CHARLEMONT — A student group at The Academy at Charlemont is holding a fundraiser to support an anti-racism training day next month.
“We’re under no illusions that tackling racism is a one-day, one-off sort of task,” said Nora Bates Zale, associate head of school. “This is one of many initiatives that I see the school taking on in the coming years. I think the hope here is that folks … take something away from the day that they hadn’t previously known, and understand racism in a new context.”
To fund the virtual training day in January, the Social Justice Council — a multi-grade student group at the school that addresses issues such as racism, sexism and other “-isms” — is holding a Dean’s Beans coffee fundraiser. Money raised will help compensate speakers and educators who lead the training.
Community members are encouraged to share the product list at bit.ly/3myUqTz with potential customers, use the order form at bit.ly/34nQGxO to document who is ordering what, and then return the order form along with the cash or checks to Office Manager Jen Mitchell by Jan. 8. Orders should be addressed to her at The Academy at Charlemont, 1359 Route 2, Charlemont, MA 01339.
Bates Zale said the school hopes to raise roughly $5,000 to cover the expenses. The Academy at Charlemont is working with educators and nonprofits throughout the region, including at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, to “pull in resources from all over the area.”
“This will be the first (training day)… exactly like this,” she said. “We did a similar sort of training back in 2017. It was a more broadly available youth conference to which we invited students from other schools.”
January’s training, she explained, will offer a more diverse selection of topics on the subject of anti-racism, including how racism is depicted through media sources and racism in the criminal justice system.
“Our students are pretty keyed in to what’s happening in the nation as a whole,” she said, acknowledging the May death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis, in particular. “And I think in general the Black Lives Matter movement has been inspiring to many of our students.”
Bates Zale, noting the school community is predominantly white, said it’s important for the students to understand their role in creating an anti-racism atmosphere.
“Like so many things, this is definitely an issue our students care very deeply about,” she said. “And we try to be a place where our students’ passions are heard … and that’s absolutely at the heart of this.”
Mary Byrne can be reached at mbyrne@recorder.com or 413-930-4429. Twitter: @MaryEByrne