The Ellis School

Life at Ellis

Equity and Inclusion

The Ellis community pursues, supports, and embraces diversity of all kinds, recognizing the collective strength derived from our individual differences. Ellis is committed to diversity and inclusion in areas such as race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, socio-economics, ability, religion, and age.

All three schools are committed to incorporating diversity and inclusion in their academic program. Lower School units address history, heritage, culture and social justice issues. Middle School includes projects such as The Civil Rights Movement and classes focused on social justice, the law, and human rights. Upper School delves deeply into topics of diversity through electives like Gender and Power, mini-courses, and senior projects that allow for girls to explore issues of personal, cultural, and political significance.

Culture Jam

Culture Jam is an annual student-led and produced conference focused on diversity. It is designed to empower students to have courageous conversations alongside their peers. Culture Jam offers a safe, inclusive space for high school students to discuss equity-related issues that are present in schools, the Pittsburgh region, and the global community.

Student Affinity Groups

Affinity groups bring together students who have something important in common, e.g., race, gender, religion, or special interests. Affinity groups provide a safe environment in which girls who share a specific identity can come together for building community, empowerment, and positive self-awareness.

Families of Students of Color Affinity Group

The goal of this group is to facilitate ongoing small-group discussions and to solicit feedback from parents and guardians of students of color that will be used to inform future initiatives, programming, and planning at Ellis. The group will gather periodically for topic discussions, research exploration, parent networking, and needs identification relevant to the group’s focus.