Honoring diversity is one of the core values of the philosophy of The Bellwether School. Our teaching focuses on the school-wide culture that develops as children, ages three to twelve, come together to learn. As children work together to form a learning community, they are engendering a cultural model which they will carry with them into the larger world as they grow. We believe that education directly creates, sustains, and perpetuates culture. Fundamental to our goal is the creation of a learning community based on an understanding and appreciation of diversity in learning styles and abilities, and throughout varied cultural, ethnic, religious, ideological, and socio-economic backgrounds. We believe that compassion, creativity, and non-violent problem solving are the working values of such a community and that diversity is the central supporting element of a healthy learning environment.

Bellwether is a community into which families, not only children, are welcomed. It is our view that education is a cooperative venture amongst all the adults in a child's life. Embedded in our mission and philosophy is the belief that a strong school community includes a rich mix of individuals who contribute a variety of talents, experience, and opinions to the learning process. We are proud of the progress that has been made over the years to include such parents, children, and staff in our school. We continue our efforts to reach out to families and staff from different economic, racial, and cultural backgrounds. We welcome the diversity of personalities, perspectives, and learning styles that their children bring into our classrooms.

Bellwether is forming an active Diversity Committee that will include members of staff, parents, and the Co-Directors. Its goal will be to support the school in raising awareness and facilitating conversation about issues of inclusion.

Some measures of diversity in 2011-2012:

• Geographic 50 Bellwether students come from 46 different families. These families reside in 20 zip codes, representing towns north (Milton, St. Albans, Essex Junction, Jericho), west (Burlington, South Burlington), south (Charlotte, Hinesburg, Shelburne, East Middlebury) and east (Richmond, Waterbury).
• Economic 10 students, or 20% of the eligible student body, receive assistance with tuition in the form of need-based tuition assistance. Their awards range from 5-50% of tuition.
• Racial and ethnic 10% of Bellwether’s students are children of color.
• Religion Bellwether is a non-sectarian school in which families of different religious affiliations, or none, are present and welcome. School is not closed for religious holidays, but it is understood that some families will choose to have their children miss school for religious observance.
• Family structure Bellwether students come from a wide variety of family constellations, including nuclear and blended families, two-household families, single-parent families, adoptive families, and families with gay or lesbian parents. Our administrative materials, classroom resources, and daily conversations reflect and normalize this diversity in our community.