Every year, Shipley students attend the NAIS Student Diversity Leadership Conference (SDLC), a multicultural gathering of upper school student leaders from across the U.S. and abroad. SDLC focuses on self-reflecting, forming allies, and building community. Led by a diverse team of trained adult and peer facilitators, participating students develop cross-cultural communication skills, design effective strategies for social justice practice through dialogue and the arts, and learn the foundations of allyship and networking principles. In addition to large group sessions, SDLC "family groups" and "home groups" allow for dialogue and sharing in smaller units. We asked some of the participants to answer a few questions about their experience. Here’s what they had to say.

Aisha Ali  '22: My biggest take away from the conference was to be sure to always look within myself. As I am a Black, Muslim woman, the conference reinforced my knowledge that my existence is the resistance. This led me to question if I was living in my truth, and carrying myself accordingly. I learned so much at the conference, but one of the things that struck me and could easily be implemented at Shipley is land acknowledgement. It is important for us to acknowledge that we are all guests on indigenous land. Shipley can pay homage to the tribe’s land that their establishment rests on (Lenape Tribe), simply through signage around the school, amplifying voices of the tribe, and creating service projects that could benefit them. 

Amber Feng '24: My biggest takeaway from NAIS is to actively see the other side of American society and the world. Besides teaching me theoretical knowledge, this conference also serves as a place for different people to communicate and connect. Here we celebrate our differences, respect others' cultures, and emphasize each other’s experiences. Although the conference only lasted for four days, we built an incredibly strong and united community, full of love and support. I certainly would like to implement this at Shipley—making Shipley a place where people have more connections, deeper understanding of each other, and can freely express themselves no matter what.

Aisha Ali  '22: The conference led me to further develop my thinking about inclusion. The conference created a space where students’ presence were truly valued. Not only were sharing your opinions and experiences accepted, it was encouraged. Everyone felt like they were safe to exist in the space.

Amber Feng '24: If the grading standard for DEI in Shipley is 1-10, I would grade Shipley as 8-9 before entering this conference. But now I will grade it 5. By listening to other schools’ policies and student movements, I recognized that Shipley has done something remarkable, but also realized that it still has many deficiencies and some problems. Personally, it appears to me that we need to try harder on achieving a 100% in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion work at Shipley.

Aisha Ali  '22: I signed up to attend the conference as I have always been passionate about DEI work, so I saw it as an opportunity to learn from others and reflect on my own experiences. I was hoping to be able to share and hear the real and raw truth about our independent schools and the world around us. The conference exceeded every expectation I could have had. It was truly an experience like no other, it is impossible to truly captivate the conference using only words. 

Amber Feng '24: I first signed up because I wanted to find people with similar identity and goals—to achieve equality in the world. And the result is pretty great: not only did I achieve my initial goal, but I also learned the way to achieve my goal, like how to practically build a community like that, etc.