Mission
Pollyanna creates discussion platforms for groups of people to explore issues of diversity, inclusion and equity; and to share experiences and knowledge. We believe in being eternally optimistic even in the face of challenge.
Pollyanna exists to be part of the solution.
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Welcome from Casper Caldarola
Founder
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Were you raised with the idea that when it was 11:11 on a clock or the date was 11/11, you made a special wish? I remember hearing this for the first time as an adult, it makes me pause and think about what I’d like to see change, and now every time I see double elevens I make a wish. This past 11/11, Pollyanna had a wish come true: 2 schools on 2 coasts hosted 2 inspiring conferences.
Far Brook in Short Hills, NJ hosted its second conference. 2017 Widening the Lens: The Far Brook School Diversity Conference this year focused on
LGBTQ+: Illuminating the Spectrum and Cultivating Pride. Conference Co-Chair Haruka Mori said, “Participants, thrilled with the conference format and opportunity to collaborate, have said they will be back again next year. We can’t wait!” New York Times columnist
Charles M. Blow was the keynote and spoke about his upbringing and the abuse he suffered, and during the Q & A offered advice to students and adults.
Across the country,
Harvard-Westlake in Los Angeles, CA hosted its first Pollyanna conference:
Race, Privilege, and Community Building.
Dr. Tricia Rose, Professor of Africana Studies and Director of the Center for Study of Race and Ethnicity in America at Brown University, not only delivered a powerful keynote, she also was invited to work with faculty the day before the conference. Conference Co-Chair Melanie Leon said, “The feedback we got from the day was overwhelmingly positive! One of the many highlights for me was hearing the students talk about their lives and the challenges they face in independent schools. It’s just a reminder that we need to create more safe spaces for these important conversations to continue.”
On 11/11, 2 coasts, 2 host schools, and over 30 schools converged, having important discussions about equity to improve the school experience for all community members. Stay tuned for the announcement of new members of the Pollyanna family. Please reply to this email if you’d like to bring Pollyanna and a wave of positive change to your school. We will also be at PoCC, please stop by Table 102 and say hi!
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Contact us
to join the growing list of Schools in our family.
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Meet Kathy Chan
Vice President
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As a child of immigrants in the 60s whose primary concern was to succeed in America, Kathy Chan grew up “going with the flow” and nothing, that is, not her racial or cultural identity was explicitly framed or explained to her. The words and expressions “multi-racial, “cultural competence,” “racial identity,” and “racial literacy,” were not part of her vocabulary. Kathy said, “Those words did not roll off peoples’ tongues like they do today, in some, but not all parts of our society.” In her early adult life as a software developer, she kept her head buried in a computer, but when her kids began attending an independent school that was committed to diversity, she became seriously involved and never looked back.
Though diversity is much discussed today, the advantages that come with diversity are not fully understood or accepted. Kathy then stated, “This is where the Pollyanna Conference is most effective. The conference is unique in that it creates a platform that facilitates conversations, at multiple levels, between many groups who normally have limited interaction. Hearing all the voices in the room and sharing stories, leads to listening with empathy, a hunger to be informed and a strong inclination to be active.”
Kathy went on to say, “Striving for diversity is as important today as it was yesterday and as it will be tomorrow.” Kathy Chan has been an activist for over 20 years, most recently through Pollyanna as a trustee and vice president. Her voice and knowledge is a huge asset.
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What are the benefits of the Pollyanna network?
Being in a space where you've got other people in peer schools or something that feels completely different in your own community - to have those voices in one room together and share challenges or share solutions and celebrations is hugely helpful. In terms of your day to day, who you might reach out to or know to ask for advice might be very different once you wind up in that room together. So to get some feedback, advice and best practices from someone you wouldn't ordinarily cross paths with provides something that might work really well for your school community is a huge benefit.
What are some of the daily obstacles to understanding student experiences?
So many of our schools take great pride in being very academically rigorous, and that’s great. We put this huge emphasis on what happens in the classroom, sometimes that doesn’t make enough space to hear what our students experiences are like in more of a holistic sense. Being in the space of the conference is a really awesome opportunity for kids to speak truth to power. Many of them have never been in a room before with somebody who's a trustee of their school, or maybe they've never had a conversation with the head of school before or maybe they've never had a chance to follow up with a teacher who they had years ago and learn more about that students' experience since they were in their classroom. It's great to have this space where every voice in the room can speak to their reaction to any particular prompt or topic, and our students' voices are held with just as much esteem and given just as much attention as people who are in charge of running the school on a day-to-day basis.
What would you hope others get out of Pollyanna?
Recognition that whatever challenges a school is facing when it comes to equity, diversity and inclusion work, they're not alone. You can always find another school community that’s asking the same questions or hoping to get to the same answers. That I think is really comforting because when you think it's just you, you can get really caught up and lose sight of the big picture or decide this is something you just have to put on the shelf because nobody else is thinking along those lines. When you're in a space where you hear multiple people saying, well me too and this is what we did or me too and this is what we're thinking about, it really gives you the opportunity to relax a bit and recognize that there’s nothing so particularly unique to your school community that there isn't someone out there who can support you and lend some help, or whom you can help support as well.
Why is Pollyanna important?
It’s something that helps with your accountability on a year-to-year basis. A critical piece of school life is that things change every single day so we can make these very firm commitments that we believe in when it comes to creating equity in academic spaces, and then the water main breaks. Having something like Pollyanna that gives you something to come back to every year and kind of stop and say what have we really accomplished out of the goals we set for ourselves a year ago at this time, are we keeping track with that and meeting the needs of our community without it just becoming another thing on the endless to do list in the life of a school.
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Take Action
The cost of hosting a Conference at an independent school is not completely covered in the school fee. Please consider a gift to underwrite part of or the entire cost of an independent school.
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Pollyanna, Inc. is a New York not-for-profit corporation 501(c)(3). © 2017 Pollyanna.
Sarah Waltcher: Writer of interview | Louisa Wells: Newsletter Designer
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