The Diversity Equity and Inclusivity (DEI) Committee at Primrose Hill School (PHS) exists in service to meet the needs of our children, teachers, families and school community to foster, nurture, and celebrate diversity, equity and inclusion. We strive to create an inclusive culture economically, racially, culturally and spiritually. We lead our children on the path of humanization by deliberately and consciously acknowledging all past and present systems of oppression. It is our mission to ensure that all children at PHS feel listened to and accepted for who they are, and can feel proud of their identity and embrace the identity of others as they enter and engage the world.

Our community practice and expectations of community members are as follows:

  • We welcome all traditions and cultural celebrations into our classrooms.

  • We honor diversity in gender identity, physical and mental ability, religion, and family structures.

  • We are committed to anti-racism in our practices, teachings, interactions and studies.

  • We understand that inclusivity and equity is a journey of both moral and educational imperative.

  • Our language includes a thoughtful and expansive vocabulary to ensure our terminology properly acknowledges all including the use of pronouns and various family dynamics such as using “grown-ups” instead of mom and dad.

  • As a school with a Waldorf-inspired curriculum, we align with the statement made by AWSNA (Association of Waldorf Schools of North America): “Waldorf education espouses principles of respect for human dignity. Any narratives or indications made by Rudolf Steiner that are in contradiction to these principles are not the basis for Waldorf education and we unequivocally denounce such statements.”

  • We honor and acknowledge that the land we inhabit and teach upon once was the home of Indigenous Nations who were here before us. Primrose Hill School sits on Munsee Lenape and Mohican Land, along the River that runs both ways.

  • We believe that all children, regardless of economic status, should have access to this education. PHS has established a community supported education tuition model to provide flexible financial opportunities for families.

  • We are committed to listen to BIPOC and marginalized communities and individuals, such that we can create true understanding and support for varying needs.

  • We are committed to learn through ongoing trainings, readings, and conversations how we as faculty, staff and families can best serve and support the needs of our community and beyond.

  • We are committed to integrate our resources and support services into the curricula, to expand the minds and hearts of our students, faculty, family community, and surrounding neighborhood.

We consider it our responsibility to be part of the change taking place in our country to dismantle systemic racism and oppression. We also recognize our particular responsibility to create an inclusive equitable school culture with particular attention to race, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, class, and ability.

We seek to create just structures in which everyone has a meaningful voice. We are committed to addressing, through supportive and restorative approaches, any incidents of bias and discrimination that arise within our school.  We recognize the historic and ongoing impact of racism on our continent and the injustice and discrimination faced by Black, Indigenous and People of Color.   We believe that each individual is responsible for working to create a more just world, and that those with greater privilege in their positions, identities, and experiences bear greater responsibility for that work.

It is the work of all of us, borne out of intention and trust, to establish and continually support a school culture that tends to these important values and rights of all people.