Equity, Inclusion, and Diversity

Welcome!As Waldorf Education celebrated its 100th birthday, our nation found itself in the midst of a long-overdue reckoning with systemic racism. All over the country, our institutions have been looking inward to identify and root out the ways we u… — **Welcome!**
As Waldorf Education celebrated its 100th birthday, our nation found itself in the midst of a long-overdue reckoning with systemic racism. All over the country, our institutions have been looking inward to identify and root out the ways we uphold and perpetuate injustice. That mission is resonating loudly in Waldorf schools the world over. At Pasadena Waldorf School, we are taking on this profound task of self-reflection and restoration, building an education that reflects, affirms, and celebrates the rich cultural diversity that makes up Greater Los Angeles, Southern California, and the world at large.
The PWS Equity, Inclusion, and Diversity Group (EID) is a group of parents, faculty, and administration members spearheading this initiative within our school community. The mission of our collective is to create concrete steps in the school’s action plan to work toward greater diversity and inclusion in our school.
On this page you will find contributions from EID members, ways to support diversity, equity, and inclusion at the school, and great literary and video resources.

Featured

$5.00

Enter for a chance to win gift cards and merchandise from local Black-owned businesses with drawings on Friday February 4th, 11, and 18th.

Tickets purchased between Friday, January 28th and Thursday, February 3rd will be entered into February 4th drawing.

Tickets purchased between Friday, February 4th and Thursday, February 10th will be entered into February 11th drawing.

Tickets purchased between Friday February 11th, and Thursday, February 17th will be entered into February 18th drawing.

Proceeds support the PWS EID Scholarship.

Celebrating Black History Month

Black History Month is the annual celebration of the achievements, talents and contributions of African Americans. It is a time for recognizing their central role in U.S. history.

This holiday is the brainchild of noted historian Carter G. Woodson and other prominent African Americans. Since 1976, every U.S. president has officially designated the month of February as Black History Month. Other countries around the world, including Canada and the United Kingdom, also devote a month to celebrating Black history.

As we approach February, we want to invite you to connect with the stories, talents, gifts and other offerings of the African American community and culture. All month, PWS will host a series of raffles to raise money in support of the Equity, Inclusion and Diversity (EID) Student Scholarship. We will spotlight local businesses and individuals who have made a difference in the Altadena/Pasadena community.

Join us in celebrating Black History month!

PWHS Latinx Heritage Month Assembly

On October 15th, PWS observed the final day of Latinx Heritage month with a wonderful assembly on the McComb Mendocino campus. High schoolers, alongside the visiting seventh grade, had the privilege of a visit from Martha Gonzalez and Quetzal Flores, activists and Grammy-winning musicians from the band Quetzal. Accompanied by their teenage son Sandino, Martha and Quetzal shared many original songs, as well as others from the son jarocho and fandango traditions. Weaving Mexican folk music traditions together with American jazz, Chicano rock and rap, they also engaged students around larger questions of art, music, culture, and identity. Their gifts of song, dance, and self-expression were powerful, as were their words of wisdom about what it means to love and reclaim your culture, and what it means to bring transformative change to the world around you. What an incredible gift to our students and staff! A special thanks also goes out to PWS parent and EID Mandate Group member Maya Jupiter for helping making it all possible, and for joining Quetzal for a powerful performance of Madre Tierra.

National Hispanic Heritage Month

Each year, Americans observe National Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15 to October 15, by celebrating the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America.

In joining this celebration, the PWS Equity, Inclusion & Diversity Mandate Group (EID) offers resources with the PWS community.

Indigenous Peoples' Day - Monday, October 11th

Pasadena Waldorf School acknowledges the Gabrielino/Tongva peoples as the traditional land caretakers of Tovaangar (the Los Angeles basin and So. Channel Islands). We pay our respects to the Honuukvetam (Ancestors), ‘Ahiihirom (Elders) and ‘Eyoohiinkem (our relatives/relations) past, present and emerging.

Learn more about the Chumash, Tongva, Kizh and Tataviam nations:

Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians Website

Wishtoyo Chumash Foundation Website

Gabrielino/Tongva Nation Website

Kizh Nation Website

Fernandeño Tataviam Band of Mission Indians Website

Resources for Allies:

Changing the Narrative About Native Americans: A Guide for Allies

Article:

http//:www.kcrw.com/culture/shows/curious-coast/las-tongva-descendants-we-originated-here

Public exhibition dedicated to the Tongva Indian peoples in the Los Angeles area:

Tongvaland Project

National Coming Out Day - October 11

Since 1988, one year after the March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights, October 11th has been observed as National Coming Out Day. Today, it is observed in all 50 states and many countries around the world. This is a day to raise awareness about the LGBTQIA+ community, civil rights overall and to champion the idea that homophobia thrives in silence.

We are now in generations who are on the other side of those that had to break the closet door down. These generations have the courage, ability, and willingness to examine their own truth, minds, and hearts. Safe and healthy spaces are being created and nurtured in everyday surroundings where kids and adults can feel safe and welcome. Let us remember that love is love and allow people to be and express who they are. Let us also remember that as far as we've come, there is still a long way to go. Education, discussion, learning, understanding, and compassion help to dissolve hatred, misunderstanding, discrimination, and harm. Let us open our hearts and listen to one another with open minds and patience as we navigate the evolution of identity. Share. Connect. Live proudly.

