Campus diversity is more than selling tamales.
That’s what Tuesday’s speakers, Retha Hill and Gerald
Jordan, told us.
Who’s in the AP classes?
Who plays football?
Who plays handball?
Who’s getting suspended?
Who’s teaching?
Who’s mopping the floors?
Who serves the cafeteria food?
Who hangs out at the back of the school?
Who hangs out in the front?
Who appears in the newspaper?
Who writes for the newspaper?
Who’s listening … to everybody?
Maya Suryaraman
Santa Clara
High School
Santa Clara,
CA
I couldn't agree more! This is especially important in districts were it seems like there is no diversity because most everyone looks the same. We need to look beyond the surface.
ReplyDeleteMarlo Spritzer
Southern Lehigh HS
Center Valley PA
http://my.hsj.org/thespotlight
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI love these questions, Maya. My school is working on diversity and talks frequently that it's about so much more than the "all cultures day" that the school has had traditionally for years (though not for the last two years--the students have opted to put together more meaningful events that help students share their stories with one another, events that work on building community and that last beyond the event itself). Thanks for the list of questions!
ReplyDeletePeople say there is no diversity at my school. (You may remember Retha Hill noting that the website said it's 99.?% Black.) It's the teachers (not all of them) who fail to notice the rich diversity; the students see it all. The offending teachers assume, out loud, that everyone thinks and feels and believes the same things. It's bizarre.
ReplyDeleteSara Hennes
Cody High School
Detroit, Michigan