Alumni Share Their Voices
Throughout the school year, we’ve hosted speakers, participated in forums, and had meaningful classroom experiences centered around our 2016-17 All School Read, Between the World and Me, by Ta Nehisi Coates. Recently, Dean of Multicultural Education at Governors Academy, and KUA alumnus, Jadi Taveras ’03, led a workshop as part of the Voices of KUA series.
The day was divided into two sessions. During the first half of the day, students were broken into smaller groups with two faculty facilitators. Within these groups, students were encouraged to speak honestly and openly, be respectful of others, listen to multiple perspectives without judgment, and also find comfort in the silent moments (including a ban on all cell phones). The groups discussed their stances on different ‘hot-button’ issues and spoke about how they individually identify in the world.
“With teachers facilitating a group discussion, we did an exercise called ‘the spectrum,’ where they would say two words, usually the polar opposites, and you would stand closer to the one you identified most with,” explained Jadon ’18. He continued, “It was good to see the varying opinions at KUA. It gave me a platform to speak on what I believe in and the confidence to stand up for those beliefs in a public setting.”
The day was divided into two sessions. During the first half of the day, students were broken into smaller groups with two faculty facilitators. Within these groups, students were encouraged to speak honestly and openly, be respectful of others, listen to multiple perspectives without judgment, and also find comfort in the silent moments (including a ban on all cell phones). The groups discussed their stances on different ‘hot-button’ issues and spoke about how they individually identify in the world.
“With teachers facilitating a group discussion, we did an exercise called ‘the spectrum,’ where they would say two words, usually the polar opposites, and you would stand closer to the one you identified most with,” explained Jadon ’18. He continued, “It was good to see the varying opinions at KUA. It gave me a platform to speak on what I believe in and the confidence to stand up for those beliefs in a public setting.”
During the second part of the workshop, the entire community convened in Flickinger Auditorium where a panel of Alumni spoke about their experiences at KUA, and how those experiences changed their world-view beyond The Hilltop. In addition to Jadi, the panel included Don Lowery ’73, Alda Farlow ’94, Nikki Williams ’02, and Bryant Harris ’04. What ensued was an open conversation, moderated by Taveras, about how it felt to attend KUA as a student of color; how the experience prepared each panelist for the future, and myriad examples of engaging, humorous, and personal tales about the KUA that each individual experienced as a student.
“They were talking a lot about how their background heritage has shaped their identity. They shared how KUA had the power to shape their assimilation to the different situations they found themselves in,” explained Gavin ’18. “Some of their experiences were contradictory, but they all had their own understanding of their role as Black or Latino people at KUA, which historically has been very white.” Gavin concludes, “It was a good time for reflection and helps us to think about how the school has changed, and how people with different backgrounds come to find the school.”
Thank you, Jadi, for facilitating such an important community conversation, and to all of our alumni panelists for returning to The Hilltop.
