Walker’s Students Honor Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

On Wednesday, January 18, 2023, students at The Ethel Walker School commemorated the life and the legacy of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with a series of presentations, workshops, and activities. The students split into four groups by grade level and began the day with presentations from The Affinity and Beyond Collective, a student group of Affinity Group Leaders, on King’s life, work, and time spent in Simsbury. These presentations were generated under the guidance of their class deans and Assistant Head for Student Life/Director of Social Justice and Inclusion Elisa Del Valle. The middle school group then focused on the topic of microaggressions and how to use their voices in their own experiences and as bystanders in the experiences of others. The upper school group focused on the powerful Children’s March of Birmingham, Alabama, which reflects on the significant role young people have in shaping the world. As a final activity, students built a “web of commitment” symbolizing the importance of interconnectedness and community support in the fight for social justice.