Extracurricular Substantial Evaluation for AMANDA ADDISON:

*Yearbook Advisor, Assistant, 1 year; Head Advisor, 2nd year: Umojaa

Co-Advisor, 2nd year, Director of Equity & Inclusion, 1st year
In her extra-curricular responsibilities, Amanda is a consummate
professional: organized, open-minded & fair-minded, effective, hardworking, articulate, dedicated and often visionary. Because she goes
about the work so calmly and efficiently , it is easy to forget that she is
climbing some of the steepest learning curves in two high
responsibility areas.
It is illustrative to me to note some of the more salient activity in
Amandas two major areas in just two weeks. On the more routine
front, Amanda has had to accommodate parents late to the yearbook
ad process after several carefully & clearly worded and timed emails
about the process and deadlines. This has involved answering the
emergency emails & voice mails, and negotiating with the yearbook
company and this section is simply an add-on to the considerable
responsibility of keeping the student staff moving along with the
internal and company deadlines. The level of detail and responsibility
is considerable and has typically expended all of the extracurricular
energy of predecessors. As a sentimental alumna, Amanda is
motivated to create a comprehensive and memorable record with the
students. Their experience on the staff is important to her as well. I
can say that the experience for students is a positive one. They feel
support and ownership, an important combination.
By her own admission, Amandas first love is diversity in all its
aspects, or, as she has recast it more expansively, equity & inclusion.
Working closely with Umojaa, she has produced two morning meeting
presentations for Black History Month: on the African Diaspora and
Cultural Appropriation, respectively. The presentations were
thoughtful, effective, and powerful. More importantly, though, the
students were genuine and engaged. The topics sprang organically
from ongoing discussions in the group and at the SDLC (Student
Diversity Leadership Conference) experience. (which Amanda
organized.) Amanda clearly guided the students in their focus and
production, but she gave plenty of room for them to direct the process
and the results.
Amanda has also launched in these past two weeks the Equity &
Inclusion Team 18 members strong. That has meant creating the
application & timeline, gathering the faculty members on the team,
distributing and reviewing the applications, making and

communicating the final choices, creating & distributing an agenda and

bringing everyone finally together. This initial meeting was very
helpful in setting the serious, though occasionally playful, tone for this
year and next. Working on how the mission of the group fits in with
Newark Academys mission is important as is communicating that work
to the outside world, especially via the upcoming website. Amanda
has also researched and found a local and affordable opportunity for
students to train in leadership and diversity, offered by Kent Place.
Amanda invited students to be involved there as well.
Just this past Saturday, Amanda hosted 16 parents at the second
meeting of Families of Color this year. That has involved working with
a small planning committee, sending out the email invitations, booking
the location and refreshments, and sending out an advance agenda
that included ways to move into the second half of spring semester
strong. Kirsti Morin presented ways to do that, and Willy Taylor was
there to discuss how to reach out to families of color through the
admissions office. Just the introduction, which Amanda called
cheesy, was very effective. I learned more about parent opinion
there than I have before, particularly classes that each would love to
take (including Amandas). For me, I also heard the best, most
heartfelt quotation of the year, from Olus mother: Newark Academy
takes something little and makes it amazing.
And thats not all. as Amanda was leading the parent portion of
Saturdays meeting, she had a student-led meeting happening in a
nearby classroom with about 18 students. This meeting so inspired
students that they are asking for ongoing opportunities for discussion
and valuing diversity work even more as well. Preparing the SDLC
students to lead that meeting was also part of the preparations for the
day.
Amanda is putting N.A. on the map when it comes to diversity.
She is inclusive and involving many people students and adults in
the process. She is also singularly articulate in explaining how equity
and inclusion differs from diversity and how that process matters to her
whether she is with parents, students, faculty, alumni board of
governors, or trustees. She is, to put it simply, inspired.
A major publication, a critical equity & inclusion initiative
dozens of smaller efforts these are all tributes to Amandas
willingness to learn, grow, and take charge. The learning curve may be
steep, but Amanda loves and often nears the summit only to find
another to challenge herself, her students, colleagues and families.
Her work in these areas is, simply put, excellent.

Respectfully submitted.
Pegeen Galvin
Dean of Students