Dear LightHouse Community, July 27, 2020

It has been nearly two months since the killing of George Floyd, and the subsequent movement of protests in support of Black lives and against systemic racism continues to reverberate across the United States and around the globe. The legacy of racism is complex, culturally pervasive, brutally violent to Black, indigenous and other people of color, and is far from being truly reckoned with.

To move towards racial equity, we believe institutions need to prioritize humanity, acknowledge the deeply embedded inequities at every level, create tangible actions, and work to weave the values of diversity, equity, and inclusion into the very fabric of their organizations. The LightHouse Board of Directors stands in solidarity with and support of the Black Lives Matters movement.

The LightHouse program was conceived, designed, and built on the belief that inequities in our community can be addressed through education. It is clear, however, that equity is only possible when the systems in which we live, learn, and work are equitable. We know that in the United States our education system and law enforcement are systemically racist. The United States was founded on the oppression of and a deep systemic violence towards Black people, indigenous people, and people of color. To our Black and non black people of color students, families, staff and community: we see you and we acknowledge the reality of the injustice you face.

To our Black and non black people of color students, families, staff and community: we see you and we acknowledge the reality of the injustice you face. We recognize that this movement is the culmination of a history of deeply tragic and traumatic moments and we affirm the rage over the loss of Black lives.

We believe that for an organization to be truly anti-racist, the work of equity must reverberate through every level of vision and operations.

We are committed to:

• Continuing to serve a diverse student body and making a LightHouse education accessible to students of all economic backgrounds.
• Defining clearly and explicitly what racial diversity and equity means with regard to Board membership at LightHouse and having a Board that is representative of the diversity of the community we serve.
• Soliciting input from stakeholders including students, parents, staff, and community members with the aim of drafting formal Diversity, Equity and Inclusion statement for LightHouse that will guide the work of the board moving forward.
• Setting explicit goals and metrics by which we can measure and share our practices of anti-racism.
• Offering resources about race and racial justice to our board members and our community.
• Keeping the racial and/or ethnic diversity of full time and adjunct staff and mentors at LightHouse representative of the community.
• Create open forums to encourage students, families, staff, and board to discuss racial equity issues to provide insight and improve our ability to work together as a learning community
• Engaging staff participation and voices at Board meetings to learn about equity and justice from their work with students and families.
• Documenting our work towards equity so that we may share the lessons and outcomes with other boards and organizations.