St. Louis has seen its fair share of race-based issues. Spurred by the events in Ferguson in 2014, many conversations about inequality in race, sexuality and religion have been brought to the surface. Gateway2Change, a seminar series put on by Character Plus Education, seeks to be the forum for students and administrators to have those discussions.

“I got to a point where I needed to be taking some action, because learning about social justice is no good if I’m not going to transfer it,” sophomore principal Jen Sebold said. “It felt like I needed a group of students who could work together to learn, and then we could use the information and experiences that they have to shape where we’re heading as a building.”

Counselors chose ten students from different backgrounds and experiences to attend the three meetings throughout the school year, the most recent being held over spring break. Among those was senior Bersabeh Mesfin.

“We had to work with other people, and while that was sometimes with people from West it also required working with new people who were raised in different environments,” Mesfin said. “I learned to work with new people and be open to new experiences and opinions.”

At these summits, students from all across the St. Louis area talked about issues facing society today, and heard speeches from motivational speaker Joe Beckman and Dr. Terrell Strayhorn, Strayhorn talked to students about what they could do to address their own biases.

“People who come to the summit are committed to change: changing society, changing your home life— and you don’t change by staying the same,” Strayhorn told students at the third summit. “You change by changing perspective, and by always trying to figure out what to do to prevent confusion and de-escalate the situation.”
Students also worked with a sister school, Belleville East. The two schools went to each other’s campus for a day and shadowed students to get an idea of what different diversity in schools looks like.

“The dynamic of Belleville was a lot more open and welcoming, and people were more friendly. I think that’s because of the diversity, there wasn’t as much tension in classrooms and it was a lot more comfortable and relaxed,” sophomore Allani Gordon said.

It is undecided whether or not students from West will be going back to the seminars next year. However, what they plan on doing with the information from Gateway2Change is clear.

“This is about empowering students and giving them a voice and valuing what it is they have to say,” Sebold said. “I think, because [students] think so differently from how people in my generation do, the change is going to come from you.”