Growing up in the suburbs of Philadelphia, Andrea Paz y Miño Carty recalls how painful it felt to hide parts of herself in order to fit in to her school and community. As Carty, the head of school at Lancaster Friends School (LFS) prepares for the its inaugural year, her childhood experiences are close at heart, as is the history of racism, social injustice and social unrest in our country.

I want to have a school where no one feels they need to hide parts of themselves, where all parts, and all people, are celebrated,” Carty impassions.

A commitment to inclusivity, social justice and honoring each student’s unique life path without attempting to change or convert them, are core ingredients to creating the school Carty envisions. “A key belief in Quakerism is that everyone has light inside of them. This means we treat one another with mutual respect, genuine care and trust in their wisdom and goodness,” Carty says.

Located in Hempfield Township, LFS welcomes kindergarten through eighth-grade students, regardless of ethnicity, socioeconomic status, religious affiliation (or lack thereof) or gender and sexual orientation. The school requires anti-racism training for all teachers, offers equity scholarships for marginalized individuals that qualify for subsidized lunches and pledges that within the next 10 years, 50 percent of its students and employees will be non-white or part of marginalized communities.

“This is not something that will happen the first year,” Carty explains. “We need to build trust with the community and that’s a process.” Holding listening sessions, reaching out to diverse faith groups, collaborating with organizations and fair funding educational groups and “walking the talk” are just a few of the ways Carty and her team plan to cultivate trust with the Lancaster County community.

“It takes time for people to see who you are,” Carty reflects. “They need to see what we do and know that we mean what we say.”

In addition to teaching science, math, English, history and other essential academics lessons, LFS seeks to instill in their students a desire to enact meaningful change in world. A smile appears on Carty’s face as she expounds, “We believe an excellent education is one that helps students find their purpose and teaches them the knowledge and skills needed to fulfill that purpose. Both excellent academics and meaningful purpose are essential.”