Affinity Groups at Winsor
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“We try to teach girls how important it is to actively and positively define yourself and how risky it is to allow others to define who you are, what your ability is, how much you are worth, or what you believe.”
–Julian Braxton, Director of Community and Inclusion
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For those new to affinity groups, an affinity group is a group of people that shares a common experience. The purpose of an affinity group is to strengthen the community by increasing the ways a person can find connection, support, and voice at Winsor starting with smaller groups of people who want to connect on specific areas of experience or identity. An affinity group can offer value to individuals who have a history of and/or potential for isolation in the broader community.
Currently, we have five formal affinity group programs at Winsor specifically designed to

create a space for students who identify as part of an underrepresented group at Winsor to experience being in a numerical majority. SISTERS is an affinity group for black students, AsIAm is an affinity group for students of Asian and South Asian descent, and SOMOS is an affinity group for Latinx students. MOSAIC is a safe space for those with two or more conflicting identities in how they navigate the world. If you want to go to (or have already attended) another affinity group at Winsor, but feel that it is only part of your identify, this is a place to share your experiences.Winsor's newly founded affinity group The First Generation Experience will focus on the challenges of the Immigrant Experience. The group is meant for Winsor students who are immigrants and for people whose parents immigrated to America. The group strives to create a safe and respectful environment where immigrant and first-generation students discuss and unpack their identities. SISTERS, AsIAm, SOMOS, MOSAIC, and The First Generation Experience provide an opportunity for girls who want to connect positively to their own ethnic/cultural identity. Attendance is completely voluntary.
FAQ's
- What is an affinity group? What is its purpose?
- How does an affinity group fit with the mission of being an inclusive community?
- If we are trying to build connections between girls of different races/ethnicities, why are we separating them?
- Though I could attend, I’m not interested in joining SISTERS, SOMOS, or AsIAm Is that okay?
- Where can I go if I want to talk further?
What is an affinity group? What is its purpose?
An affinity group is a group of people that shares a common experience. The purpose of an affinity group is to strengthen the community by increasing the ways a person can find connection, support, and voice at Winsor starting with smaller groups of people who want to connect on specific areas of experience or identity.
Currently, we have five formal affinity group programs in the Upper School at Winsor specifically designed to create a space for students who identify as part of an underrepresented group at Winsor experience being in a numerical majority. SISTERS is an affinity group for black students, AsIAm is an affinity group for students of Asian and South Asian descent, and SOMOS is an affinity group for Latinx students. MOSAIC is a safe space for those with two or more conflicting identities in how they navigate the world. If you want to go to (or have already attended) another affinity group at Winsor, but feel that it is only part of your identify, this is a place to share your experiences. Winsor's newly founded affinity group The First Generation Experience will focus on the challenges of the Immigrant Experience. The group is meant for Winsor students who are immigrants and for people whose parents immigrated to America. The group strives to create a safe and respectful environment where immigrant and first-generation students discuss and unpack their identities. There are plans underway for a Muslim affinity group and South Asian affinity group. SISTERS, AsIAm, SOMOS, MOSAIC, and The First Generation Experience provide an opportunity for girls who want to connect positively to their own ethnic/cultural identity. Attendance is completely voluntary. Students often talk about how their participation in affinity groups has been key to their identity development. In the Lower School, we have two affinity groups, AsIAm and SISTERS and SOMOS meet as one group.