About

Our Values

Mission

York Country Day School, an independent college preparatory day school, inspires and nurtures the innovative and creative spirit of students as they pursue their intellectual promise. Students and faculty embrace rigor and delight in the pursuit of learning with tenacious curiosity and with diverse perspectives. The community helps students ignite their intellectual, social, and civic passions. Our students are known and valued, which allows them to engage as compassionate, bold, and active citizens as they identify a purpose outside of themselves, for the common good, and generate the call to better the world.

Motto

YCDS’s motto, veritas, means truth. A YCDS student is an integral member of an engaging community who aspires to pursue, define, and advance personal and intellectual truth to enrich and advance the quality of life for oneself and the greater good of others.

Our Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

York Country Day School is centered around the humanity and dignity of each member of our school community. YCDS embraces our motto, Veritas, or “truth”, in our commitment to educational equity. Our vision is a place of learning that celebrates all that is true and authentic in each person. The unique qualities among us in race, gender, ethnicity, religion, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, physical ability, family structure, and age all shape our identity in meaningful ways deserving of respect. We honor our collective diversity at all times, and consistently strive to include all voices in honest and open dialogue. 

Our Action Plan

To achieve our vision of educational equity, we commit to the following actions:
  • Robust and ongoing professional development for all staff on building inclusive learning spaces where all feel known and valued.
  • Engagement with parents and students in conversations and educational outreach about important issues.
  • Active recruitment of diverse candidates for all positions that foster greater inclusion for people of color and those of historically underrepresented backgrounds.
  • Systems and support for all community members to express themselves and their concerns with compassion and integrity. 
  • Publishing a 5-year strategic plan for cultural competency.