Equity at BSF
Diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice (DEIJ) are at the core of what we do and how we work.
In 2019, BSF planned and documented our next five-year Strategic Plan. In order to meet our mission and vision, Boston Schools Fund has embarked on a five-year strategic goal to be anti-racist, highly operational, and sustainable. We understand that focusing resources on defining and executing on what it means for Boston Schools Fund to be diverse, equitable, inclusive, just, and anti-racist is intrinsic to our work and impact.
Continuous learning and growth are built into our organizational culture.
What this ongoing work looks like at BSF:
Continuing to build our entire staff’s capacity to have discussions about diversity, equity, inclusion, justice, and anti-racism, prioritizing team discussion time and resources to create shared language and set goals.
Organizing and delivering team-led, internal monthly DEIJAR learning sessions (e.g. the history of schools and demographic change in Boston, inclusion best practices, DEIJ problems of practice in our work).
Trainings with Dr. Liza Talusan, an author and practitioner-scholar for equity and inclusion, including her Engaging in Diversity, Inclusion, and Action and Building an Anti-Racist Practice series
Researching, refining, and implementing more inclusive, equitable hiring and onboarding processes
Investing time with our Board and organizational leadership to set clear goals, expectations, and criteria for success in all organizational functions
Auditing our grants portfolio and grantmaking processes for bias
Annually reviewing organizational processes/systems/policies for bias
Defining our DEI maturity and developing supporting systems and tools to measure our progress
Establishing a DEIJ committee (members include an intentional cross-section of veteran and new staff representing diverse areas of the organization), to distribute DEIJ leadership and work across our organization
Continuing to refine how we work as a team to become a more inclusive organization (e.g. improving feedback culture, clarifying roles and expectations, distributed leadership models)