Diversity Collaborative

The Diversity Collaborative (DC) is committed to creating and sustaining a more diverse, inclusive, equitable, and just international school community through our focus on leadership.

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See the most recent version of NewsLinks for the Overview and Recommendations
of The Effect of Race, Nationality and Gender on International School Leadership.
View the report’s findings here.

New Resources

Diversity Collaborative Norms

Shared agreements and practices reviewed at the start of every meeting

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Recommendations from the 2021 Leadership Pipeline Survey

Recommendations for making recruitment more diverse, equitable, inclusive, and just

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Diversity by Design

Proposal Presented by the Advocacy Committee with special thanks to Caskey, D.; Condon, DJ., Dayyeh, H.; DeLessio, A.; Hawkins, T.; Larsson, J.; Meadows, E.; Ndiaye, R.; Richards, N.; Watts, D.S.; and Weaver, N.

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Antiracism Padlet

Explore a collection of Black voices, media, history, and joy; you’ll also find resources for educating yourself and students about antiracism and systemic racism, and steps for change.

Access Padlet »

About the Diversity Collaborative

The Diversity Collaborative was first established in 2017, with 17 founding members. Today, the Diversity Collaborative has more than 700 members and is growing.

Our Mission

The Diversity Collaborative (DC) is committed to creating and sustaining a more diverse, inclusive, equitable, and just international school community through our focus on leadership.

Our Vision

We recognize that diversity without equity, inclusion, and justice is insufficient and can perpetuate ongoing harm. Therefore, we strive not only to recognize and redistribute power, but also to eradicate the systems and structures in place that cause and have caused injustice, inequity and exclusion. We aspire to see the leadership of international schools reflect the global majority.

Our Commitments

To realize our commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice, the Diversity Collaborative wholeheartedly challenges all leaders, international schools and associated organizations to address the absence of diverse leadership in formal leadership positions. Concurrently, we acknowledge that anyone in a school can demonstrate leadership by serving as an agent of change. The Diversity Collaborative (DC) conducts research on the leadership pipeline and recruitment practices, provides leadership development, and advocates for international school communities to (1) critically reflect on diversity or the lack thereof, (2) develop equity-minded stakeholders, (3) promote inclusive environments, and (4) serve as social justice activists.

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Get Involved with the Diversity Collaborative Through its Committees

The organizing structure of the Diversity Collaborative includes three Facilitators and a Steering Committee to advise on DC development. This structure has been created to stay true to our collaborative model, but also have the necessary planning and support foundations to be practical and effective.

Data Committee | Co-Chairs: Liz Duffy & Beverly Shaklee

Collect data and produce and disseminate reports on BIPOC leadership and DEIJ issues within international schools.

Educational Committee | Co-Chairs: Darnell Fine & Dana Watts

Organize and promote professional development opportunities related to social justice and curate a list of recommended BIPOC speakers, consultants and facilitators.

Advocacy Committee | Co-Chairs: Hanadi Dayyeh & Nadine Richards

Work with accreditation agencies, search firms and other organizations to advance DEIJ issues across the international school sector.

Resource Committee | Co-Chair: Alysa Perreras

Post and share educational materials and tools (e.g. frameworks, videos, links, articles. etc.) for international schools interested in making progress on DEIJ issues.

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Data Committee Key Priorities

Working with ISS and George Mason University (GMU), the Data Committee will collect data on the experience of candidates of different genders, nationalities, and races as they search for leadership positions at international schools. The committee will then disseminate the findings from that study and make the raw data available through GMU for other researchers’ use.
Working with the Council of International Schools (CIS), GMU, and perhaps other accreditation agencies, the Data Committee will collect data on the gender, nationalities and races of teachers, senior leaders, heads and board members at international schools. The committee will then disseminate the findings from that study and make the raw data available through GMU for other researchers to use.
The Data Committee will share the definitions of diversity used in both studies with other interested groups and researchers, such as regional associations, to begin to develop consistent, non-American-centric, standards for assessing diversity in international schools.
The Data Committee will produce case studies highlighting practices and programs that have successfully increased the diversity of leadership at international schools.

Advocacy Committee Key Priorities

The committee will build systems to advocate for the global majority to be reflected within the staff at major recruitment agencies and work with accreditation agencies, search firms, and governance trainers to develop best and sustainable practices regarding diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice.

Produce language, rubrics, and materials for suggested standards, policies, and protocols for school accreditation agencies to affect systematic changes
Produce advocacy framework (protocols) for search agencies to impact systematic changes in recruiting, hiring, onboarding, and retention of diverse leaders and faculty
Establish restorative protocols for reporting and accountability and use baseline data to analyze and interrogate systems
Develop a growth continuum for DEIJ to engage the international community in a process of self-assessment and external evaluation
Build systems of advocacy, mentoring, and sponsorship that is restorative for the BIPOC community

Educational Committee Key Priorities

The Educational Committee will organize and promote professional learning opportunities that:

Encourage critical reflection related to DEIJ
Develop educators’ skills, knowledge, and dispositions related to DEIJ
Build diverse, equitable, inclusive, and just school environments
Engage in DEIJ causes with communities beyond the confines of school

Resource Committee Key Priorities

Develop a protocol to review and evaluate materials that are aligned with the DC mission and vision and move our communities closer to justice
Further develop the educational materials for the DC resource bank and Padlet
Create a space for DC members to share their experiences and feedback on the use of specific tools and resources within their context

Upcoming Diversity Collaborative Meetings

A schedule of meetings is coming soon!

Look for meetings in September, November, February, and May with exact dates to be announced.

Darnell Fine leads workshop on Implicit Bias during Diversity Collaborative video meeting

This bookmark is available to accompany all of your reading.
You can also download the booklist here.

Don’t Miss These Events Happening in our Global Community

May 19, 2021

BMEsTalk Leadership Lab – Be Heard. Feel Energized. Inspire Others. Participants will learn how to lead equity-centered learning experiences for their students, parents, and fellow educators. Register Here.

June 4, 2021

Teaching and Learning for Intercultural Understanding: To engage in personal and collaborative learning to further develop intercultural understanding in ourselves, each other, and the children we teach. Learn More.

During the spring of 2019, the Diversity Collaborative, a voluntary group of international educators, initiated a research study by partnering with ISC Research and George Mason University. The goal was to survey the field of accredited international schools to establish a baseline of information in the international school sector about school leadership and diversity. The study was distributed to approximately 2,676 accredited international schools. All are encouraged to download and share this information broadly. The following are available: research brief, executive summary, video, and full report.

International DEIJ Consultants and Facilitators

Each of the facilitators and consultants included on the list below offers professional learning experiences that educate and inspire participants to be agents of change. Through interactive and consciousness-raising workshops, each facilitator seeks to empower participants on their journey towards diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice. Participants should expect to come away from workshops and learning experiences with higher self-efficacy, knowledge, and skills in multicultural and social justice education.

Ordered by regions, please find the list of facilitators and their contact information below, and you will find bios of all the consultants here. Note – Due to facilitator and consultant work schedules, it may be more convenient to reach out to a facilitator or consultant located in a different timezone from you.

Suggested scale for facilitation and consultation services, quoted in USD: please download here.