On Feb. 10, the annual African American Scholars RISE Conference took place at Olympian High School (OHS). This event was organized by various Sweetwater Union High School District (SUHSD) members to enlighten the culture of African American students within SUHSD.
Advanced Placement (AP) African American Studies, United States History and Ethnic Studies teacher Don Dumas is one of the staff members in the SUHSD district that helped plan this conference. He explains how the event aids education of African American empowerment and future success.
“[The conference] introduces students to people that have navigated the same spaces they’re trying to navigate and encourages them to pursue their higher educational aspirations,” Dumas said.
Throughout the event, many workshops were held to help attendees understand the culture, history and how to succeed later in life. These workshops offered various opportunities for students to recognize how components of African American history apply to their future.
“Many of our workshops included information on things like improving college application writing, financial literacy, navigating the legal system, [and] a lot of informative workshops that hopefully the students heard the message and took some tools from it,” Mar Vista Academy Principal Sasha Scott said.
Scott has been working for SUHSD since 2005, and throughout her time in the district she has found joy in making students feel valued within their community. Furthermore, attending students like BVH senior Kali Groulx explained their perspective on how the event helped them find a part of their identity.
“[This event] allowed me to learn more about my culture and be surrounded by people that understand and participate in the culture. I feel disconnected from it often because I’m adopted,” Groulx said.
To establish an event that gives students a meaningful experience, SUHSD staff members go through long months of planning. The planning process is led by a team of SUHSD members and is organized to discuss time, location, and ideas for the conference.
“This event is a combination of the district and the Black Student Union (BSU) Elders. There are also a few administrators and teachers from SUHSD,” Scott said. “The team has been meeting since last July, planning, prepping, getting the vendors and getting the speakers together to try to make this event as successful as we can.”
Building this event was no easy task, as organizers encountered many issues in order to get the event arranged. SUHSD members had to take into account students’ schedules in academics and athletics, since events were taking place during the academic school year.
“Having an event on a Saturday is a challenge because students are not already at school and a lot of kids just want to sleep in. Also there’s the extracurricular activities students have and must attend,” Scott said.
Once the event was planned at a set date and location, organizers had students register to attend the event. The event would come to have a great turnout with many students taking the opportunity for a unique experience.
“Students get a social experience of learning, teaching, conversing while talking to new people and groups,” Groulx said. “The conference introduces a fun and new way to learn about history or topics related to us and enjoy spending time with the community.”
At the end of the day, many people that either attended or helped organize this event expressed their positivity and support. The 220 registered students made it known that the event was a success and a strong moment for the community.
“This conference is an opportunity for everyone to be together and to meet people who look like them or have similar experiences. It allows them to feel connected, not only to their school, but also in the entire district.” Scott said.
