Dr. Derrick Gay Leads Workshop for Faculty and Staff

To guide us in our initiative to cultivate cultural competency and in support of our school's commitment to being an increasingly inclusive community, last year Saint David's began a three year partnership with Dr. Derrick Gay, internationally recognized consultant on issues of global citizenship, diversity and inclusion (www.derrickgay.com).

Over the course of the first year, Dr. Gay met with the Administrative Team, the Committee on Community and Inclusion and trustees in a variety of formats.

Yesterday, we began year two of the partnership with an afternoon faculty/staff professional development workshop led by Dr. Gay. All members of our faculty and staff participated in a series of activities designed to explore cultural competency, inclusion, and identity--the ways we define who we are and the power behind our language choices.

The exercises were illuminating and marked the beginning of an ongoing process. Later this year, Dr. Gay also will meet with representatives of our parent body, the broader Parents Association and our older boys.

Saint David's recognizes how essential it is to educate our boys to appreciate difference in all of its manifestations. In an increasingly globalized and interconnected world, our boys will need to be able to think about and view the world from a variety of perspectives, to develop cultural competency.

It is also essential to the fulfillment of our mission's aspiration for our boys... "that they be good men."

An interview with Dr. Gay that appeared in Saint David's summer magazine can be read at this link.

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