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Advancing Equity

The commitment to be an environment in which differences are not only accepted, but viewed as sources of strength, is core to Serendipity’s identity. Without compassionate acceptance, our mission to offer a place where students can heal and learn will not be realized. By being advocates for inclusion and equal access to opportunities, we work towards the lessening of the external barriers of racism, classism, and intolerance that pose threats to all children developing their full potential.

Students referred to Serendipity’s Therapeutic School program have almost all known suffering. Most have experienced the ostracism that results from extreme behaviors. Their skills in the areas of self-regulation, communication, and social interactions lag in their development, due to challenges and circumstances beyond their control. Understanding the context in which their maladaptive behaviors occur is critical, as is understanding the context of the community in which they live and to which they will return.

We understand the correlation between race, socioeconomic status, behavioral health issues, and ability to realize long-term dreams of employment, relationship stability, permanent housing, and participatory citizenship. We know that the growth and healing our students accomplish will assist them towards the realization of the lives they want. However, we realize that we cannot erase the external barriers that present in the form of discrimination and bigotry against people who appear different.

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We accept and support who you are
and who you are becoming. We stand with you!

Serendipity’s Equity Team seeks to provide a safe atmosphere to openly express, discuss and make positive changes toward diversity.

We strive to enhance our school community’s ability to recognize, respect, respond and empower differing perspectives and life experiences. This committee helps guide curriculum selections, trainings to students and to staff, and interventions in response to hate speech, bullying, and threats. One of their first milestones was the creation of Serendipity’s Kindness, Acceptance, and Inclusion policy, which sets forth a process of using restorative practices in response to acts that lack kindness and work against inclusion.

We cannot cultivate a commitment to equity in our students if we do not hold ourselves responsible for the same. Towards that goal, Serendipity has undertaken the following priorities:

  • We provide trainings that are focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion that are topical and ongoing.
  • We have designated staff members to lead our Equity committee.
  • We have increased our number of Bi-lingual and multi-cultural staff.
  • We are making improvements to remove barriers for non-English speaking parents and families.
  • We are proactively seeking to increase our workforce diversity, and are making gains in having a diverse staff.
  • We are committed to reviewing (at times of contract renewal) our vendor list and researching companies that are owned and operated by women or minorities.
  • We have become more intentional in our recruitment efforts to our Board of Directors, recognizing that we need a board that embraces our commitment to being an inclusive and diverse agency.  For our board to reflect this, we seek individuals that understand and represent paradigms, backgrounds, and experiences as diverse as our students and their families.  These include individuals representing all ethnicities, races, sexual orientations, genders, gender identities, ages, and abilities, to name a few.
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