SGT DIVERSITY & INCLUSION STATEMENT

Second Generation Theatre (SGT) strives to be a diverse, inclusive, and equitable organization, where all employees and volunteers feel valued and respected regardless of their gender, race, ethnicity, national origin, age, sexual orientation or identity, education, or disability.CLICK HERE to read our full statement. We are committed to operating in a nondiscriminatory manner and providing equal opportunities for employment and advancement in all our productions, departments, programs, and volunteer opportunities. We respect and value diverse life experiences and heritages, and we will take all reasonable measures to ensure that all voices in all SGT programs are valued and heard.  We view diversity, inclusion, and equitable treatment as connected to our core mission and critical to ensuring the well-being of our staff, actors, directors, designers, artistic leadership, and the communities we serve. SGT is committed to promoting diversity, inclusion and equitable treatment as follows:

• Identify and remove any inequities in our policies, programs, and services, and update our organization’s progress regularly.
• Explore potential underlying, unquestioned assumptions that interfere with inclusivity.
• 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 will connect with and expand our mission.
• Practice and encourage transparent communication in all interactions.
• Lead with respect; commit time and resources to expand more diverse membership within our board and staff.

SGT seeks to promote diversity and inclusion in our organization through the following action items:

• Pursue cultural understanding and transparency within SGT by continuing and maintaining formal, transparent policies.
• Pursue research related to equity to make incremental, measurable progress toward our diversity, inclusion, and equity efforts.
• Continue to build relationships with and hire BIPOC artists. 
• Continue to provide learning experiences for students in our classrooms and through our actions.
• Continue our system for being intentionally and consciously aware of bias during the hiring or evaluating process.

We expect all employees, volunteers, staff, actors, directors and designers of SGT to support the objectives set forth in this statement, wherever possible, and exhibit inclusive and respectful behavior at all times while working with and on behalf of SGT.

This document will continue to develop. The above statements are only the first steps in our organization’s expanding and maturing understanding of our accountability in the areas of diversity and inclusion. While we are aware that each step may not be perfect, we commit to our continuation of reviewing, refining, and altering our practices as time and transparent conversation educates us in how we can continue to evolve and become better.