Safety & Healthy Boundaries Policy | Emma Willard School, NY

Academics

Emma Willard School's curriculum focuses on three pillars: Intellectual Flexibility, Purpose & Community, and Equity & Justice. Our academic program offers more than 140 courses, including Emma's own unique Advanced Studies options. Personalized study programs enable students to dive deep into a topic or field of their choosing, and gain hands-on experience.

School Life

Education at Emma isn’t limited to the classroom—it’s woven into the fabric of our community. With students from around the world and across the United States, and faculty and staff with a wide breadth of life experiences, you will broaden your perspective the moment you walk onto campus.

Bonds created in the residence and dining halls, while practicing for an athletics match or arts performance, at one of our many cherished traditions, and all the little moments in between, define the Emma experience.

Alumnae

Wherever life takes you, your connection goes with you. Community connectedness is a longstanding Emma Willard School tradition carried on by our alumnae. Our vast network of over 8,000 unique, intelligent alums spans the world, and includes Olympians, top-level politicians, high-profile CEOs, and acclaimed architects.

Giving

Empower a girl, change the world.

An education is one of the most powerful gifts you can give a girl. When you give to Emma, you honor our fearless founder’s legacy, and allow Emma Willard School to offer incomparable educational experiences for tomorrow’s leaders, and in many cases, make their time here possible.

Academics

School Life

News

List of 12 news stories.

Campus Leadership Team Completes Assessment of School's Sexual Assault Policies, Procedures, and Programming
12/19/2018
On December 14, the Emma Willard School Campus Leadership Team (CLT) met to conduct a full review of the school’s CORE Evaluation as part of the ongoing healthy boundaries initiatives undertaken in the school’s partnership with Culture of Respect (CoR).
Emma Willard School Leads in Policies to Protect Students
12/6/2018

A bill sponsored by Democratic Assemblywoman Cathy Nolan of Queens, and western New York Republican Pat Gallivan in the Senate has made its way to the desk of Governor Cuomo. The legislation would require that employees of private schools be mandated reporters by law.
Emma Discusses #MeToo
6/12/2018
Erin Pihlaja

On Tuesday, June 12, The Albany Times Union hosted a discussion of the #MeToo movement led by a panel comprised of attorney Sarah Burger, President of Pinnacle Human Resources Rose Miller, and State Assembly Member Jo Anne Simon. Emma Willard School was a proud sponsor of the event.
Emma Observes Sexual Assault Awareness Month
5/1/2018
Erin Pihlaja

For the first time ever, this April, Emma Willard School participated in the nationally coordinated observation of Sexual Assault Awareness Month.
Core Leadership Team Hosts #MeToo Town Hall
2/5/2018
Emily Snyder, Director of Student Life

Members of the Culture of Respect Core Leadership Team hosted an open town hall discussion on the #MeToo Movement and its relation to the current cultural dialogue surrounding sexual assault and sexual harassment in the workplace and beyond.
Emma Faculty Engage in Professional Development
1/12/2018
Emma Willard School prides itself in being a leader in girls-first thinking, and providing students with a first-class education in a nurturing community. As part of this mission, Emma faculty engage in regular professional development to keep apprised of current trends and research so that we can best our support students’ academic and socio-emotional development.
Emma Girls Practice Self Defense Skills
11/20/2017
Last week, Self Defense Instructor Corinna Caracci came to Emma Willard School to teach Emma students how to defend themselves against physical violence and verbal harassment.
David Wolowitz Speaks to Board of Trustees on Promoting a Healthy School Culture
10/23/2017
On Saturday, October 21, 2017 David Wolowitz, attorney with McLane Middleton firm and consultant to independent schools nationwide, met with the Emma Willard School Board of Trustees and school administrators to share an overview of a training session he is scheduled to deliver to the adult Emma community in January.
All-School Meeting Focuses on Safety and Community Guidelines
8/31/2017

