Morgan Rees ’21
Morgan Bramwell ’21
Diversity in enrollment at Episcopal Academy is a large Episcopal Academy enrollment of new students is greatly affected by the presence of diversity. In a recent survey, when asked what changes they have seen in diversity over the past few years, 3.6% of students said that it had become less diverse, 28.6% said more diverse, and the majority, 67.9%, said it stayed the same. In fact, both the number and percentage of students of color have risen slightly. Peter Anderson, Director of Enrollment Management and Admissions says that one of their main and continuing concerns during the admissions process is the level of diversity. He adds, “The numbers are going up – by 62 students since 2013-14, but the size of the school is also growing, and that makes the jump from 24% to 28% less remarkable. We have a lot we can do to improve.”
With the largest number of new students being admitted in the 9th grade, Anderson says they focus a lot of their attention towards improving diversity through that window. Anderson says that they had a stronger than normal year last spring, as “40% of the new 9th grade enrollments were students of color. Our Upper School average at the time was only 26%.”
When the student survey was conducted, the results of the students’ opinions were broadly in sync with the statistics provided by Anderson. 60.7% of students thought that the minority with the highest enrollment was Asian American, and according to the stats provided by the admissions department, that perception is accurate. The minority with the lowest enrollment at EA is Hispanic. When we asked students what ethnicity they thought had the lowest enrollment, 71.4% said Hispanic, 17.9% said Middle Eastern, 7.1% said African American, and just one student (3.6%) said multiracial.
“Many of these student perceptions are accurate,” says Anderson. “While the statistics established through the admission and enrollment process are hard to confirm as 100% correct because the data are both a mix of what the families identify as and the definitions the school follows as a member of the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS), the numbers are very close to precisely accurate.
The students of the Upper School have varied opinions about the importance and possible lack of diversity. Tommy Craig ‘19 states that, “EA’s history might add to its lack of diversity. Most people associate EA with being extremely exclusive due to its history of being all-boys and predominately white, but I feel nowadays when you look around we are very diverse compared to our rival schools.” Starkly contrasting with Tommy, Katherine Harrar ‘21 says, “I think EA makes it seem as if diversity is very prevalent on campus, but when you come to EA and walk around, you see there is a minimal amount of diversity not only among the students but among the faculty.” Maiah Islam ‘21 suggests, “As a way to make EA feel more inclusive, they could promote diversity clubs more, they can make a more comfortable space where students can share about their backgrounds, and the school can offer the community more opportunities to learn about diversity and how it applies differently to different families.”
Broadly speaking, many Upper School students agree that diversity is important to a school’s atmosphere. Madi Belo ‘21 states her opinion on diversity, saying, “I think it’s important to have more people from different backgrounds to create a more well-rounded school and lessen the ignorance surrounding race, sexual identity, and religion.” Anderson brings another insightful factor of the use of diversity at EA: diversity is a strategy to accustom the current EA students for a college community, where diversity is very prevalent in all aspects. He adds, “You and the school community of people like you are not going to be effective in the economy if you aren’t familiar with and readily able to collaborate with people of all different perspectives and backgrounds. If the only people that you’re able to work with, or the only people that you’re most comfortable with, are from an immediate five-mile geographic range of where you live, then you lose.”
The admissions department strives for the most diversity possible in hopes that different zip codes, backgrounds, and socioeconomic standings will help broaden the points of view in class discussions, athletics, and even chapel. In Anderson’s final thoughts, he concludes that, “We’re making small movements forward. We can do even better. And I think that the intentional work of Dr. Locke and the development office may make a wonderful difference in the coming years.”