Lakeshore Ethnic Diversity Alliance: 2008 Fall Middle School Conference

2008 Fall Middle School Conference

Conference Overview

On Tuesday, December 16, this year's annual Calling All Colors middle school fall conference was held at Hope College.

Each school was invited to present their unity banners and share their action plans and projects that promote diversity in their schools. "Mix It Up" games provided an opportunity for students to meet and talk with students from other schools.

After the morning session, students are assigned a dialogue group. For this conference, the sessions focused on media bias, most notably in the popular tween show, Hannah Montana. Students analyzed the stereotypes, and portrayal of each character and compared their findings to great trends and attitudes in regards to race relations.

The last break-out of the day was the cultural activity groups, presented by community members who volunteered to share a part of their culture.

All students gathered back at the Knickerbocker theater to present the cultural activity dances and crafts they had learned, and to view a collection of photographs taken during the day.

Special Thanks to:

Emcee: Sally Woods
Hope College Intern: Meghan Wahl

Cultural Presenters:
Ballet Folklorico; Swing Dancing, Ben Lawrence; Henna Art, Zahabia Ahmed-Usmani and Rehana Hassan; Brazilian Samba, Alessandra Riquelme; The Lion King Dancing, Autumn Johnson; Brazilian Martial Arts, GVSU Capoeria Mandinga; Guiltless Shells, Annie Olson

Participating Middle Schools and Liaisons:
Bunker Middle School, Cityside Middle School, Creekside Middle School, Holland Christian North and South Middle Schools, Holland West Middle School, Lakeshore Middle School, St. Mary's Middle School, Steele Middle School, Vanderbilt Charter Academy, West Ottawa Middle School, and White Pines Middle School