The Loomis Chaffee School

Loomis states that, "The school will review our diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) training for faculty and students in the dormitories and review how students are encouraged to pursue and are chosen for leadership positions at the school."

On June 26, 2020, Loomis released a letter on Instagram describing its commitment to anti-racism training.

Loomis states that, "All academic departments will continue to revise their curricula and examine their practices and policies to ensure that coursework and department policies and actions reflect the school’s commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and social justice." To accomplish this, Loomis states that, "Departments received additional support in these endeavors from the Kravis Center for Excellence in Teaching’s new assistant directors of diversity, equity, and inclusion curriculum development, Miles Morgan and Fiona Mills."

Loomis states that, "A committee of faculty and administrators will review graduation requirements and propose the changes necessary to ensure that all students graduate with an appropriate level of cultural competency and critical understanding of social justice."

Each academic department at Loomis has incorporated DEI curriculum.

Loomis requires students to take a course on World History: Systems of Justice and Injustice.

The Center for DEI collaborated with the Norton Family Center for the Common Good to incorporate DEI curricula into the Seminar in the Best Self and Seminar in the Common Good, which all freshmen and sophomores are mandated to take. The center has also implemented DEI curriculum delivered through the advisory system and residential programming to all students.

On June 26, 2020, Head of School Sheila Culbert wrote a letter to "Black and Brown" Alumni which discusses Loomis Chaffee's initiatives around issues of racism and diversity. She stated that "Student orientation and prefect and resident assistant training will include more training around DEI [Diversity, Equity, Inclusion] issues. The curriculum for the first year and sophomore year seminars will focus more directly on these issues."

In 2022, Loomis implemented a bias incident reporting protocol pilot program for faculty. The stated long-term goal is to expand this program to staff and students.

Loomis states that for Summer 2020 Professional Development, "all faculty are required to read Ibram X. Kendi’s 'Stamped from the Beginning' and either 'White Fragility' or 'Waking Up White.'"

Loomis' DEI team provides ongoing DEI training sessions for faculty and staff that "emphasize both education and self-reflection." The DEI team will also continue to support faculty participation in SEED (Seeking Educational Equity & Diversity) on campus. SEED work "develops ways of understanding complex relations between self and system with regard to race, class, gender, sexual orientation, physical ability/disability, and cultural experience."

In the summer of 2021, all faculty were required to read and discuss the book, "The Privileged Poor: How Elite Colleges Are Failing Disadvantaged Students," by Anthony Jack. Jack later spoke to the school community in January 2022 as the keynote speaker for the school’s MLK Week celebrations.

In the summer of 2022, all faculty and students were required to read "Under the Udala Trees" by Chinelo Okparanta, which places a focus on the intersection of race and gender. Okparanta later spoke at an all-school convocation in late September 2022.

On June 26, 2020, Head of School Sheila Culbert wrote a letter to "Black and Brown" Alumni which discusses Loomis Chaffee's initiatives around issues of racism and diversity. She stated that "All faculty and advisors will participate in additional professional development around issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion before the beginning of the new school year. Faculty are required to read Ibram X. Kendi's Stamped from the Beginning and either White Fragility or Waking Up White before the beginning of school."

The Center for DEI, in collaboration with the Norton Center and the Counseling Department, hosts student forums on "issues of current interest." Recent forum topics have included the Reparations Bill in Evanston, IL and Unconscious Bias of Latino Community.

Loomis states that, "Starting in the summer of 2020, the Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion began working with a group of Black alumni to form a Black alumni mentoring program for Loomis Chaffee’s Black students."

Loomis states that, "The Henry R. Kravis '63 Center for Excellence in Teaching will provide ongoing professional development to our faculty around issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion."

In the 2020-2021 DEI Report, Loomis included numerous DEI resources.

Loomis hosts a Center for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion which hosts numerous events, resources, and programs, including DEI Interns, a DEI internship for students.

Loomis has posted books, articles, videos, and links for DEI resources, including a novel by Ibram X. Kendi, titled "Stamped from the Beginning."

The school newspaper, the Loomis Chaffee Log, reports, "With national conversations about racial discrimination and inequality taking center stage in the past year, Loomis Chaffee has undertaken several initiatives to create a more inclusive and equity-focused community. This academic year, Loomis successfully opened its first all-gender living and learning community on the third floor of Flagg Hall. Upon the institution of the all-gender floor, a conversation was initiated by Deans on potentially changing dorm visitation policies to ensure that the policies are inclusive of all students."

Loomis participates in the Connecticut Association of Independent School (CAIS) Student Diversity Leadership Conference. Its mission “is to bring students from grades 7–12 and adults from independent schools across the state together for a day of networking and dialog, facilitating cross-cultural understanding and a call to action to improve our school communities and our world.”

