BUILDING TRANSFORMATIVE ALUMNI CONNECTIONS
alumni relations professionals ever knew ( or asked ) about her unique experience .
While much has changed in society — and students of color are less likely today to be the “ only one ” in an academic setting — many independent school alumni of color still have bittersweet memories of the time they spent at our institutions . Not so long ago many white teachers believed that it was wrong to “ see color ,” and many schools made admission alone the main focus of diversity work . Admitted “ diverse students ”— particularly if they were on financial aid or part of an access program designed to bring them into independent schools — may have been told by their families to keep their heads down and do the work . The students and their families were not necessarily empowered enough to highlight inequities at these schools with long-standing traditions and portraits of distinguished white headmasters and headmistresses lining the walls .
The “ Black at ” pages that sprung to life in the wake of the murder of George Floyd shined a spotlight on the experience of alumni of color ( and other marginalized identities ) in our schools . What may have appeared to victims to be isolated incidents — a racial slur , a parent being asked one too many times for identification while on campus , a pattern of being mistaken for another kid of the same race , an accusation that an excellent grade could not have been earned honestly — were shockingly commonplace , both in schools that thought themselves quite advanced in
“ While much has changed in society ... many independent school alumni of color still have bittersweet memories of the time they spent at our institutions .
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DEIB work , and those that knew that their efforts were lacking .
While students and alums from many New York City schools formed these accounts , nothing emerged at Browning . However , in community meetings with faculty , families , and students , we had heard the pain that they had experienced both within and outside of the school community . With our Head of School ; equity , diversity and inclusion ; advancement and communications teams acting together , we knew we had to learn more about the alumni experience . We decided to invite our alumni to focus groups , one just for those who identified as Black and one for those who identified as people of color . Facilitated by Pollyanna , Inc ., a diversity consulting firm , these groups would give us the opportunity to hear first-hand from former students and learn how we could make life better at Browning for students of color today and
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CSEE Connections Summer 2022 Page 3