By Shira Kramer
As discrimination sweeps the nation and organizations search for ways to improve inclusivity, schools like Beth Tfiloh Dahan Community High School join these efforts.
Beth Tfiloh’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion coordinator, Halaine Steinberg, led the school’s search for an innovative inclusion program.
During her participation in an online course produced by the Anti-Defamation League called “Breaking Down Bias,” she heard about a program called “No Place for Hate.” After researching this initiative, Steinberg realized that this was just what Beth Tfiloh needed to educate their students on diversity.
“’No Place for Hate’ values are very much Jewish values,” said Steinberg. “We are excited to have our school come together for this kind of activity and goal.”
When Steinberg brought the idea to Dr. Zipora Schorr, Beth Tfiloh Dahan Community School’s director of education, she loved the idea.
“While our school is not racially diverse, we are Jewishly diverse,” said Schorr.
The “No Place for Hate” program values individuality and social justice and embraces diversity through tasks that each school must complete to receive the unique No Place for Hate designation. First, each school must form a committee comprised of teachers, students, an administrator and a parent. Then, the committee reads a pledge that introduces the program to the student body and the school community. This pledge must be signed by a percentage of students showing that they embrace the “No Place for Hate” values. Beth Tfiloh competed the first two tasks in November of last year.
Currently, Beth Tfiloh is completing the most important and individualized task: creating a climate survey for the student body. This survey was customized by the committee, asking questions of particular relevance to the Beth Tfiloh community.
Students were asked to rank how strongly they agree with statements like, “Jewish values mean that everyone should be treated with respect.” They also had the opportunity to contribute their voice and describe discrimination they might have faced.
Beth Tfiloh’s first event dedicated to the program honored “Black History Month.” The school invited staff from the Elijah Cummings Youth Program in Israel to discuss why forging bonds between the Black and Jewish communities is so important. After their presentation at assembly, students had the opportunity to discuss these relationships with small discussion groups led by teachers who were on the committee.
Jill Aizenstein, a Jewish history teacher at Beth Tfiloh, asked her students in her discussion group if racism is a necessary topic of conversation at Beth Tfiloh High School due to the lack of racial diversity.
While our school lacks diversity in regards to racism, we unfortunately still have racial jokes and slurs. Beth Tfiloh students need to learn that saying racist things are not OK, regardless of who hears them, said Beth Tfiloh students.
Beth Tfiloh also plans to hold another program in honor of “Women’s History Month.”
“’No Place for Hate’ provides an open space for my friends and me to thrive. With the addition of the ‘No Place for Hate’ campaign at Beth Tfiloh, I have already begun to see change in the way our school community tackles difficult conversations,” said senior Maya Taylor ‘22.
Shira Kramer is a member of the 2022 graduating class at Beth Tfiloh Dahan Community School.
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