Head-Royce School

The school launched a new program to "embed DEI into our admissions process."

The School's 2024 Strategic Direction states the school will "Broaden equitable access to the full Head-Royce experience through enhanced equity and inclusion practices in the admissions and tuition assistance process."

One of the school's family affinity groups is the "White Anti-Racist Family Network" for "white-identifying Head-Royce families interested in discussing race, privilege, and social justice. The group supports each other in leaning into discomfort, continuing to learn, and committing to anti-racist actions."

The Equity & Inclusion office's mission includes "Providing the time and resources necessary for our professional community members and administration, to participate in trainings, review and revise curriculum, pedagogy, policies, and practices through an anti-racist lens" and "Providing the time and resources necessary for the Board of Trustees to participate in policy review and trainings through an anti-racist lens."

The school scheduled ongoing DEI training for Board trustees.

The school incorporated a "stronger racial justice lens on pedagogy by evolving programs...with an anti-racist lens." The curriculum is currently under review.

The school will reimagine "curriculum and pedagogy to foster inclusivity and promote authentic engagement through culturally-responsive and equitable teaching practices" by "Instituting professional development sessions with Teaching While White and the National Equity Project," "Implementing individual anti-bias goals for every professional community member," and "Supporting targeted curriculum development over the summer."

The school will "Update the current 9th grade Health course to address issues of identity, intersectionality, and skills for dialogue across difference" and "Pilot an Upper School social justice course that we will work toward making a graduation requirement."

The school will "Initiate a complete and critical review of our K-12 curriculum using an anti-racist and racial justice lens to represent BIPOC positively, intentionally, and inclusively." It writes, "Yearly reviews will be completed in every division and department, looking specifically at the texts and content we teach and the tenets of our Teaching Tolerance, social justice framework that emphasizes Identity, Diversity, Justice, and Action. Curricular changes will be presented to departments and then to the Curriculum Committee during the school year for formal approval and communication to the larger community."

In 2020, the school "made changes to its humanities curriculums in order to achieve its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) goals." To achieve social justice, "all departments in the upper school... developed anti-bias goals and stricter derogatory language policies." Several US History classes adopted an "anti-bias framework" that "falls into four categories: identity, diversity, justice, and action."

The Lower (elementary) School includes diversity in its curriculum, stating that "topics of diversity" are weaved "throughout [the] curriculum." It states, "K-5 tackles the work of social justice in a variety of developmentally appropriate ways through picture books, discussion around equity and justice, and people who have made a difference."

The High School curriculum "reflects the diversity, globalism, environmental awareness, and innovation of Oakland and the Bay Area." The school aims to "inspire academic excellence, promote diversity, and encourage constructive global citizenship."

The school's "2024 Strategic Direction" aims to "embed equity and inclusion practices more intentionally into all areas of school life" and "review and refine at a regular cadence curricular choices, assessment methods, and school structures that support academic excellence for students across all divisions."

The school has a Bias Incident Reporting Policy.

The school has a "language policy" that explicitly prohibits the use of "derogatory and offensive language." The school includes "disciplinary appropriate" for each level.

The school will have regular DEI training sessions for faculty and staff.

The school will be "Utilizing unconscious bias training as part of our hiring practice."

The school will "Require faculty and staff training (this summer and ongoing) to address several key focus areas, including anti-racism, grading for equity, and creating culturally responsive classrooms."

The school will "Strengthen and expand professional development and community-wide access to DEI programming, including required affinity group work for employees."

K-5 teachers are trained in "the implementation of the Welcoming Schools curriculum," which is a "project of the human rights campaign and gives a comprehensive guide of LGBTQ resources and covers family diversity, gender stereotyping and name calling." This is integrated into the Lower School curriculum.

The school approved "allocation of funding for DEI programming, initiatives, and resources"

The school's Office of Equity & Inclusion compiled anti-racism resources, including "Antiracist Baby" and "Stamped: Racism, Anti-Racism, and You" (Ibram X. Kendi). The school also categorize sresources, labeling two categories as "Anti-Racism Resources for White People" and "Anti-Racism Resources for Non-Black POC."

The school created an Equity & Inclusion enrichment series for parents.

The school has a "White Anti-racist affinity group for US students."

The school "Created a Board Diversity Committee, a formal subcommittee of the Board of Trustees" and convened "an Inclusion Advisory Task Force representing all constituencies, including students, parents/caregivers, alumni, administration, faculty, and staff."

Regarding equity the school states, "Our equity initiatives address historical and systemic inequalities, ensuring all students receive the support and resources needed to thrive." On justice it says, "Our justice work prioritizes marginalized perspectives, ensuring their voices guide our initiatives to create an equitable and inclusive environment for all."

In April 2024, the school's student paper released an article titled "Developing Diversity: The School’s Attempts to Improve DEI." The article discussed the importance of diverse faculty and how the school has struggled to keep "underrepresented faculty." The article concludes by stating, "The loss of POC faculty has left a void in the School’s social fabric." Furthermore, "The School continues to grapple with the psychological impact it has on minority students’ sense of belonging within our community. However, through ongoing efforts and initiatives, the faculty strives for our community to improve (and continue to) foster an inclusive environment, embrace diversity, and provide education through many perspectives."

The school's DEI statement says, "We commit to fostering global perspectives, resolving conflicts, repairing harm, promoting inclusion, respecting differences, and prioritizing BIPOC leadership." Furthermore, it states "We welcome discomfort, learn from mistakes, and invest in training and curriculum revision for an anti-racist approach."

The school launched a "strategic direction" in 2024 that aims to "attract, support, and retain a highly diverse professional community dedicated to delivering an exceptional learning experience for students."