service organizations (like Loaves and Fishes) and schools in Hartford.