With an ever increasingly diverse student body, schools have taken on the challenge of making sure every student voice is heard, and that all student cultures have been given an equal opportunity to be represented.
This mindset, of placing inclusivity front and center, has been manifested by Caverna Schools in its rhetoric, and in the tireless efforts of staff and educators at the school, with students spotlighting Middle School Principal Twana Hayes and teachers, Jessi Hampton and Terry Thorpe, as just a few examples. This celebration of diversity, and the benefits thereof have been marked in student achievements.
Hampton, who mentors gifted and talented students for Caverna, supports her students in many ways, with the most recent example being the opportunity to submit a piece of art or an essay to the Martin Luthur King Jr. State Commision’s Contest, which Hampton explains further.
Desiree Maxey, now a freshman at Caverna High School, who placed third in poetry at the statewide MLK Jr. Contest attested that through Hayes’ focus on diversity, she was inspired to submit her work last year.
Poignantly, Maxey’s poem is headlined by a quote from King, “I know that love is ultimately the only answer to mankind’s problems.”
In an organic “stream of conciseness” manner of writing Maxey transcribed her feelings into a poem, which placed her amongst the very brightest and most creative students of Kentucky. WCLU was lucky enough to hear from the poet herself.
This inspiration prevailed at this year’s contest as well, where Caverna students Addison Gower and Sophia Felty, placed 2nd in the contest after submitting a poem they had jointly worked on. Gower and Felty agreed that, while working with another writer can be difficult, the time and friendship that they shared allowed them to bolster one another’s weaknesses and help their shared vision take form, as Felty explains.
The duo, within their poem, evoked King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech, with Felty commenting on how the earnestness of King’s delivery, galvanized the team to create a work, reinforcing the peaceful and egalitarian message of the late activist.
The doublet dictated their composition.
The students were not the only ones to recognize how the school’s focus on diversity has improved the classroom, as Caverna Language Arts Teacher Terry Thorpe, explains how proud she is to work with a curriculum that celebrates the differences between students.
The accomplishments of these Caverna students and their teachers should not be understated, nor should any school teaching love and acceptance to our next generation of leaders.
To quote King once more:
“Make a career of humanity. Commit yourself to the noble struggle for equal rights. You will make a better person of yourself, a greater nation of your country, and a finer world to live in.”
