Illustration by Alex Williamson
Over the past year, St. Louis has made national news with the Jason Stockley verdict and the NAACP’s travel warning that urged African-American travelers to “exercise extreme caution” when visiting Missouri. Though racism has long been an issue in St. Louis, these events have brought it to the forefront, including in area schools, where students have led protests and are having heated conversations on social media.
The Ladue School District has been doing work in the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion for several years, but this year racial harmony has become one of the priority initiatives in the strategic plan. The district is working to combat criticism it received after an incident in November 2016 in which a white student announced that black students should sit in the back of the bus. The incident fueled student-led protests demanding that the district do more.
The district is now adding culturally relevant connections to every unit. “I think the students are looking for direction—they see what goes on in the world, and they want direction from their classroom teacher,” says Jennifer Allen, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction. “We have to give them a context to be able to explore their thoughts, because they’re still kids. We have to help them figure out their way in navigating the world.”
Diversity and integration have been part of City Garden Montessori School’s mission since its inception. Everyone affiliated with the school—staff, faculty, board members—attends a two-and-a-half-day anti-racism training. “It’s part of our culture,” says Faybra Hemphill, director of racial equity curriculum and training.
Hemphill’s position was created five years ago to coordinate training and ensure accountability. “We’re doing the work first instead of chasing the problems and putting out fires later,” she says. “We’re thinking systemically now, in real time, about how our processes and partnerships uphold our ideas of justice. We want students to know that our social systems affect our life outcomes, and we have an opportunity to work together and change that.”
Recently the students organized a protest for Black Lives Matter. “They came together as a whole elementary school to do a demonstration because that’s what they felt passionately about,” says Hemphill. The students compiled data, wrote essays on their ideals, and invited community members to join. “It was a really powerful experience.”
Last September, after the announcement of the Stockley verdict, students at area high schools— including Kirkwood, Webster Groves, and University City—held peaceful protests. Administrators in U. City also helped organize the protest. “We really wanted it to be a teachable moment,” superintendent Sharonica Hardin-Bartley told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “We’re saddened by what we see happening in our community and beyond, and I believe that our children are our leaders. We can’t expect for them to lead if we don’t give them the opportunity to do so.”
“I think any time a national or local event comes up, we have a responsibility as teachers to make sure that students understand the issue,” says Carla Federman, department chair of history and social sciences at Mary Institute and Country Day School. “Living in St. Louis, it’s hard not to be aware of these issues. Students are thinking about who they are, who others are, what makes us the same, what makes us different, and how we got to this place.”
Editor's Note: This story has been updated to reflect that one student, rather than two, suggested that African-American students should move to the back of the bus.
