THE May 1, 2017 theP park schoolOSTSCRIPT of baltimore | 2425 old court road, baltimore, md 21208 Volume 74.1 Issue No.8 Day of Civic Engagement moves inside US STUDENTS by ARENAL HAUT ’20 ORGANIZE With thunderstorms in the forecast for April 4, the second annual Day of Civic Engagement (DoCE) became DIVERSITY DAY an indoor only event. Originally, Rommel Loria, Director of Civic by ETHAN HARRISON ’18 Engagement and Service Learning, planned for it to occur for the Middle On March 29, the entire Upper and Upper School together; every stu- School community took an afternoon dent would go off campus to a variety to participate in student-led discus- of locations ranging from farms and sions on Diversity. The special half community lots to schools and food day was planned by a joint committee banks. of students and faculty. Monday morning, however, due To set aside time, the Upper to the forecast, outdoor activities School created a “Blow-up Wednes- were cancelled and all upper school- day,” Dean of Students Traci Wright ers from those activities were placed said. “We changed the schedule in into indoor activities. All middle the morning so all classes ended by schoolers (except for those who had 12:15, and activities started in the planned activities connected to their afternoon.” Advoc8 projects) attended their regu- The concept of Diversity Day lar classes. A separate day for them formed when a handful of students will happen on June 5. attended the National Diversity Lead- Loria planned the day in col- ership Conference in 2015 and 2016. laboration with a team of students “Our intentions were to bring our ex- and faculty. The planning committee periences back to our community,” met almost every week from right Atira Koikoi ’17 said. before winter break until April and “They had the responsibility to collaborated on the organization and photo by N. Blau ’18 bring something back, and we wanted the content. They also reached out something more than just an assem- Upper schoolers help students at Dr. Bernard Harris Elementary school make terrariums. to organizations, worked on student bly,” Wright said. placements, and talked about the for- I wanted to learn about,” Kendall portant day to have because of the ger systemic issues that are at play.” Students and faculty on the plan- mat of the Day. Clark ’19 said. experience that it can provide and the It might be difficult to face, but Loria ning committee met every Monday Lizzie Kane ’18 has been on the Caitlin Joseph ’20 agreed. “I exposure that it can provide students says understanding complex social to brainstorm. During the sessions, planning committee for the past two liked the Day of Civic Engagement to different opportunities to engage problems helps students see the “the student and faculty facilitators led years and found the experience re- because I got to do activities that I in the community,” Loria said. Park practical limitations of trying to fix groups focusing on race, gender, warding. “I like getting out of the wouldn’t normally do in a classroom highly values experiential learning, something that has not been given ability, socio-economic status, and Park community and into others, and setting.” and the Day of Civic Engagement enough attention until that point.” religion. the Day [of Civic Engagement] lets Loria also enjoyed it, but his “fa- exemplifies that. According to Kane, “the Day of After a pizza lunch, the discus- me share that passion with the rest of vorite part of the day is that it allows Clark agrees: “when you’re learn- Civic Engagement feels like a one-off sion groups convened in the Athletic the school,” Kane said. students to be matched up with an ing about ... someone who needs help activity for a lot of students, and that center, forming lines for an exercise The Day of Civic Engagement interest and allows them to, perhaps, or something that needs to be made is not what Rommel [Loria] and the called the community walk. Three was met with a largely positive reac- think about how they can be involved better, I think it’s better to go see for committee intend.” students led each expanded group, tion from the student body. “I really with something that they are passion- yourself and see where the issue lies.” Loria and Kane both see the day asking questions, and depending on enjoyed my off-campus experience ate about.” Loria also values how students as a “jumping-off point,” a way to the answer, one would either take because it provided me with a new Loria and Clark were clear about learn “not only about how people ad- teach students the life-long value of a step back, take a step forward, or way of learning about something that the value of the program. “It’s an im- dress an issue, but also about