The Justice, Equity, and Diversity Institute aims to equip its participants to advance the work of justice, equity, and diversity in schools. It is designed to provide a comprehensive mid-level entry point into all aspects of equity work in independent schools, including specific topics related to identity and oppression, practices in the field, and strategic approaches to the work. The Institute harnesses the synergy of a cohort that explores these topics over a whole academic year, and provides access to participants to the networks available through past cohorts, the NYSAIS community, and the collective of diversity practitioners in the country.
The Institute is for independent schools who currently have a Director of Diversity who would benefit from this experience, and independent schools without a Director of Diversity who wish to strengthen their efforts by seeking this training for a faculty or staff member who may or may not fill this formal role. JEDI has particular appeal to classroom teachers looking to apply a firmer equity lens to curriculum and pedagogy, and to faculty and staff members interested in part- or full-time director of diversity roles (whether or not they are given the title of Director of Diversity.)
Over the course of one year, cohort members participate in:
Topics include:
The seventh Justice, Equity, and Diversity Institute cohort, consisting of roughly 20 members, will begin in summer 2024. The application process will open in January 2024. The deadline for completed applications is March 4, 2024. The 2024-2025 cohort will be announced in April 2024.
Candidates must:
Cost: $3,500 – all inclusive, for the 1-year program; fee will be adjusted/partially refunded should residential components be unavailable.
The principal leaders of the Justice, Equity, and Diversity Institute are John Gentile and Semeka Smith-Williams. Additional facilitators contribute to the program in various ways.
John Gentile currently serves as the Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the Calhoun School. He is a founding faculty member of the National Diversity Practitioners Institute (NDPI) and serves as a principal consultant for The Glasgow Group. He is a co-founder of the conference, (Re)defining Power: White Male Voices in Diversity Work, a space for 6th to 12th grade white male students wanting to explore their role in equity and justice work. He has been a faculty member for the National Association of Independent Schools’ Student Diversity Leadership Conference (SDLC) since 2009. He received his master’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania. He serves as the Co-Chair of the New York State Association of Independent Schools (NYSAIS) Diversity Committee. Originally from Washington D.C., he now calls Long Island home.
Semeka Smith-Williams currently serves as the Upper School Dean of Students at The Calhoun School, and was previously a Kindergarten teacher and LS Diversity Coach. Semeka also worked at the Community Partnership Charter School in Brooklyn, Manhattan Country School, and River East Elementary School. For ten years, Semeka has been a member of the New York State Association of Independent Schools (NYSAIS) Diversity Committee and is currently a Co-Chair. She is an Associate with the Institute for Social and Emotional Learning (IFSEL) conducting sessions with educators from around the world. Semeka received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Wesleyan University in African American and American Studies and a M.S.Ed. in Early Childhood and Elementary Education from Bank Street College of Education. She is also a proud member of the third cohort of the NYSAIS Emerging Leaders Institute (ELI).
Please contact Matt Suzuki for additional information.