Looking Beyond Black History Month
Since our establishment 15 years ago, Amana Academy has been a multicultural and diverse community, but for far too long we assumed that our outward diversity would organically build bridges between students and families. It’s true that our teachers use Crew time to build bonds and are learning to implement culturally responsive lessons, and yes- we host an annual International Festival, pay tribute to Black History Month, and post reminders about cultural events, but if we have learned anything this past year, our definition of diversity is not enough. We can do more; we must do more. With an incredibly meaningful Black History Month now in the rearview mirror, we are charting a course that clarifies our work toward equity, inclusion, and anti-racism.
Schools are powerful places that can shape the attitudes of their students; and if done right, they can be places where anti-racist multicultural diversity becomes an institutionalized asset with implications for thought leadership and impact within the broader community. Amana Academy’s inherent diversity provides us a rich foundation from which to be more intentional about moving beyond colorblindness and toward celebrating our differences, building trust & relationships and improving ourselves in the process.
During the pandemic, our partner EL Education has been steadfast in their commitment to ensure equity in education; and through regional meetings this past fall a couple things became clear to me: (1) we can not do this work on our own, we needed expertise; and (2) given the magnitude of the social challenges, we need to break it down into manageable pieces. Given the attention paid to our COVID response, I specifically wanted to use Black History Month as a springboard for a sustained effort. In late December, we formed a task force aptly named the Be the Light Task Force for Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Social Justice (the name was inspired by National Youth Laureate Amanda Gorman’s presidential inauguration speech (The Hill We Climb). The task force focused first on Black History Month and quickly honed in on the need to celebrate changemakers whose value and contribution to society is often overlooked, ignored or distorted; and on sharing our personal stories to create safe spaces and build community. The result was a Black History Month like no other in Amana’s past.
With the wind in our sails, the Be the Light Task Force has started to build out a yearlong work plan that seeks to broaden our celebration of diversity, enhance our curriculum, and continue to learn through discussion groups, book clubs and formal training. We are not trying to change students or adults, yet we must change the school conditions. As Dr. Ibram X. Kendi writes, antiracism is a journey that “requires persistent self-awareness, constant self-criticism, and regular self-examination.” I encourage you to fully engage in this journey---think of it as a learning expedition of your own where you research the people we highlight, share their stories with your kids, join a discussion group, or participate in training sessions or celebrations that we host. Our hope is that together we become weavers building a rich social fabric, and examples to our children, as they become active contributors to building a better world.
If you would like more information about the Be the Light Task Force, please contact me.
Ehab Jaleel
Executive Director
ejaleel@amanaacademy.org
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This Week: Students Spending Crew Reflecting on Black Changemakers
Our exploration of Black changemakers and the impact they had in our communities and on the world continues!
This week, students will spend each of their morning Crew sessions reflecting on how learning about the legacies of people like Shirley Chisolm, Stacey Abrams, Kehinde Wiley, and Katherine Johnson impacted them as students.
Students will be submitting either a poem, artwork, essay, video, or music by Thursday to showcase their reflection. Please continue to encourage your students to be reflective and curious as they synthesize their learning this week.
