DEI in Action

Faculty and staff were invited to the final Brown Bag Lunch and Learn of the year, where they were educated and offered resources to move beyond autism awareness to autism acceptance! Perspectives of an autistic student leader and artist, learning specialists, and colleagues who are also parents of kids on the spectrum were brought together for this special lunchtime learning opportunity.

Our Multiethnic Inclusion and Diversity affinity group (MIxD) invited journalist Sasha Khokha to share her recent KQED series “MIXED” about being multiracial. Students left feeling seen and heard.

Our celebration of AAPI Heritage Month kicked off with screenwriter, actress, producer and comedian Mindy Kaling. Kaling spoke with the leaders of Women of Color Club (WoCC) and South Asian Students Association (SASA) about representation in Hollywood and her journey breaking barriers and stereotypes. Kaling said she learned almost everything from her failures, encouraging students to try, fail, learn, and grow!

Spanish III students celebrated AAPI Month when Sra Margot Riemer invited Los Angeles based artist Eliseo Art Silva to speak about his experience as a Filipino artist in the Filipino diaspora. Mr. Silva has received many accolades for his work and has participated in many legacy projects that have become cultural landmarks around LA (such as the Western and Eastern Gateways of Historic Filipinotown). He engaged students in conversations around dominant narratives, storytelling through art, colonialism, inclusion and exclusion from museums, and uplifting unsung heroes through public

In recognition of the 109th Commemoration of the Armenian Genocide, our Armenian Affinity Group (AAG) invited esteemed scholar Taner Akçam, Director of the Armenian Genocide Research Program at UCLA, to present to the whole upper school community with an engaging, interview-style lecture in the Taper gymnasium. Student leaders of AAG organized the event with the intention to enrich our school's cultural and historical awareness of the genocide through an educational talk.

The Harvard-Westlake Armenian Parent Group and Cinema Sundays sponsored a special screening of THE PROMISE in Ahmanson Lecture Hall. Produced by Eric Esrailian P'10 P'12, THE PROMISE is set during the Armenian Genocide at the end of the Ottoman Empire.

Actor Kingsley Ben-Adir spoke to an audience of 900 at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures David Geffen Theater during our 21st annual Westflix for California Teens. Pictured here (Photo by Ed Hu,) Ben-Adir was interviewed by BLACC Leader and Westflix Director of Submissions/Judging Madison Baffo ‘24 who asked, “As organizers of a film festival, we think a lot about the importance of representation and diversity. In addition to Bob Marley, you’ve played Malcolm X and Barack Obama - tell us about what it’s meant to you to embody such important figures in Black history.” In 2024, Westflix expanded its leadership team to include Yuuki Lubin ‘24 as Westflix Director of Community Outreach who helped to make the festival even more diverse and inclusive.

Upper School Gender and Sexuality Alliance invited fellow LGBTQIA+ students from around the area to a semi formal dance. Beyond the dance floor there was catering, foosball, air hockey, giant Jenga, Nintendo, and a lipsync battle…all opportunities to make new friends!