the big- civic engagement. stand still. For example, one statement was, “Take a step forward if you go to pri- Valeria Luiselli visits Upper School as resident writer vate school,” and everyone stepped by ABEL SAPERSTEIN ’17 forward. Students stepped backward plex relationship with language.” She if they answered yes to the statement Award winning author and es- spoke Spanish at home, but wrote “I expect to take out student loans to sayist, Valeria Luiselli, visited on English in school. When Luiselli re- attend college.” Thursday April 6 as this year’s Peter turned to Mexico she found a spoken This activity did not sit well with Baida Writer-in-Residence. Luiselli Spanish that seemed like a foreign some of the participants who were discussed her recently released book, language; Mexico City has a unique felt left out if they ended up the back Tell Me How It Ends, the topic of im- fast-paced slang. Instead of rejecting of group. Others were uncomfortable migration, her writing process, and her new relationship with Spanish, being towards the front of the group other books in an assembly to the however, Luiselli embraced it. “All because it made them look more Upper School student body. that foreignness” she said, “is what privileged or simply “better” than Born to Mexican parents, Luiselli made me into a writer.” everyone else in the room. spent large portions of her childhood Luiselli’s afternoon workshop “The questions were all geared in South Africa and South Korea with Angela Balcita’s “Art of the Es- toward the same thing like financial where her father’s job as a diplomat say,” and Max Wiggins’s “Creative standings, especially for the question took her family, until she eventually Nonfiction,” focused on constraints, ‘How much food do you have in your returned to Mexico for high school. specifically avoiding the letter “e.” fridge?’” Isabel Berner ’18 said. photo courtesy Communications Because of Luiselli’s travel-filled Luiselli, see p. 3 Diversity Day, see p. 3 Valeria Luiselli reads from her newly released book Tell Me How It Ends. childhood she “always had a com- THE POSTSCRIPT INSIDE FEATURES COMMENTARY ARTS AND CULTURE Thao Kahn ’17 sits down Maeve Thistel ’19 and with English teacher Angela Catie Turner ’17 revies the Upper Rachael Devecka ’19 discuss Balcita to discuss pasta, the School’s spring production #Anti- affinity groups at Park. essay, and the weather. goneAmericanTragedy. PAGE 4 PAGE 6 PAGE 8 EDITORIAL // THE POSTSCRIPT May 1, 2017 2 Student journalism has its place Editors and reporters from Pittsburg High are not necessarily protected by the First School’s newspaper, The Booster Redux, Amendment. But Park treats us as though investigated the questionable credentials of we are; the administration does not ask to their school’s new head principal, Amy Rob- review our issues before they are published. ertson, after she was hired March 6. Our efforts are actively supported and “Everybody kept telling them, ‘stop pok- encouraged by the school, even when print- ing your nose where it doesn’t belong,’” ing the truth is painful. Booster Redux adviser Emily Smith said in The fact that we are not censored means an interview with The Washington Post on that we are able to publish the news objec- April 5. tively and also publish unvarnished student Despite facing opposition, the students opinion, no matter how controversial. This continued their investigation and published establishes trust between the paper and its the article in the March 31 edition of the readers. newspaper. The article revealed inconsisten- As the leadership for the paper changes, cies in Robertson’s educational background. we hope and expect Park’s culture will R obertson said that she received an stay the same. We trust that the school will MFA from the University of Tulsa, which always remain a place where inquiry is the student journalists confirmed does not encouraged and access to the truth is upheld. offer that degree, and an MA and PhD from These characteristics make Park a special Corllins University, which is not accredited. school in which to be a student journalist. A day after the article was published, Robertson resigned. This story shows the value of student cartoon by Anton Shtarkman ’20 journalism. With the knowledge of the im- portance of student journalism, our work— writing and editing articles and delivering them to the school community—becomes Guilt is not constructive in meaningful. At Park, we’re encouraged to ask questions of anyone and report on the answers. Faculty, conversations about diversity students, and administration are open and by BENNETT DEMSKY ’18 portant, which is that I very nearly “won” the willing to speak to us. We are never forced privilege walk.