Collaboration with Dr. Derrick Gay to Deepen a Culture of Inclusion and Respect

Dr. Derrick Gay, internationally recognized consultant on issues of global citizenship, diversity and inclusion, ran several workshops for our community this week.

Tuesday, he met with our boys in Grades Three through Eight for sessions focused on the cultivation of empathy, which built on previous equity and inclusion work in Sophrosyne classes.

Discussions drew from the boys' exploration of intent and impact, and how personal identity can affect the impact of words. The boys applied this framework as they considered: What is the difference between intent vs. impact? Is one more important than the other? How can we recognize and stop harmful and unkind jokes?

Dr. Gay also spoke with our parent community and faculty/staff, presenting the latest research highlighting educator, parent, and caregiver perceptions regarding the degree to which young children are aware of differences - ranging from gender and socioeconomics to family configuration and race - relative to what children actually report understanding about themselves and others. He led faculty and staff in several exercises and discussions that examined knowledge and perceptions about race.

Dr. Derrick Gay, Assistant Headmaster Alexis Aoyama, and Co-Director of Inclusion, Diversity and Community Pedro Morales.

All of these sessions were thought provoking and advance our school's efforts, in this fourth year of our collaboration with Dr. Gay, to deepen a culture of inclusion and respect at Saint David's.

Resilience in the Teaching of Languages

Above: The Nerf microphone ball enables boys learning remotely to hear their classmates well. The pandemic has challenged educators to reinvent and reimagine units of study to keep learning engaging, regardless of how it is delivered. The following article, written for Saint David’s Magazine by our Modern Languages Chair Dr. Victoria Gilbert and Lower School Spanish teacher Flor Berman, addresses how this was done in the Spanish immersion language program at Saint David's. Ms. Berman and Dr. Gilbert, recipient of the New York State Association of Foreign Language Teachers' Ruth E. Wasley Distinguished Teacher Award, presented on the topic at NYSAIS’s Flexible Classroom Conference last summer. How Spanish Classes Have Bounced Back Resiliency implies an ability to bounce back, but as teachers working with the youngest learners in the school, we would reframe resiliency as the opportunity to reimagine. Whether boys are learning through a face-to-face experience or through the med

The Role of Faith in Social-Emotional Learning and Psychological Well-Being

The following article by our School Psychologist, Dr. Michael Schwartzman, appears in the current issue of Saint David's Magazine : During one of my first observations in a Saint David’s classroom 15 years ago, I witnessed two first grade boys in a verbal altercation. Although it was contained just between the two boys, their observant teacher had them talk it through and then shake hands on being in a better place for having done so. I was very impressed, and still am, with this approach that the school takes many times throughout the day. It helps establish a firm idea of how to behave, especially in social situations where emotions can be stirred and run high. Through this experience repeated consistently day in and day out, better, more productive ways of engaging become increasingly integrated by the boys as they develop socially and emotionally in interaction with each other. As the School Psychologist, I spend a lot of time thinking about the touch points for student and t

Storytelling Demonstrates Understanding

Their time had arrived. As the lights dimmed in our Otto-Bernstein Theatre, the astrophysicists, a mix of jitters and excitement, awaited their opportunity to share insights and stories about the workings of the universe. Which planets might support life? Is there water on Mars? What are Dwarf Planets? "Let's take a look at our closest neighbor, Venus," invited one presenter, before revealing that the planet - while ideal in proximity - has surface temperatures of 900 degrees F: "Imagine - standing on the surface would be like being burned alive!" Later that same day, in our Graham lunchroom, early 20th century immigrants of all ages from Italy, China, Ireland, Russia, among other countries, waited, with hope and determination, their turn to be interviewed for admittance to America. It wasn't going to be easy. They would be asked pointed, potentially life-altering questions by various processors. "What's that cough? It doesn't sound good,&qu

David O'Halloran, Headmaster - Saint David's School, New York City

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