Our Commitments
Inclusivity

Burke's Gender Inclusion Statement

Burke’s mission is to educate, encourage, and empower girls. Our school combines academic excellence with an appreciation for childhood so that students thrive as learners, develop a strong sense of self, contribute to community, and fulfill their potential, now and throughout life.

In fulfillment of our Mission Commitments, we strive to ensure that Burke’s is a school where all our students feel safe and comfortable to express their whole selves, including their gender identity.

As a girls’ school, we believe there are 400 ways to be a Burke’s girl. Burke’s supports, respects, and values each girl’s identity and expression across the gender spectrum. Burke’s is committed to the education of all students who identify as girls, regardless of their biological sex.

Frequently Asked Questions

List of 5 frequently asked questions.

  • Q Why is it important to talk about gender inclusion, and why now?

    Simply put, we're talking about this now because it's an inevitable question: What happens at our single-gender school when a student transitions?

    Beyond that, gender-­based discrimination is illegal under Title IX, and     gender is a protected class in many states and cities (just like race, religion, or disability). These protections are necessary because transgender and other gender-­expansive students frequently face a great deal of discrimination from other students, staff and community members. Organizations such as the PTA, the NEA, the California School Board Association, the National Association of Independent Schools, the National Coalition of Girls’ Schools, and many other associations for administrators, counselors, and other educational professionals have written clear guidelines about the need to make sure that transgender and other gender-­expansive students are safe at school.

    If one of our students transitions, we not only want to be ready for it, but we want to ensure that the student feels supported and seen.

  • Q Does gender inclusion mean Burke's is becoming coed?

    No. Burke’s continues to be a school whose mission is to educate, encourage, and empower girls.

  • Q What if, while at Burke's, a student no longer identifies as a girl?

    During a student's time at Burke’s, it is quite possible they may identify as a boy and not as a girl. If and when this happens, Burke’s will work with families on a case-by-case basis to determine together a plan to best support that individual student as well as honor the family's wishes in handling the student's privacy. There is no one path for this kind of situation.

Resources

Glossary

List of 3 items.

  • Gender

    Complex relationship between physical traits and one’s internal sense of self as male, female, both or neither (gender identity), as well as one’s outward presentation and behaviors (gender expression).

  • Sex

    In the United States, individuals are assigned “female” or “male” sex at birth, based on physical attributes and characteristics. This assumed physical dichotomy of sex is itself belied by a variety of naturally occurring conditions. Sex in some contexts, such as the law, is also used as an umbrella term that encompasses gender and gender identity. For the purposes of [this] discussion...however, “sex” is being used to convey those physical attributes and characteristics that are used to assign someone as “male” or “female” at birth.

  • Gender Identity

    A personal, deeply-felt sense of being male, female, both or neither. Everyone has a gender identity.

Questions? Contact:

List of 1 members.

  • Photo of Renita LiVolsi

    Renita LiVolsi 

    Director of Inclusivity & Community Building
    415.751.0187, ext. 329
Burke's mission is to educate, encourage and empower girls. Our school combines academic excellence with an appreciation for childhood so that students thrive as learners, develop a strong sense of self, contribute to community, and fulfill their potential, now and throughout life.

Burke’s

An independent K–8 school for girls
7070 California Street, San Francisco, CA 94121
Phone: 415.751.0177 Fax: 415.666.0535
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