Social Justice and Anti-Bias Instruction
At IDEAL, students learn about fairness, bias, and injustice – both in everyday life and in society as a whole. Through lessons and discussions, they explore how injustice affects people and how individuals and groups have fought for justice. Students are encouraged to express their own views, listen to others, and learn how to have respectful conversations, even with people who disagree with them. These skills help them work with others and solve problems in their lives, communities, and the wider world.
Social justice and anti-bias education is woven into the curriculum and highlighted during weekly or bi-weekly Community Time. In Lower School, students discuss current events and social justice topics in age-appropriate ways. In Middle and High School, students lead discussions, build confidence, and practice respectful dialogue. These conversations help them develop their voice and critical thinking skills.
Social justice themes also appear in assemblies, social studies, and our Identity Curriculum. Each year, all grades take part in the Civil Rights Museum, a schoolwide project where students research historical injustices and create interactive exhibits like videos and performances. Seniors take a Civil Rights Journey, visiting key historical sites and meeting people who were part of the movement – an experience that deepens their understanding of advocacy and empowers them to be changemakers.
Civil Rights Community Day
IDEAL's annual Civil Rights Community Day showcases our school’s commitment to civil rights and social justice, and is open to all IDEAL families and friends.
For the 2024 event, two individuals joined us to talk about their lives and their civil rights work. Bobby Brown, a former NFL wide receiver, opened Grant & Eisenhofer’s civil rights office. Dayton Campbell-Harris is a staff attorney in the ACLU Voting Rights Project. Between our two guest speakers, IDEAL’s Upper School students gave presentations about their year-long Civil Rights Museum research projects.
Previous speakers:
Jelani Fenton, owner of E.G. Bowman, the first woman-owned and black woman-owned insurance company in the country, and a mentor for young people in the industry.
Judith Heumann was an internationally recognized disability advocate and author who spoke about her groundbreaking role in the establishment of the Americans With Disabilities Act and her work and influence in inclusion for people with disabilities.
Ben Holtzman and Sammy Lopez, producers of the Broadway musical How to Dance in Ohio, spoke about the production and the decision to cast the show entirely with autistic actors.
Charles Imohiosen, President and CEO of The Andrew Goodman Foundation, and Robert Masters, Chairman of the Board of Directors, spoke about Andrew Goodman's civil rights era work to register southern African Americans to vote, and about the foundation's continued efforts to protect voting rights.
Heidi Latsky of Heidi Latsky Dance, is a critically acclaimed, innovative, and influential leader in the physically integrated dance field. She brought her multimedia art installation, Solo Flight, to IDEAL.
Robert Rodriguez, then New York’s Secretary of State, spoke about his work on investing in and developing public good infrastructure projects, creating good-paying jobs, and addressing financial disparities for historically underrepresented minorities and low-income communities.
Katheryn Russell-Brown, the Levin, Mabie & Levin Professor of Law and the Director of the Race and Crime Center for Justice at the Levin School of Law at the University of Florida. She read from her children's bool Little Melba and Her Big Trombone, and spent the day with Lower School classrooms.