Resources & Support Organizations

The Trevor Project - https://www.thetrevorproject.org

The Human Rights Campaign - https://www.hrc.org

The National Center for Transgender Equality - https://transequality.org

It Gets Better Project -- https://itgetsbetter.org

The Kinsey Institute - https://kinseyinstitute.org

Articles

https://transequality.org/blog/the-power-of-coming-out

https://www.healthline.com/health/how-to-come-out

https://www.teenvogue.com/story/how-to-come-out-as-lgbtq

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/national-coming-out-day-addison-rose-vincent_n_5f81ab0dc5b6e6d033a308fa

https://www.bustle.com/wellness/how-to-support-a-friend-who-is-coming-out

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/how-to-support-coming-out-trans_l_5fc6d621c5b64c880a7e2ffd

https://transequality.org/about-transgender

Black History Month.JPG — **PWS Celebrates Black History Month**

*Watch the collection of poems by notable Black poets, read by PWS staff, faculty, and members of the Equity, Inclusion, and Diversity Mandate Group.*

See the collection

PWS Scholarship for Equity, Inclusion, and Diversity

This new scholarship, generously supported by PWS parents and foundations, allows PWS to attract and retain students from the Black community and other communities of color.

Learn more

PWS statement against Systemic Racism
From the College of Teachers and the Equity, Inclusion, and Diversity Mandate Group

Pasadena Waldorf School vows to stand in solidarity with Black Lives Matter and those who are fighting to end over 400 years of institutionalized racism, systemic violence, historic inequity and white supremacy. We understand that this work starts in our own school community. As we grieve the murder of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Christopher DeAndre Mitchell and most recently Anthony McClain by the Pasadena Police, we feel the pain, rage and calls for justice voiced by so many across this country and the world in the past months. We stand by our Black families at PWS. We stand by the historically Black community of Altadena which has faced its own struggles with institutional racism and is grieving the loss of another Black man killed by police.

In this moment of global crisis, as we witness Black people disproportionately suffering and dying from the pandemic, we are called upon, with a sense of urgency, to face racism individually and as a community. That means committing --again and again -- to the work of dismantling racism and unconscious bias in ourselves, our organizations, and our society. We each have a role to play as educators, administrators, faculty, students, and parents. PWS is committed to the ongoing process of concretely working to recognize and eradicate the structures of institutional racism that exist in our school.

We are striving to build a school that reflects the diverse communities of Los Angeles and the historically Black community of Altadena, including increasing Black faculty, staff and student body. We are working to renew a curriculum and festival life that does not perpetuate racism, white supremacy and historic injuries.

“In a racist society it is not enough to be non-racist, we must be anti-racist.” – Angela Davis

EID Resources

LGBTQ RESOURCES

https://www.readbrightly.com/9-great-lgbtq-books-kids/ There was a time when LGBTQIA+ parents and children had a hard time finding their family’s faces and feelings in the pages of children’s and young adult books. No more. Ever since Heather Has Two Mommies appeared on shelves in 1989, more books, geared to everyone from the youngest tots to questioning tweens and teens (not to mention to their parents), are filling the gap and helping families grow in understanding. And of course, these books aren’t just for families with a direct connection to LGBTQIA+ issues; everyone can use these books’ messages of unconditional love and acceptance.

www.lalgbtcenter.org The Center provides services for more LGBT people than any other organization in the world, offering programs, services, and global advocacy that span four broad categories: Health, Social Services and Housing, Culture and Education, Leadership and Advocacy. Please visit The Center’s website to learn more. They offer life affirming, life changing and life saving services for the entire rainbow of the LGBT community.

https://pointfoundation.org/ Helping LGBTQ students achieve their dreams for 20 years Point Foundation empowers promising lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer students to achieve their full academic and leadership potential – despite the obstacles often put before them – to make a significant impact on society.

www.onearchives.org ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives at the USC Libraries is the largest repository of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer (LGBTQ) materials in the world.

www.transwellness.org The Trans Wellness Center (TWC) provides comprehensive resources and services for transgender and non-binary people under one roof. The 3,000-square-foot center is the first-of-its-kind in the United States, with six local organizations joining forces to create this new home for wellness. The TWC was conceived and created by community leaders and allies, honoring their lifelong dedication to raise awareness about the needs and the contributions of the transgender community.

www.matthewshepard.org The Matthew Shepard Foundation’s mission is to amplify the story of Matthew Shepard to inspire individuals, organizations, and communities to embrace the dignity and equality of all people. Through local, regional, and national outreach, we empower individuals to find their voice to create change and challenge communities to identify and address hate that lives within our schools, neighborhoods, and homes.

https://www.mazerlesbianarchives.org/ The June L. Mazer Lesbian Archives is the largest major archive on the West Coast dedicated to preserving and promoting lesbian and feminist history and culture. By creating a safe place for women to explore the richness of lesbian history, perhaps adding to it themselves, we are paving the way for future generations to understand more fully their own identity and history and help maintain this vital link to their own past.

www.hrc.org The Human Rights Campaign envisions a world where every member of the LGBTQ family has the freedom to live their truth without fear, and with equality under the law. We empower our 3 million members and supporters to mobilize against attacks on the most marginalized people in our community.

www.thetrevorproject.org Founded in 1998 by the creators of the Academy Award®-winning short film TREVOR, The Trevor Project is the leading national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer & questioning (LGBTQ) young people under 25.