DEI Plan Updates 2021-2026

Written by the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee of the Board of Trustees as part of our commitment to mean well, speak well, do well, and do better, the Glen Urquhart School DEI Plan was presented at our Annual Meeting on June 2, 2021.

Over the past five years, Glen Urquhart School has engaged in sustained, intentional work to deepen our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. What began as a set of goals has evolved into a more integrated, school-wide effort — one that touches who we are as a community, how we teach and learn, and how we make decisions. While progress has not been linear, it has been steady and reflective. We have strengthened systems, clarified priorities, and, most importantly, continued to ask critical questions about how we live out our mission in practice.

Key Impacts

  • Program Growth: Curriculum evolution moved from internal "audits" to active student advocacy, expansion of social justice themes in the 6th and 8th-grade leadership trips, and a schoolwide commitment to “windows, mirrors, and sliding doors” and “who writes the story? Who benefits from the story? Who is missing from the story?”

  • People Growth: After exceeding our initial goal of 15% students of color, we increased the goal to 20%, and have since met that goal and are projecting 22% for school year 2026-2027. Additionally, Faculty of Color representation rose from baseline to 11.8% in 2026, exceeding the school's initial 10% goal.

  • Strategic Community Learning: Formalized a multi-layered professional development model that includes anti-racism and anti-bias training, bolstered by consistent participation in national and regional conferences, on-campus workshops with expert facilitators, and the ongoing work of a dedicated faculty DEI Committee to lead ongoing program and policy innovation.

  • Policy Growth: Reimagined the admissions process to be more transparent, accessible, and equitable through the introduction of Family Individualized Tuition (FIT), continuous enrollment, and rolling admission. That commitment was anchored institution-wide by a formal DEI statement and DEI professional development embedded in faculty contracts.

Looking Ahead

We have made meaningful progress in building systems, expanding representation, and integrating DEI more fully into the life of the school. At the same time, this work is ongoing, as we continue striving to ensure that all members of our community feel a true sense of belonging. Although this specific DEI plan concludes in 2026, the work itself will continue through the broader goals and priorities of our Long Range Plan, GUS 2033. Rooted in our mission, vision, and values, the Long Range Plan reinforces our commitment to continuous growth, reflection, and building a school community where all students, families, and employees feel seen, supported, and valued.

Future Opportunities for GUS

  • Policy + Mission: Update the DEI mission statement as the strategic "North Star" for the ongoing evolution of DEIB at GUS, while ensuring support at the Board of Trustees level.

  • Sustained Diversity + People Growth: Maintain a continuous upward trajectory of representation, targeting a new goal of 22% BIPOC student enrollment while permanently sustaining faculty diversity above the 10% benchmark. 

  • Program + Safety Protocols: Establish comprehensive, intentional protocols for safe, welcoming spaces specifically designed for GUS student-athletes, and extend support through mission-aligned, supportive language to all co-curricular activities, families, and spectators.

  • Recruitment + Community Inclusion: Target neurodivergent representation in future recruitment and launch refined professional learning + development initiatives to build an increasingly inclusive environment for all staff. Partner with families of students of color to create opportunities for more community engagement and gatherings.

5-Year Progress

People +

GOAL: By 2026, GUS will increase the racial diversity of its students, faculty, staff, and trustees to better reflect the changing racial demographics of the secondary schools to which the school sends and the communities in which the school serves. The increased racial diversity will create a learning environment where all students benefit from exposure to others that are different from themselves.

Admissions

2021-2022

  • 14.5% of current students identify as BIPOC

2022-2023

  • Reached our original goal of 15% students of color this school year, increased goal to 20%.
  • Working to develop a better process for gathering data, reporting, and BIPOC self-identification across our current and prospective families.

2023-2024

  • Opened the 23-24 school year at 19.4% students of color.
  • Revised our application questions to collect more specific data on our students racial and ethnic identities and asking families to share all languages spoken at home.

2024-2025

  • Opened the 24-25 school year at 20% percent students of color, meeting our goal. As enrollment shifted through the year, it dipped to 19.7%.
  • Revised our application questions to collect more specific data on our students' racial and ethnic identities. We now also ask families to share all languages spoken at home.

2025-2026

  • Opened the 25-26 school year at 20% percent students of color, meeting our goal.
  • Projecting 22% students of color for the 2026-2027 school year.
  • Revised our application questions to collect more specific data on our students' racial and ethnic identities. We now also ask families to share all languages spoken at home.

