EPSI Director Praises Importance of Meaningful Contributions to the World

Naledi Semela, Director of Equitable Practices and Social Impact, leads a ‘Modern Masculinities’ classroom discussion, May 2022. (Da Ping Luo)

Through facilitating opportunities for students to contribute meaningfully to the world and making Browning a place where purpose is prioritized, Naledi Semela, the School’s Director of Equitable Practices and Social Impact (EPSI), in his first year, has already made a mark on the community.

Before Browning, he worked in admissions at Prep for Prep, a program that “offers promising students of color access to a private school education,” according to its website. Prior to that, he also worked at The Spence School. 

At the first assembly of the year, Mr. Semela introduced himself to the Upper School student body by telling the story of the origin of his name. According to Mr. Semela, one of the most harmful policies of apartheid in South Africa was that Black students were to be educated in the Dutch-colonial dialect of Afrikaans exclusively. 

The language mandate isolated these students from the rest of the world, and brought upon The Soweto Uprising. Mr. Semela’s father organized a group of students to march from Naledi High School to Orlando Stadium, which was cut short when the militarized police opened fire on the crowd of unarmed students. From there, the initially peaceful protests devolved into more violence, with an estimated 176-700 casualties. 

“My name was given to me as a legacy of the unfinished fight against racism and injustice,” Mr. Semela said. 

Using the four core values as pillars (curiosity, dignity, honesty, and purpose),  Mr. Semela works to encourage the students to contribute meaningfully to the surrounding world. He strives to inspire students to use the education they acquire and apply it to their work beyond the Red Doors.

“He strives to inspire students to use the education they acquire and apply it to their work beyond the Red Doors.”

“I like that equitable practice and social impact are linked at Browning through my office, because it's about how Browning can be a place that honors all people as they need and deserve to be honored,” Mr. Semela said.

As for some of his first impressions, Mr. Semela noticed that the school lived up to its close-knit community reputation, and that relationships are at the core of such community.

Mr. Semela is also affectionately referred to in the hallways as Coach Semela, as he led the 2021-22 JV Basketball team and praised the value of supporting one another.

“With such a deep roster and playing time being at a premium, I hope that we nurtured a spirit of ‘How can I help the team?’ rather than ‘How can I get more minutes or more points?’ and I think we did,” Mr. Semela said.