Representation Matters

authored by Head of School Fran Bisselle

Today, the United States Senate confirmed Ketanji Brown Jackson as a Supreme Court Justice, making her the sixth woman to serve on the Court and the nation’s first Black woman to serve in this role. It is a historic day! Representation matters — both in our celebrated community and in the world beyond our halls.

Justice Jackson’s appointment strengthens the diversity of the Court. Since its first assembly in 1790, there have been 120 justices to serve. Justice Jackson will be the third Black justice and the sixth female justice. It is critically important for our students to see talented professionals who look like themselves blazing trails and making impactful change. Having strong women in positions of leadership and power shows our girls that they, too, have unbounded possibilities. 

As a historian, I always find it interesting to reflect on similar past events. Interesting to note that when Sandra Day O’Connor was appointed as the first female to the Supreme Court in 1981, the Senate confirmed her 99-0. It was both a bipartisan celebration and a gender barrier broken. As we recognize the appointment of Justice Jackson, we do so at a time of divisiveness and political tension. Today, educating young women to learn not for school, but for life means empowering them with the skills, knowledge, and social-emotional intelligence to rise boldly to challenges, to collaborate with those of differing perspectives and to build on the democratic values that unite us as a country.