Hiring + Retention

2021-2022

  • Engaged StratéGenius to help with recruitment
  • Review of hiring process began in the summer of 2021.
  • Working to expand the list of schools we are connected to for interns by widening our network through other community partnerships. This school year, we welcomed interns from Endicott College, Montserrat, and UMass Lowell.

2022-2023

  • Welcoming a number of new administrators, faculty, and staff has helped us work towards our goal of 10% faculty and staff of color. Next steps include establishing a formal process for self-reporting.
  • Sent two administrators to attend the Carney Sandoe & Associates DEIB Hiring Forum in Philadelphia, with the focus of getting the word out about ongoing GUS efforts in the DEIJ space, as well as for the recruitment of BIPOC educators. Also attended their FORUM/Boston Hiring Conference.

2023-2024

  • Implemented a formal process for self-reporting race and ethnic identity to better track our progress towards the goal of 10% faculty and staff of color.

2024-2025

  • Continued to implement a formal process for self-reporting race and ethnic identity to better track our progress towards the goal of 10% faculty and staff of color. Reported percentages of self-identified BIPOC faculty members: Academic Year 2023–2024: 7.2%; Academic Year 2024–2025: 7.8%
  • Retained NEMNET to help assist in our active recruitment + identification of a diverse faculty + staff.

2025-2026

  • Continued to implement a formal process for self-reporting race and ethnic identity to better track our progress towards the goal of 10% faculty and staff of color.
  • Out of six BIPOC candidates identified across five FTE searches for SY25-26, we are proud to have hired two as full-time GUS faculty members.
  • Worked with both Carney Sandoe and Associates +  NEMNET to help assist in our active recruitment + identification of a diverse faculty + staff.

Board of Trustees + Parents

2021-2022

  • Trustee Annual DEI Retreat - Redefinition of Critical Race Theory and the Impact on Schools

2022-2023

  • Working towards a goal of 25% trustees of color, in year two of our strategic plan we are at 15%.
  • Organized gatherings for families of BIPOC students, including a Back-to-School Picnic and Family Skate, in an effort to recognize and support these families in a community that is predominantly white.
  • Held a community read of the book Admissions, by Kendra James, and co-hosted a book discussion with the Parents’ Association.

2023-2024

  • Organized gatherings for families of BIPOC students, including a Back-to-School Gathering and a second one on the weekend of 1/21/24 offsite at The Castle Board Game Cafe in Beverly, in an effort to recognize and support these families in a community that is predominantly white.
  • Two parents joined the Parents Association Executive Committee as DEI representatives.
  • Hosted PA meeting on 1/17/24 on the GUS DEI Plan as well as how we incorporate DEI principles and questions into our curriculum and program.

2024-2025

  • In partnership with the Board of Trustees, the DEI Committee continues to explore topics for ongoing board professional development. Recent conversations have focused on current events and the broader national discourse, with an emphasis on how the Board and the Committee can support the school and its continued commitment to the important work of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
  • GUS Families were invited to share their family’s specific Heritage, Holidays + Traditions via a survey, as well as to share with the community at All School Meeting.

2025-2026

  • Guided by the school’s mission and commitment to equity work, growth, and improvement, the BoT DEI Committee met in early November to discuss an updated DEIB Mission Statement, drafted by members of the faculty’s DEI Committee during the 24-25 academic year. There were some sound conversations, ideas, and feedback that will be further synthesized and discussed, so that the iterative process can continue at the BoT level.
  • The Community Celebrations Calendar was shared with the wider GUS community and has served as an educational resource for our community. We will look to continue seeking feedback and make changes in the coming year so that it feels authentic and reflective of our community.
  • In partnership with the Board of Trustees, we began to explore ways in which we can work to ensure that our non-binary student athletes feel safe + supported in their sports pursuits.

Program +

GOAL: By 2026, GUS will have a curricular and co-curricular program that in anti-bias, anti-racist, and multicultural, supported by culturally responsive faculty and staff.

