At Counterpane, commitment to our principles is unconditional and does not change with the seasons. Diversity, equity, and inclusion are not buzzwords to be thrown around positively, or negatively, because not only are they a part of the core of who we are, they are fundamental to the well-being of our community.
Since our inception, our school has been a haven for students and families who may have found difficulty being accepted in other spaces. Students who identify as LGBTQ, minority students, children of immigrants, and children with disabilities or who are neurodiverse are welcomed with the same open arms that we would a student who is considered "normal." What does that word even mean now? What has it ever meant? The limited scope of what society defines as normal has been made by the few and often excludes the many who not comply. We do not value blind obedience or conformity in our students just as innovation does not value convention. At Counterpane we expect our children to question the world around them: every book, every leader, every accepted belief. No one ever changed the world by doing things the way they have always been done and each and every one of our students has the ability to transform our society for the better. They are already doing it every day.
"We treat these children as objects, ordering them about, placing them here and there, and forcing them to fit into our world without the slightest consideration of the lives they live in a world of their own." - Dr. Maria Montessori
A Montessori education doesn’t ignore our differences or seek to create a "colorblind" society. Even during the Primary years, children are exposed to the geography and peoples of the world, their languages and their cultures. In Lower School, we begin to introduce the social, cultural, intellectual, and emotional contexts that shaped the lives and actions of people in the past which broadens their understanding of their place in history. Upper Schoolers at Counterpane spend a large percentage of their time in Socratic discussion with their classmates about history, religion, language, literature and all the things that make us who we are. They are able to learn about the world, and each other, in a safe environment that encourages curiosity and acceptance. What is unknown becomes what is feared and when children can learn about others who may be different from them, they are more able to accept those differences as a part of the complex, extraordinary fabric of civilization.
"The needs of [humankind] are universal. Our means of meeting them create the richness and diversity of the planet." - Dr. Maria Montessori
The world can feel so big these days, like it's changing faster than we can keep up, but Counterpane has always known where we stand. We can grow and adapt to an evolving world but the foundational truth our school was built on is firm. We not only welcome and accept our students right where they are, we celebrate them. We honor the diversity of their cultures, their languages, their skin tones, their identities. We love them for who they are and all that they have the potential to become. The most beautiful song is the one where all voices are heard, and we will never stop singing.
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