Telling a Story Through the Lens of Diversity

The following is a guest post by Rivers faculty member, John Bower. John is the Director of Diversity. He is also a French teacher and choral director in the Middle School. 

Historical figures don’t make their way into the classroom every day, but last Thursday such an occasion took place here at Rivers. Ernest Green, one of the nine African-American students who first integrated Little Rock Central High School in 1957, addressed our community in connection with the all-school read from this past summer, Warriors Don’t Cry by Melba Beals. When I heard he would be coming, I immediately recognized it as an opportunity to look closely at the relationship between diversity and leadership. The Middle School put all academic classes on hold for the day, and I, along with the Middle School Leadership Committee, planned an entire day devoted to the idea of telling a story through the lens of diversity.

The day started with a screening of “Fighting Back,” a segment of the PBS documentary Eyes on the Prize that focuses on the history of the Little Rock Nine. This showing created some context for Ernest Green’s presentation. The students then broke up into discussion groups and addressed the question: What is the value in having a diverse community?

Responses included:

“It’s important to learn about other peoples’ cultures because the world is a really diverse place.”

“Well, diversity isn’t just about race. It’s about what makes a person unique, so I’d say Rivers is really diverse. We learn a lot about each other every day.”

Following Ernest Green’s presentation, the students then had the option of writing a letter of thanks to Ernest Green or a reflection of prose/poetry. Here is one of the poems from a sixth grade student:

“Thanks To You”

Thanks to you, Mr. Green,
there is history.
Thanks to you there are endless possibilities.
Thanks to you schools aren’t separate.
We can be different, but not afraid.
Thanks to you, sir,
race does not decide our rights.
Thanks to you prejudice is not encouraged
or expected. It is frowned upon.
Thanks to you and eight others
we won’t segregate.
Thanks to you the color of your skin makes no difference.
Thanks to you, Mr. Green,
the world is what it is today.

In the afternoon, faculty volunteers spoke on a panel of sorts in front of the middle school community. Each volunteer (Bruce Taylor, Whitney Robbins, Matt Goethals, and I) was given the prompt: “If you really knew me…” Through this prompt, we illustrated the significance of sharing stories about parts of our identities that are important to us as a way of building trusting relationships and educating one another. The presentations were heartfelt and honest, and the students mirrored that honesty as they presented their own stories in advisory groups. The entire day was a success, and as the Director of Diversity, I couldn’t be happier with the way students were able to demonstrate an understanding of the importance of appreciating each person’s stories and experiences.

Too often we view diversity in terms of numbers and statistics. Here at Rivers, we recognize and appreciate each student’s individual identity, and by making the community a comfortable, safe space to share our stories, the student body will undoubtedly be prepared to participate with confidence and courage in a global society.