Curriculum

2021-2022

  • A list of peer schools to visit, that have been working on curriculum integration, has been established.
  • A refresher on inclusive language, including discussion of gender pronouns and introductions, was presented at back-to-school faculty meetings.
  • Three mechanisms to evaluate curriculum were established: Social Justice Standards, Three Questions, and Ford Harris Bloom Banks Matrix.
  • Study of indigenous peoples saw renewed focus with the establishment of a faculty working group over the summer (Emilie Cushing, Chris Doyle, Christine Draper, and Elliott Buck), with emphasis on how it is approached across grade levels.
  • The group began with a focus on integration in second, third, fifth, sixth, and seventh grade curricula.
  • Published Land Acknowledgement.
  • DEI committee split into two subgroups - one with a focus on curriculum review and one with a focus on looking across the whole school for gaps and opportunities, including hiring pipelines, peer school work, community partners, holidays, and the school calendar.
  • At the beginning of the year, GUS community members were invited to share their family traditions around holidays or special events. This school year we have had presentations led by faculty and families alike on Rosh Hashanah/Yom Kippur, Indigenous Peoples Day, Diwali, Veterans Day, Ruby Bridges Walk to School Day, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, and Lunar New Year.

2022-2023

  • Emphasized DEIJ as a ‘throughline’ that is as much part of the GUS Curriculum as basic/traditional skills, and not its own separate category to be taught; connected to the annual ‘Faculty Growth + Renewal’ (i.e. evaluation) document + conversations with administrators.
  • Used the week of Martin Luther King Jr’s birthday to launch into the GUS ‘Beloved Community’ project. Throughout the month of February, upper school Leadership Groups have been meeting to discuss the concept of a ‘Beloved Community’ and working to create a patchwork quilt representing the six principles of nonviolence.
  • Continue to emphasize the following three prompts, tailored to meet the needs of various age levels: Who is telling the story? Who is the intended audience? Who’s voice is missing?

2023-2024

  • Sending four Upper School students and one faculty member to the AISNE Middle School Diversity Conference in February.
  • Hosted Michael Barbaro on campus during upper school community time to share his story of coming out as a gay male and working to build allyship.
  • Hosted Nick Thomas, Boston College football player and former student at an AISNE school, to talk about his experience in navigating predominantly white spaces, code-switching, and leadership.
  • Worked to create more interdisciplinary projects rooted in real world problems, with student-driven solutions not being from a saviorist lens.
  • Students on the 8th Grade Service + Leadership Trip (April 2023) visited Cambridge, MD, to learn about current efforts being made by local activists to hold difficult conversations about the historical divide.

2024-2025

  • Added a dedicated Spanish language section to the library with a specific focus on titles that are Spanish literature, and not just translated into Spanish. This effort aims to increase the number of titles that provide ‘windows, mirrors, sliding doors’ for our multilingual Spanish-speaking students and all GUS community members.
  • Worked to create more interdisciplinary projects rooted in real-world contexts, as well as provide more opportunities for students to learn about underrepresented identities. Some examples include, but are not limited to: the study of indigenous groups from Spanish-speaking countries; practicing math literacy + linguistic (Spanish) skills at a local restaurant; 'A Place at the Table' project, where 7th grade students reflect on how gender, race, and class shape who they are by making space for a lesser-known person who has faced oppression or marginalization.

2025-2026

  • In November, our three Spanish teachers attended the annual ACTFL Conference in New Orleans. They came back invigorated, empowered, and with a wealth of resources and knowledge to share with the community. We are excited about the implications of this conference for the overall scope/sequencing of the Spanish department and program here at GUS.
  • Our curriculum remains committed to empowering students through social justice and the celebration of underrepresented identities. From analyzing the work of changemakers from the Harlem Renaissance to intentional + inclusive DNA sequencing in science, we bridge academic concepts with real-world equity. Our students apply their math and Spanish skills at local restaurants, explore the values of African art, and draw inspiration from civil rights leaders for their 8th-grade speeches. This work is deeply personal in the 7th-grade "A Place at the Table" project, an intentional study of how race, gender, and class influence our lives, requiring students to research and honor the stories of those who have faced systemic marginalization.

Professional Development

2021-2022

  • DEI professional development was added as a requirement in all faculty + staff contracts this year. This requirement asks faculty and staff members to engage in at least one professional development opportunity focused on understanding antiracism and anti-bias education, at both the personal and professional levels. The goal of this PD requirement is for every faculty and staff member at GUS to work in alignment toward the development of an antiracist and anti-bias school program at GUS.
  • In addition to this requirement, faculty and staff use ongoing weekly team meetings and monthly faculty meetings to review the curriculum and program, discuss teaching practices, and continue evaluating school culture.

2022-2023

  • Sent two faculty members to the inaugural AISNE Leadership for Racial Justice Fellows program in July 2022; two additional faculty members will attend in July 2023.
  • During pre-service meetings in August, faculty engaged in a 6-hour workshop with the Anti Defamation League.
  • Contracted with Melissa Lawlor to facilitate a DEIJ-focused workshop on ‘interrupting skills’ + physiological response to stress in relation to observed micro and macro aggressions in schools.
  • Sent one administrator/faculty member to National Association of Independent Schools People of Color Conference in San Antonio to engage in two and a half days of DEIJ-focused workshops + affinity spaces.

