As a freedom school, Sankofa has always sought to create an environment that is physically, emotionally, and spiritually safe. We want our children to feel that this is a place where their bodies, minds, and spirits not only survive but thrive. It is because of our commitment to the safety of ourselves and our children that we insist on not only teaching the academic subject, but we emphasize the principles of the Nguzo Nane (respect, unity, self-determination, collective work, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity, and faith). We also uplift our virtues: balance, order, reciprocity, truth, righteousness, harmony, and justice. Lately, we have seen a disturbing pattern of our children saying unkind things to one another and in some cases even patterns of bullying. These behaviors are unacceptable.
We need your help as we talk to our children about how they speak to one another and how they respond to anger, frustration, or feeling misunderstood. Please speak with your children about the importance of kind speech and the inappropriateness of threats or violence. Please know that we will have our social-emotional team and our Deans visit each class this month and speak to the children about alternative ways to solve conflict as well as what to do if the children are victims of patterns of these negative behaviors. We presently are offering training to our middle and high school students as peer mediators and will also work with our lower school students on conflict resolution strategies. If your child is experiencing bullying, please ask them to report it to the deans or their teachers.
Without a doubt, we will take all reports seriously. If your child has been the victim of a pattern of these behaviors and you want to file a bullying report. Please contact your deans and copy Baba Curtis on your complaint (
[email protected]). To read about our bullying policy, please visit this site:
https://tinyurl.com/sfa-bullying-policyThe world is a dangerous place. Sankofa should not be. Let’s teach our children to respect, affirm, and love one another. Let’s stamp out bullying and unkind speech in our school environment and beyond. Your children deserve to feel safe and loved. We must work together to keep our children safe!