Loomis participates in the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) Student Diversity Leadership Conference (SDLC), which is a "multiracial, multicultural gathering of upper school student leaders (grades 9–12) from across the U.S. and abroad. SDLC focuses on self-reflecting, forming allies, and building community."

Loomis has several student affinity groups and alliances on campus, including Sister Circle (for Black females), Brothers in Unity (for Black males), and Pa’lante (for Latino/a/x).

On January 16, 2023, Dr. Jenny Tsai--resident in emergency medicine at the Yale School of Medicine, activist, educator, and writer--spoke to the Loomis community about healthcare equity at the MLK Convocation.

The University of Virginia announced that the Loomis Chaffee School will be joining its "Universities Studying Slavery" consortium which has "expanded thematically to include institutions coming to terms with their pasts, including human bondage and racism in school history. It includes both colleges and large universities, as well as community colleges, doing this work. In the last few years, it has begun to expand into secondary schools."

On June 27, 2020, the online publication Hartford Courant published an article entitled, "In harrowing social media posts, Black students and alumni reveal racism at Connecticut’s elite private schools," which reports on racism experienced by Loomis alumni. The article stated, "Head of School Sheila Culbert outlined steps the independent boarding and day school will take to address the issues raised by students and alumni. Those initiatives include the development of a system to report incidents of racism and bias, improving efforts to recruit and retain non-white faculty and staff and conducting an 'inclusivity climate assessment.'”

On July 7, 2020, Head of School, Sheila Culbert wrote a letter to Loomis students to "reflect on the national conversation that is taking place about racial discrimination and to share with you the impact that conversation is having on the school. I have written two letters that detail some of the actions that we will take over the next year to become more inclusive and actively anti-racist." Culbert also offered some advice to the white students of the school by stating, "Understand the privileges that come from simply being white and use your privilege for good."

On November 7, 2020, Loomis stated on Facebook, "Loomis students and faculty have collaborated with the Town of Windsor's Human Relations Commission, local artists, and fellow schools to create 'End Racism Now,' a mosaic-style mural that promotes awareness against racial and social injustices and celebrates the diverse Town of Windsor CT."

Loomis states that, "All administrative offices will conduct an audit of DEI efforts in their respective work during the summer of 2020 and will set goals for DEI work in the 2020–21 school year."

Loomis states that, "In the summer of 2020, the Board of Trustees established the Committee on Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, chaired by Trustee Erik Cliette ’84. The committee will monitor the progress in meeting the school’s DEI goals as well as review reports regarding the handling of any issues regarding racism."

Loomis states that, "The school will establish a committee to analyze if and how bias may be influencing our disciplinary process and outcomes over the past few years. Committee membership will include BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) alumni as well as current faculty and students."

Loomis highlighted a student saying, "In the words of Kena Dijiba, 'We all have a duty to continue the fight when the dust settles. What we crave more than ever is societal reform, which will seep into how police officers confront personal biases.’ For too long, Black people have been suffering under a society that thrives off of their oppression, that teaches their children that they are unworthy or undesirable, and that allows them to be senselessly murdered by the people who have taken an oath to protect and serve. This reality will only begin to deteriorate when EVERYONE makes an active commitment to being anti-racist and to fighting for societal reform. Complacency is not an option. Black Lives Matter.” Loomis has also highlighted other student feedback on Black Lives Matter.

On May 14, 2021, Loomis highlighted a student-led DEI symposium.

On August 3, 2021, Loomis announced it would appoint a new Chief Diversity Officer.

On May 30, 2020, Loomis released a statement responding to the deaths of Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd, stating, "We must educate ourselves as to the issues. We must double down on the promise to be inclusive and thoughtful in our curriculum and required readings. And, we must ensure that we are actively anti-racist by being mindful of our actions and getting the training that we need."

On June 23, 2020, Loomis stated on Facebook, "In the latest 'Genuine Admissions' blog - The Journey from Ally to Accomplice - Amy Thompson reflects on the impact of systemic racism and explores ways to become an accomplice, both personally and professionally, in anti-racist work."

On June 11, 2020, Loomis highlighted on Facebook a letter sent to the school regarding anti-racist initiatives. This post was also featured on its Twitter and Instagram accounts.

On June 3, 2020, Loomis stated on Facebook, "To commemorate George Floyd and others who have lost their lives to the horrific incidents of systemic racism in the United States, People Rising in Support of Multiculturalism (PRISM) invited students and faculty to participate in a school-wide protest by turning off their Zoom cameras and displaying hashtags in support of the movement." This post was also featured on its Twitter and Instagram accounts.

On June 1, 2020, Loomis released a letter responding to the death of George Floyd on Facebook. This post was also featured on its Twitter and Instagram accounts.

On June 2, 2020, Loomis participated in Blackout Tuesday on Instagram.