2023-2024

  • Sent two more faculty members to the second annual Leadership for Racial Justice Fellows program in July 2023
  • Held a professional development workshop in October 2023 with Linda Murphy, focused on understanding neurodivergence and examining the GUS learning environment to ensure that it is inclusive and supportive for all students, including our neurodiverse learners.
  • Contracted with Jenny Jun-lei Kravitz to facilitate a DEIJ-focused workshop aimed at building upon teachers’ approaches to teaching + learning through a DEIJ lens.
  • Sent an administrator and a faculty member to the National Association of Independent Schools People of Color Conference in St. Louis to engage in two and a half days of DEIJ-focused workshops + affinity spaces.
  • Hosted Jenny Jun-lei Kravitz at GUS to facilitate an all-day professional development centered around “identifying and discussing existing barriers to leveraging existing equity and inclusion strategies, skills, and knowledge” in February 2024.

2024-2025

  • Sent two administrators to the AISNE DEI Conference in October 2024.
  • Sent an administrator and a faculty member to the National Association of Independent Schools People of Color Conference (PoCC) to engage in two and a half days of DEIJ-focused workshops + affinity spaces.
  • A GUS administrator co-presented “Bridge to Belonging: Nurturing Transracial Adoptees in School Communities” at both the AISNE DEI Conference (regional) and at the NAIS PoCC Conference (national).
  • A ten-person faculty DEI Committee was established in the fall of 2024. This group meets every 2–3 weeks, with a specific focus on program development and policy.

2025-2026

  • Three members of the GUS community attended the annual AISNE DEI Conference (Pam McCoy, Suzy Light, and Brad Belin) in October. Brad co-facilitated the Transracial Adoptee Affinity space.
  • The annual NAIS/People of Color Conference took a one-year hiatus this winter. In its place, regional bodies, including AISNE, stepped up to provide similar space for BIPOC educators during the same time. Brad Belin represented GUS at this year’s AISNE BIPOC Symposium, and was also tabbed to be a cofacilitator for the Transracial Adoptee Affinity Group there, too.

Co-Curricular Activities

2024-2025

  • Sent four Upper School students and one faculty member to the AISNE Middle School Diversity Conference in February.
  • Partnered with Global Works Travel for the annual 8th Grade Service + Leadership trip (April 2024 and April 2025). Students visited Puerto Rico as part of a cultural immersion and service-based work trip to support ongoing rebuilding efforts in areas of the island devastated by Hurricane Maria in 2017.
  • GUS participation in North Shore Pride Parade in June 2023, and plans to participate again in June 2024.
  • Held two Spanish-speaking lunches for faculty + students who identify as Spanish-speakers outside of GUS, as well as GUS community members who would like to participate as non-native Spanish speakers. Lunches will continue on a regular basis.
  • Hosted Terezin: The Children of the Holocaust performance, whose organization is "dedicated to combating racism, antisemitism, discrimination, intolerance, and bullying through education and the arts," in January, which was co-directed by current GUS ELA teacher + alum, Kate Doyon '01.

2025-2026

  • Sent three Upper School students and one faculty member to the AISNE Middle School Diversity Conference in February.
  • For the third year in a row, GUS partnered with Global Works Travel for the annual 8th Grade Service + Leadership trip. Students visited Puerto Rico as part of a cultural immersion and service-based work trip to support ongoing rebuilding efforts in areas of the island devastated by Hurricane Maria in 2017.
  • Sixth graders brought their grade theme, "The People," to life during a three-night trip to Washington, D.C., where they engaged with advocacy groups, explored historic landmarks, and participated in an action-planning workshop to develop their own voices for civic engagement.
  • GUS participated in North Shore Pride Parade in June 2025, and plans to send a group once again this June.

Policy +

GOAL: By 2026, create, review, and/or revise policies and practices to ensure an equitable and inclusive school enrivonment for students, families, faculty, and staff.

2021-2022

  • Revised the GUS DEI Statement.
  • Updated the school calendar to be more inclusive of a variety of holidays.

2022-2023

  • Launched Family Individualized Tuition (GUS FIT) model for the 2023-2024 school year. This new model offers greater transparency than the traditional financial aid process and ensures each family’s financial investment in a GUS education is in equitable proportion to their economic resources.
Brad Belin