To the Maplewood Middle School Community:
At
Maplewood Middle School, we are committed to fostering an inclusive
environment where students can grow, learn, and participate in society
as informed and caring citizens. We have taken various steps to support
this effort and will continue to do so. Ensuring that all students and
families feel welcome and safe when they enter our doors will always be
a priority for our school.
Today
we became aware that in one of our classrooms, an incident involving
the use of the Nazi gesture and verbal salute occurred between a small
group of students. The MMS Leadership Team conducted an investigation.
We have responded to this matter as an incident of Harassment, Bullying
and Intimidation (HIB). HIB specialists are working with us to take
appropriate responsive steps.
We
see this as an important teachable moment, which demonstrates our need
to reinforce our belief in the importance of inclusiveness. We will
take the following actions:
-
We will make adjustments to upcoming advisory sessions to include specific anti-bias discussions.
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We will create opportunities for 8th graders to participate in these discussions.
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We will conduct a meeting with the faculty reminding them of the importance of responding to and being vigilant about incidents of harassment, intimidation, and bullying in our school.
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Continue to promote anti-bias professional development available and accessible to staff.
Words
are powerful and we must teach our students that we should not use our
words to hurt others. We ask for the partnership and support of our
parents and guardians in talking with your children about the important
role each of us has in making sure our school is a safe environment,
where each student feels respected and included. These two links to
resources have been shared with staff, and you may find them useful
tools for conversations at home:
We thank you for your support of our shared objective of creating a safe and welcoming educational environment for our students.
Dara Crocker Gronau
Principal
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