Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Holden High School, since its inception in 1969, has been an inclusive community that embraces diversity and values the ways this can enrich and transform the experiences of our students, families, and staff. We are committed to being an equitable and inclusive educational community, and we are actively working on becoming an anti-racist school. We acknowledge that achieving these ideals is an ongoing process.

Holden is a community that strives to promote social justice and challenge prejudice while embracing and celebrating differences. We are committed to continuing our work in teaching young people to love themselves, to respect others, to be kind and compassionate, and to build and participate in inclusive communities embracing these values. We are committed to bringing about positive change in our communities through the ongoing work of understanding and acknowledging institutional, societal and structural advantages, addressing implicit bias, and embracing diversity.

DEI at Holden High

Equity Team

Holden High is proud to support Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion with a small group of staff dedicated to reflect and perpetuate social justice, anti-racism, and anti-bias in a school setting.

Our Equity Team consists of academic teachers, counselors, and administrators. Equity Team Meetings are held monthly and are open to all staff to attend.

Curricula

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Culturally Responsive Education

Holden’s teaching staff is committed to providing a diverse and rich curriculum for our students.

Curricula across discplines takes deliberate care to provide a diversity in perspectives, topics / events, important figures, and reading selections / texts.

Holden also offers a full year (5 credits per semester) Ethnic Studies course, beyond what CA Assembly Bill 101 requires for a secondary education.

DEI Meetings

Once a month, Holden holds an all-staff DEI Meeting. These are in addition to all-staff DEI activities during staff work days.

Meeting topics, discussion questions, presentations, and other collaborative activities are prepared by Holden’s Equity Team.

Examples of meeting topics: racism, misogyny, equity in education, accessibility, civic engagement, student submitted topics, policy review, and restorative practices.

Assemblies and PSAs

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Holden Lyceum

Examples of events, PSAs, and activities the entire school participates in have included:

icebreakers
creation of semester schedule
community building / team building activities
anti-bias discussions and presentations
PSAs on subjects such as problem solving, healthy sleep habits, and neurodivergence
civic engagement activities such as mock elections, practice researching initiatives, and sourcing information
student-led discussion and feedback on school policies
how to identify and discount misinformation

All School Events

Holden organizes several all-school events each semester, allowing for students to expand their learning beyond the classroom, strengthen interpersonal skills, and engage in educational activities with peers they do not have classes with.

We are proud to carve out time in our schedule to address important DEI topics for student education, engagement, and discussion.

Restorative Practices

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A Non-Punitive Model

Holden is committed to using restorative justice practices whenever possible in lieu of a disciplinary framework. Students are supported in taking accountability and responsibility for their actions without shame and judgment.

Examples of Holden’s restorative practices include circles for processing, student input on appropriate community restitution, conflict mediation, natural consequences, and more.