The well-being and safety of our students is the utmost priority at Emma Willard School. As such, our first all-school meeting of a new academic year focuses on ensuring the entire community knows and understands the school’s policies, procedures, protections, and cultural norms.
Student Leaders Trained as Mentors in Violence Prevention
8/25/2017

Our student leaders are vital resources for Emma Girls. Each year, girls undergo a rigorous application process to become a senior Proctor or junior Wellness Advocate (formerly known as Peer Educators). These leaders are trained to provide direction and advice for navigating the many aspects of life at Emma. As such, they undergo training on a number of topics.
Emma Unveils Updated Policies and Procedures
8/24/2017

Each school year, members of the Emma Willard School administration and student life teams reevaluate, refine, add new, or expand policies in our community handbook Fine Print, and the Employee Handbook. This year, the team worked with our partner Culture of Respect on this process to ensure that student safety was as clearly defined and as accessible as possible.
Release of the Cozen O'Connor Report
4/18/2017
Dear Emma Community,

As promised in our communications since July, 2016, we have been determined to share and confront the facts surrounding sexual abuse at Emma Willard School.

Today, we present you with the complete results of the external audit conducted by child protection experts Leslie M. Gomez and Gina Maisto Smith of the law firm Cozen O'Connor. You can access the report on our website here and at https://issuu.com/emmawillard/docs/report. We are making it available to everyone in the Emma community.

Continuous, On-Campus Programming

List of 4 items.

Health Classes

Sophomores in our health classes spend several sessions covering relationships, women's health, and sexual health. As part of this programming, girls are informed of issues including sexual assault and intimate partner violence, and are provided with examples of appropriate and inappropriate relationships, ways to negotiate relationships, and where to turn for assistance and support.
Student Leadership

Emma's student leaders—our Wellness Advocates and Proctors--undergo training on bystander intervention and how to assist should they witness any type of assault. Additionally, our Proctors educate girls on recognizing potentially unsafe or dangerous situations and what to do if help is needed.
Health & Wellness Center

Our Health & Wellness Center provides information on the prevention of sexual assault, both publicaly on display boards and in person via our nurses. Our nurses are also engaged in the delivery of the women's and sexual health sessions of our health classes. Emma Willard School also has counsellors on staff who provide relevant information and referrals to students who require it. Learn more about all the resources available in our Health & Wellness Center.
Senior Retreat

Before leaving Emma, seniors attend a two-day retreat where they attend an informational session on sexual assault on college campuses.

News Archive

List of 5 news stories.

Emma Employees Take Online Sexual Misconduct Training
6/12/2017
Emma Willard School faculty and staff members recently completed mandatory online trainings through United Educators entitled: Workplace Harassment Prevention Fundamentals (K12); and Protecting Children: Identifying and Reporting Sexual Misconduct.
AATF Final Report
5/6/2017
On Saturday, May 6, the Alumnae Advisory Task Force (AATF) presented their final report to the Emma Willard School Board of Trustees at the spring BOT meeting.
Alumnae Advisory Task Force Recommendations to the Emma Board of Trustees
3/10/2017
Last fall, the Board of Trustees asked that a volunteer group be formed, composed of alumnae with expertise and commitment to the issue of sexual assault. The Alumnae Advisory Task Force (“AATF”) was charged with reviewing the policies and practices in place at our school regarding the education, prevention and reporting of sexual abuse and misconduct.
Emma Willard School Partners with Culture of Respect
1/30/2017
Emma Willard School has engaged the organization Culture of Respect to assist the school in its endeavors to ensure that the school is following best practices in responding to and preventing sexual abuse on campus. Work with the advocacy organization began in late fall and the school is the first high school in the country to partner with Culture of Respect.
Alumnae Advisory Task Force Update
1/29/2017
On Friday, January 27, Andrea Hanley, vice chair of the Alumnae Advisory Task Force (AATF) gave a presentation to the Emma Willard School Board of Trustees.