Our Action Plan for Racial Equity

Dear Pace Family,

It is once again a sad day in America. I have struggled to find the words to adequately and profoundly express the pain, anger and heartbreak that I feel for our school family, for Atlanta and for our country. The murder of George Floyd and the senseless deaths of countless Black men and women before him have left us shaken and outraged. Many in our community fear for their safety. Many grieve. America is hurting, and the pain felt is real. 

I write to express my solidarity with all Pace Academy families, students, alumni, faculty and staff of color. We take pride in the very intentional tapestry that is our school family. As a community of belonging, we stand against hate, racism, violence and discrimination. We are committed to striving for excellence as moral, compassionate human beings above all else, a calling that requires that we fight bigotry of any kind—in our school community and our world.

Times like this are hard to process and understand, particularly for children. As parents, we wonder, “What do I say?” “What do I do?” We have a responsibility to ready our students for the world in which we live. Living out our mission, To create prepared confident citizens of the world, requires engaging in difficult conversations with our children and with each other. It is uncomfortable but necessary, life-saving work.

Know that we will continue to equip our community to address these issues through curriculum, programming and professional development. Advancing diversity, equity and inclusion, global leadership and character development must remain the foundation of everything we do. In the coming weeks, our Diversity and Inclusion team will share resources for those who wish to be allies and agents of change, and will provide opportunities for sharing and reflection.

Please know that our school leadership welcomes your ideas and concerns as we chart our path forward together. My door is always open. In the words of Dr. King, “The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.” My hope is that, as an intentional community, we will do our part to shorten that arc. Share love, encourage each other and let this difficult time reveal the best of who we are.

With love,

 

 

 

Fred Assaf
Head of School

Dear Pace Community,

We are listening to our Black students, parents, faculty, staff and alumni, and in doing so, one message has become clear: We can do better, and we will.

The recently shared stories of pain, isolation and racism experienced by our Black community members live in marked contrast to the mission statement and values of our school. It is imperative that we listen to all of these voices; these narratives are valid.

While listening, we must also acknowledge the fact that many of these stories were told in years past, and we simply did not hear them. Founded in 1958, our school's history mirrors the painful past of our city. We can no longer tolerate the trauma that this legacy brings to bear on our Black community. We hear the clarion call now, in 2020 and beyond, to focus on building equity by implementing anti-racist policies and representative educational programming for the students entrusted to our care.

Moments like this can tempt us to disparage the movement for equity and change or to defend our work against the real voices of our students and minimize their experiences. As a community and as leaders of our school, we cannot and will not accept these temptations.

This is also true for our nation. The global voice of the Black Lives Matter movement articulates plainly the need for us not only to listen, but to hear and to act. We have spent decades at Pace trying to build a community that loves each of its members, that respects the value and dignity of every person, and sees each other's differences as gifts that we can share, celebrate and benefit from. Our Black community members have spoken and have informed us that we have fallen short of these ideals. We have come face to face with the realization that we have failed to make them feel welcome, safe or loved. We are profoundly sorry.

It hurts to acknowledge this difficult truth, but in acknowledging it, we position our community to effectuate thoughtful change. The value of an intentional community like ours is that we have the power to animate our values and hold every member of our community accountable.

We use the word "love" a lot at Pace. We love our community. We love our teachers. We love our students. We love our work. And now, as is required by any type of real love, we must face our challenges and strengthen our love for each other and for our community. This moment calls for us to embrace those whose experiences and stories tell us that they have not felt seen, heard or loved while at Pace.

It is our responsibility to address this and work to fix it for the benefit of all. If you are not up for the challenge, then Pace Academy might not be for you. Building a community that lives its values of love, respect and celebration of our differences is a place we inhabit, not a job we finish. Love never finishes its work. Respect is never completed. Celebration of difference does not have an end date. It's perpetual.

At every level of our school, we have begun the process of creating a better, more equitable path forward. As we examine our policies, procedures and curriculum, no aspect of our community will be left untouched.

To do this well, we need the partnership, engagement and trust of our entire community. Details regarding our action steps and additional opportunities for meaningful engagement will be communicated the week of July 6.

Do we have the courage to strive for excellence? We do, and we are ready to prove it.

Sincerely,

Elizabeth Correll Richards
Board of Trustees Chair

Fred Assaf
Head of School

Dear Pace Community, 

Our motto, To have the courage to strive for excellence, calls us to continuous self-reflection—a process that requires listening, learning, and taking meaningful and informed action. In listening to our Black students, parents, faculty, staff and alumni, we have learned that we must do better. Now, we take action. 

Read our action plan for racial equity at Pace. Given the urgency of our national situation and our understanding of the pain, isolation and racism experienced by our Black community members, our plan focuses on the Black experience, with the knowledge that the action items included here will ultimately benefit all members of the Pace community—regardless of race, color, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, age or ability. 

This plan builds on our current work and will evolve as we continue to listen and learn; as we bolster administrative leadership in the areas of diversity, equity and inclusion; and as members of our community take ownership of its many parts and bring it to life. 

On Wednesday, July 15, at 9:30 a.m., we will host another State of the School webinar, where we will discuss this plan in further detail and provide updates on our August reopening.

One thing is certain, this plan requires an ongoing commitment from each and every one of us— the courage to strive for excellence. Thank you for being part of this journey.

Sincerely,

Elizabeth Correll Richards
Board of Trustees Chair

Fred Assaf
Head of School