Board of Trustees DEIB Resolution

Resolution Passed Unanimously on February 8, 2022 by the Board of Trustees of the Pingry School

RESOLVED, that the Pingry Board of Trustees cares about diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (“DEIB”) because the Board believes that:

1. It is in best interest of all Pingry students, and in furtherance of our Mission, that all members of the Pingry community work to understand, empathize with and respect the differing perspectives of others.
    
2. The Pingry Honor Code requires “honorable behavior…based on personal integrity and genuine concern for others”, and that everyone “act as responsible members of the community, working for the common good rather than solely for personal advantage. They should honor the rights of others”. These standards are entirely consistent with the principles of DEIB as enunciated in this resolution.
    
3. Students learn more comprehensively when they learn as part of a diverse group of students, and from a diverse group of faculty, who express a diverse set of perspectives.
    
4. Diversity within groups leads to better outcomes, better decision making, more effective problem solving, greater creativity, and stronger overall performance of organizations.
    
5. Pingry as an educational institution must optimally prepare its students to learn from, live with and work with others in diverse communities, both nationally and globally.
    
6. Adherence to these DEIB principles is an essential ingredient to (i) Pingry achieving its Mission, (ii) the success of Pingry’s 2018 Strategic Plan for all its students and staff, in particular student health and wellness, and (iii) the fulfillment of the Core Competencies for Pingry students, in particular Intercultural and Global Citizenship.
    

And it was further RESOLVED, that, given those beliefs, Pingry’s DEIB goals are for its:

1. Students, Faculty, Staff and Trustees to foster a welcoming, inclusive, belonging and supportive environment, where everyone feels, and is, accepted, respected, safe and valued in an intentionally and conscientiously diverse community.
    
2. Students, Faculty, Staff and Trustees to seek and value diverse perspectives and appreciate one’s own culture and personal history, as well as the values and traditions of others, recognizing that all people are individuals, but are also members of socially constructed groups.
    
3. Students, Faculty, Staff and Trustees to actively oppose, in an appropriate manner, all forms of discrimination and bias. 
    
4. Students, Faculty, Staff and Trustees to show intellectual flexibility and agility when dealing with those varying perspectives and people and to show in that context comfort with complexity and ambiguity and a willingness to work with others toward common goals.
    
5. Students to achieve the Pingry Core Competencies, in particular, Intercultural and Global Citizenship.