Anti-discrimination Club, Issues to Action, Women of the World, Students Against Destructive Decisions, PRISM (Pride, Raising Awareness, Involvement, Support and Mentoring Alliance), DanversCares Student Leaders, HRIC Student Representatives, and DHS Community Block Leaders
Issues to Actions is a student-led club which serves to raise awareness on a variety of issues within DHS. They seek to create an environment that promotes acceptance, education, and inclusion. Throughout the year, they have communicated with the administration in order to address many issues while also offering a student perspective. The club’s biggest impact on the school community this year was creating and implementing the anonymous reporting form, which serves as a safe way for students to make faculty aware of incidents of biased misconduct that occurs within the school or community without the fear of being a target of harassment. NEED MORE ON FORM AND WHAT YOU ARE DOING WITH THEM WHEN SUBMITTED. THIS CAN BE AS A NOTE.
The DanversCARES Youth Leaders participated in a myriad of activities to strengthen and fortify the culture and climate at Danvers High School this year. From the feedback we received after our youth forum with Beverly Hospital in the fall, we were able to help identify the priority health and social needs within the DHS community, including various economic and environmental factors that impact the ability to achieve optimal health and equity. From there we were able to guide our priorities and plan our events to ensure students a more positive and healthy high school experience. Our Youth Leaders attended and helped out at the Downtown Holiday Tree Lighting; they wrote compelling and timely articles for the Teen Health and Safety Guide; and they ran a successful Prom Dress Drive to raise money for those less fortunate. Perhaps the greatest accomplishment of the DanversCARES Youth Leaders this year was their role in planning and volunteering at the Healing and Unity Event (HUE) in the Spring. Sponsored by a grant from Boston Bridges, this culminating activity celebrated the many cultures that make up our town, was an integral step in mending our community and proving how we are so much better when we work together for the common good.
This year, Women of the World hosted its 7th annual Holiday Drive for Rosie’s Place, the Boston-based women’s shelter, during the month of December. In January, member Jewo Jetta took part in a video production reflecting the values of MLK for the town’s annual MLK Day Celebration (hosted by Danvers’ Human Rights Inclusion Committee/HRIC). During March (Women’s History Month), members of the club served as moderators for the HRIC’s Women’s History Month Speaker Series, spotlighting local female leaders, and filmed by DCAT. In addition, throughout Women’s History Month, students presented a daily “female leader” over the morning announcements, which corresponded with the slides that were posted in the Danvers High atrium. In June, WoW took an educational and political stance concerning Roe v. Wade by posting informative highlights from the news, as well as pro-choice slogans that reflected the stance of club members, on the WoW bulletin board in Danvers High.
The Students Against Destructive Decisions Club is committed to encouraging young people to become leaders in their community through positive and healthy decisions in their everyday lives. SADD helps empower DHS students to face challenges head on through kindness, courageousness, communication, and positivity. Our ultimate goal is to create a healthier and safer world through our positive actions in the school and community. We organize events like food drives, blood drives, A Day of Kindness, prevention programs, and the #WHYYOUMATTER project in order to encourage leadership, acceptance, resilience, and respect.
Community Block at Danvers High School is a multi-purpose time during the day for students to complete and manage school work, engage in social emotional activities, and participate in whole school and grade level events that build school spirit and culture. Goals of the programming include student leadership, meaningful relationship building, citizenship, and inclusion, acceptance and understanding. The Leadership and Community course at DHS helps prepare student leaders to facilitate this work and provides opportunity for growth and awareness around school issues and current events. Community Block is an evolving aspect of the DHS schedule and will continue to be a place for innovative learning for students of all levels and backgrounds.
Students in PRISM this year planned and coordinated the first annual Trans Day of Visibility at Danvers Town Hall. There was an excellent turn out from local residents, families, and members of the LGBTQ+ community. In March, they also coordinated a full-school walk out at DHS in order to protest hateful anti-LGBTQ+ legislation passing into law around the United States. Additionally, these students collaborated with the Director of Equity and Inclusion, Jasmine Ramón, to participate in Danvers’ HUE Event, working with the Danvers community on an identity fluency craft. Students of PRISM are excited to continue their work uplifting the LGBTQ+ community and educating others about allyship. DHS has established affinity groups for its student body. Specifically DHS has a group for students of color that meets one per 7 day cycle and a second group for native Portuguese speakers that also meets once per 7 day cycle. These groups are facilitated by DHS faculty members.