The Fairness Committee is a group of students and faculty members that promotes a positive and inclusive environment at The New School. The goal of the Fairness Committee is to ensure that each community member feels welcome, safe, and encouraged to contribute to the school. The committee invigorates the Spirit of the Community throughout the school year, and is involved in coordinating community events to help foster and deepen connections between community members.
Additionally, the Fairness Committee convenes as needed to assist students who are having disciplinary or social difficulties because of inappropriate behavior. It is an integral part of how The New School deals with behavioral issues. Because we take the position that everyone wants to do their best while at the school, we approach each issue as the manifestation of a difficulty with impulse control, self/social-awareness, or some other issue that the student would like help in overcoming.
A student may call for a Fairness Committee meeting to help resolve a student-to-student dispute or one with a faculty member if the student deems it necessary. The Committee may also be called upon to investigate incidents involving theft or vandalism at school.
The Fairness Committee consists of the faculty chairs (Rachel Lewis and Billy Pasour), the elected student chairs (one for HS and one for MS), a student vice chair, and other interested student members who meet during Essential Time or lunch as needed. When a student or an issue is brought to the Fairness Committee, a subset of the committee is created with one of the faculty chairs, the HS or MS student chair or one of the vice chairs, one member of the committee and one member from the student body at large (each subcommittee is four people). This group investigates the situation, calling witnesses as needed.
The Fairness Committee does not hand down punishments. The Committee’s primary mission is to raise consciousness and/or to seek an equitable solution to a community-related problem. The raising of consciousness might very well require a student to engage in an extended series of meetings, maintain a journal, or report to a teacher regularly. The Committee formulates a contract and/or a behavioral plan toheto help the student change a behavior pattern that is causing the student difficulty, and follows up to make sure that the student is honoring the contract and following the plan. The student, his/her parents, and hishis/her teachers, must sign the contract before it takes effect.
All students are welcome to join the Fairness Committee and help maintain and improve the culture of the school.