In response to continued appeals from students and faculty for the administration to take action regarding recent discussions of race on campus, the administration has made several bold and laudable moves that will help move the school into a far more progressive, 21st-century mindset.
We would to congratulate Linda Carter Griffith, the current Dean of Community and Multicultural Development (CAMD), on her appointment to the new position of Assistant Head of School for Equity and Inclusion. The position’s creation is in alignment with the 2014 Strategic Plan’s tenet of “Equity & Inclusion.”
Griffith will now be uniquely poised to address topics of race, class, gender and sexuality, among others, at Andover, and we look forward to seeing the changes we know she will bring.
We also appreciated this year’s “Youth from Every Quarter” All-School Meeting (ASM) speaker, Rosetta Lee. Lee, a diversity consultant and teacher at the Seattle Girls’ School, spoke about the issue of diversity in a modern context and touched on many of the themes brought up by last year’s Out of the Blue project.
Lee’s message was clear and informative, as well as inspiring and welcoming, as it offered an approach to diversity with which it was impossible to find fault. Last Wednesday’s ASM was an invaluable opportunity for our entire Andover community to learn and reflect together.
The appointment of Griffith and the invitation of Lee were just two actions that have already had an immediate effect on the morale and cultural competency of our student body. We would like to thank the administration and faculty for hearing and responding to our concerns.
These editorials represent the views of The Phillipian Editorial Board CXXXVII.
