Upper School Holds First Day of Service

Upper School students examined hunger in America, AIDS, bullying, animal rights and more than 20 other topics spotlighted at the first Upper School Day of Service, held on Feb. 27. Robert Kennedy Jr. delivered keynote opening remarks about his work as president of the Waterkeeper Alliance and the importance of protecting America’s waterways from pollution. From there, students joined peer-led workshops to consider a variety of equity and justice issues in depth.

 

Upper School Community Service instructor Hali Morell organized the event. “It was very important for the bulk of this day to be student-led,” Hali explains. “With so many outreach-based clubs on campus started by our students, we really wanted to give them an opportunity to showcase what they have been working on, discovering and noticing in both our local and global communities.”

 

The Gender Equity workshop asked students to examine their thoughts on topics including feminism, marriage and domestic abuse. A lively debate ensued over the role of male allies within the women’s rights movement. In the Wealth Inequality workshop, student leaders distributed varying amounts of candy to attendees to dramatically illustrate income disparity. Elsewhere on campus, students played Ping-Pong with Special Olympics athletes, created video interviews with Holocaust survivors and discussed ways to conserve our natural resources.

 

Students also had the opportunity to go on field trips for activities as varied as cleaning the beach, performing at the OPCC homeless shelter and gardening at Palms Elementary School. The day wrapped up with a panel of parents speaking about their own service experiences.