By Lisa Carolin
Students interested in relevant and meaningful conversation are invited to be part of Chelsea High School’s Diversity Club, which was the idea of CHS students.
Recent topics include depression and mental health issues that result from stress and cause stress.
The club meets every Monday after school with the mission to facilitate personal exploration of various values and viewpoints, especially those that are underrepresented at the school. The idea is to expose students to a multitude of cultures. The club is committed to bringing people of diverse backgrounds and perspectives to Chelsea with the goal to lift up the voices of marginalized students.
CHS Teachers Adam Schilt and Karen Kurcz lead the Diversity Club.
“I went with a group of students to Diversity Day at the Neutral Zone in Ann Arbor,” said Schilt. “While there, Chelsea students interacted with other schools in Washtenaw County on issues of diversity, equity, and inclusiveness. After this experience, our students were inspired to get more involved with these issues at our school.”
Student leaders include Madison Brodeur, Fayth Frazier, Ben Zivsak, Evan Kucera, Ronnie Buford, Max Gervais, and Nate Banotal. They meet every week to choose topics for Diversity Club meetings as well as putting together activities and events for schoolwide diversity efforts, which Schilt and Kurcz hope to implement soon.
“At Chelsea, we are lucky to have a student body representative of many perspectives,” said Schilt. “We are also lucky to be part of a tight-knit, supportive community. We hope that Diversity Club will offer a space where these perspectives and ideas can be shared in a safe and encouraging environment. We also hope that Diversity Club will be a place where students who feel that their identities are pushed to the margins because they are not part of the ‘mainstream’ will feel welcome to share and have their voices heard.”
Schilt and Kurcz work to accomplish these goals using open discussions at the meetings and school-wide events through the year.
The Diversity Club welcomes students to join the conversation Mondays from 3-4 p.m. in Schilt’s room, 230.
