Being educators—teachers, school leaders, child life advocates—gives you an opportunity to make a difference in the lives of children and their families. As a Bank Street student, we challenge you to take every opportunity we offer to grow.
Becoming part of an ongoing conversation about race and ourselves as racial beings is one way to engage in this necessary aspect of the work we need to do. As a graduate school student, we invite you to attend one of two affinity groups, Students of Color (SOCAG) and White Students Affinity Group (WSAG). These optional groups can provide both support and challenge in the context of real community.
The Students of Color Affinity Group meets monthly on Friday evenings from 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM throughout the year. As students of color, it is important that we continue to feel connected and have a space to process events. The group was created for students of color to have a safe space to share experiences. In this space, we support and celebrate our accomplishments.
The White Students Affinity Group meetings are scheduled monthly on Fridays at 4:30 PM throughout the academic year, with the exception of the September meeting. The work of developing racial awareness can’t be done in isolation. Alongside your courses, being in community to reflect on whiteness is critical. How does whiteness show up in our experience in the micro and macro systems we work within. Join the White Student Affinity Group to process what is happening in the world around us, deepen our understanding of our Whiteness, and reflect on ways to reduce harm to BIPOC folx.
We, as faculty, have volunteered to co-facilitate these groups. Dates and Zoom links are in the Council of Students (COS) calendar for the Affinity Group meetings. Those with a Bank Street email address can subscribe to the COS calendar here or view it here.
We hope to see you at our meetings. Hear from some of the members of our affinity groups by reading their thoughts below.
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| Jessica Wontropski | Troy Pinkney | Carmen Colón | Abby Kerlin |