We’ve got big news – The Traveling School has a revised mission and vision, and a new strategy statement!
The Traveling School’s historic mission and vision focused on female voices and female leaders. Over the past two years, we have been evaluating our language in light of growing feedback from our students, faculty, alums and other community members who did not feel represented by our guiding statements due to the emphasis on the word female.
We recognize that gender is not merely binary. Not all of our students or alums identify as, or as only, female. Additionally, we understand that not everyone wishes to be labeled with gendered language, regardless of their identity. Finally, we have asked ourselves: Do we really need to call our students “female leaders”?
No, we do not. They are leaders – without qualification.
Using language that represents our student body and increasing our gender inclusion, alongside all other aspects of identity and equity work, are ongoing priorities for us. We have been in the process of this work with our students, staff, teachers, alums, board members, and outside consultants. Today, we are excited to announce our revised mission and vision statements, as well as a new strategy statement:
Our mission at The Traveling School is to amplify student voices through transformative education to ignite positive change.
Our vision is a world in which strong, compassionate leaders build an equitable and sustainable global community.
Our strategy is to cultivate inclusive, collaborative learning spaces that empower young people whose voices might otherwise be silenced on the basis of gender.
While our language has shifted, we remain committed to serving girls, nonbinary and gender-nonconforming youth. Thank you to our students and alums who spoke up and shared their feedback with us, and to all those who have joined us in this process thus far. There is much work still to do, and we can’t wait to keep progressing onward together.
With love & light,
The Traveling School Team
