Avenues: The World School

In the 2022-2023 School Year, the Lower Division School focused on "Diversity, Equity Inclusion and Social Emotional Learning (DEI-SEL) through the lens of neurodiversity." DEI-SEL addressed "the intersectionality of learners' identities."

The Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the Early Learning Center at Avenues states that "DEI and social justice is taught in a developmentally appropriate manner in the Early Learning Center (ELC) as children learn about identity, kindness and fairness and equity."

In the Lower Division School (Elementary), "Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI)" is integrated "throughout the curriculum." It states that DEI is "the lens through which we teach and build community, and we believe it’s vital to educate children to acknowledge, understand and celebrate diversity from the very beginning."

The Lower Division integrates DEI into its "professional development and internal learning and unlearning" with "faculty meetings and workshops" that "focus on topics spanning from identity to implicit bias to the uniqueness of Chinese and Spanish immersion."

The school's "community engagement and DEI are complementary initiatives" along with community partners, "students learn to lead with empathy and put DEI principles into practice."

The Upper-Divison School has many affinity groups, including "Avenues Anti-Racist Association," the "DEI Committee," and the "Gender Sexuality Alliance" among others.

The school paper released an article titled '5 Questions to Ask a School About Their Commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion" which includes the questions: "Is there a mission which adapts to the ever-evolving identities when discussing diversity?" "Does the school have a dedicated, experienced DEI practitioner?" and "Does professional development include a DEI lens?" among others. The article was written in 2021 by Kym Ward Gaffney, who was an "Avenues New York parent and renowned diversity expert."

The school held a session on "Understanding Systemic Challenges to Human Rights" which featured a number of DEI experts who discussed "eliminating inequality and injustice for all." A write-up on the meeting included "The New Golden Rule," which states, “Respect and uphold society’s moral order as you would have society respect and uphold your autonomy to live a full life.”

The Upper Grades School offers many clubs and affinity groups including the "Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee," which aims to provide a "safe space for students from underrepresented communities, as well as allies, to tackle issues of discrimination, bias, and injustice at Avenues." Furthermore, students in the club "take action at educating the broader Avenues community on important issues through educational presentations, panels, workshops, and more."

The Annual Inclusion Awards featured the "Ibram X. Kendi Award."

The school has a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion division. On the school's DEI page, one official wrote, "Diversity, equity and inclusion work at Avenues begins with the individual; exploring how our own biases, lived experiences and worldviews impact the ways in which we support our students and each other."

Regarding equity and justice, the school states, "We expect our students to wrestle with multiple perspectives and that they will hold differing views on complex issues."

The school hosts the Avenues Parent Association (APA) Annual Inclusion Awards which "recognizes staff, students and faculty who take on an inspirational role in helping to create an inclusive community at Avenues."