The Cecilia Chorus of New York

Diversity and Inclusion Statement

The Cecilia Chorus of New York strives to cultivate a diverse, inclusive, and equitable community where all members, employees, volunteers, performers, and audience members–whatever their gender, race, ethnicity, creed, national origin, age, sexual orientation or identity, education, or disability–feels valued and respected.

We are committed to a nondiscriminatory approach and provide equal opportunity for employment and advancement in all of our programming. We respect and value diverse life experiences and heritages and ensure that all voices are valued and heard. We are committed to modeling diversity and inclusion for the nonprofit arts community and to maintaining an inclusive environment with equitable treatment for all.

• To provide informed, authentic leadership for cultural equity, Cecilia Chorus strives to:

• See diversity, inclusion, and equity as connected to our mission and critical to ensure the well-being of our membership and the arts communities we serve.

• Acknowledge and dismantle any inequities within our policies, systems, programs, and services, and continually update and report organization progress.

• Explore potential underlying, unquestioned assumptions that interfere with inclusiveness.

• Advocate for and support board-level thinking about how systemic inequities impact our organization’s work and how best to address that in a way that is consistent with our mission.

• Help to challenge assumptions about what it takes to be a strong leader in our organization, and who is well-positioned to provide leadership.

• Practice and encourage transparent communication in all interactions.

• Commit time and resources to expand more diverse leadership within our board, staff, committees, and advisory bodies.

• Lead with respect and tolerance. We expect all members to embrace this notion and to express it in commonplace interactions and through everyday practices.

Agreed by the Board of Directors