ALL IN! MONDAY

ALL IN officially begins today. Over the next several days, student groups across metro Detroit will be surveying their peers to find out who feels "in" and who doesn't at their school, hosting dialogue sessions with other students and reporting what they find to school administration. To kick-off these activities, each day this week our blog will feature a new topic for discussion, reflection and action. Whether or not you are part of an ALL IN! student group, we encourage you to visit this blog each day for ways that you can make a difference on your own or with others!

DAY 1: REFLECTION
Before we can move forward to build more inclusive schools and communities, we first need to look back and find inspiration from the leaders who came before us, and the barriers that they fought to overcome. Today America celebrates the life and legacy of civil rights icon Martin Luther King, Jr. King focused the nation's eyes on civil rights by working tirelessly to end oppression through nonviolent means, becoming the youngest person to receive the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964.



Reflection Questions:
1. In his most famous speech, King described his dream for America. What is your dream for your community? What needs to happen to make your school, neighborhood and city closer to that dream?

Individual Activity:
Martin Luther King may be the best known figure of the American Civil Rights movement, but he understood the importance of community, and he did not do his work alone. King made important community connections. He worked with the American Friends Service Committee to travel to India and study Ghandi's principles of nonviolent resistance. He was counseled by civil rights leaders like Bayard Rustin, an activist who fought for racial equality as well as lgbt equality. He lead the Montgomery Bus Boycott after Claudette Colvin and later (more famously) Rosa Parks refused to give up seats to white bus passengers.

Investigate the contributions made by one of the people or groups that worked with or inspired Martin Luther King. Some links to get you started:
http://rustin.org/
http://www.rosa-parks-biography.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coretta_Scott_King

Who inspires you? What connections do you need to make in order to carry on Martin Luther King's legacy in your community?

For more information on participating in ALL IN! in your school, visit www.miroundtable.org

ALL IN! School Profile - Groves High School

Advisor : Shelia Brice

Mission Statement : To Celebrate diversity, tear down barriers, and rise by lifting others.

Points of Pride :

Wylie E. Groves High School, home of the Falcons, takes great pride in our high expectations for achievement, our diversity, our acceptantance of differering perspectives and our students ability to expand their point of view. Visit “our house” at www.grovestoday for more information.
Fred Procter , Principal


Annual Multicutural Retreat brings 15 teens and 10 staff together to spend a weekend together off campus getting to know one another.
The Multicultural Retreat is a highlight of our activity calendar each year. It is a great achievement of past and current faculty and students that has a 17 year tradition that continues to promote awareness and communication skills. 
 -Paul Van Ermen


Experiential Learning Center

 Our annual Dr. Martin Luther King Assembly is a decades tradition that features a video “the Faces of Groves” and options for Community Service projects. This year Mosaic Youth Theater’s “Speak for Yourself” will perform at our assemblies. One of our seniors, Alicia Thomas, is in the cast. There will be a “Talk Back” section so students can ask questions of the cast. -Sheila Brice,Community Service Organizer




French, Japanese and Spanish Clubs encourage global competency through competition and trips


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Amnesty International promotes awareness and action for causes like AIDS empidemic in Africa.


Our GSA created a Chain of Remembrance that hangs in the Commons with staff and student signatures to show that bullying and harassment will not be tolerated .




Last year our Diversity Committee conducted a letter writing campaign on behalf of the Jena Six.


Health classes hear annually from MINDS, Mental Illness Needs Discussion Sessions.

ALL IN! School Profile - Howell High School

Howell High School Diversity Club

Advisors: Suzanne Hosner and Mary Jane Shafto

Vision Statement: Working together to create an environment where our diversity is valued and our differences respected.

ALL IN! Week Plans:
- Set up a Diversity Showcase
- Daily announcements -- quotations or messages of acceptance
- MRDI Survey in English Classes
- Afterschool movie with group discussion
- Handing out "You're IN" messages with a small piece of candy at lunchtime
- "Mix It Up" Days at both campuses in the weeks following ALL IN!

Other activities:
- Fundraising to bring in assembly speaker on diversity
- Encouraging membership at Annual School Club Fair
- Attended Michigan Roundtable Youth Summit
- Post Card campaign: LGBTQ Postcard project to remind President elect Obama of the concerns about marriage equality.

ALL IN! Tip #1 - Create a Buzz

So you have registered your school and downloaded your ALL IN! Student Guide and are gearing up for your schools ALL IN! week. Now what?

It's time to get people excited! Start creating some buzz for your event. Here is one way that I have found to work really well.

Tip: Create buzz through advertising with a lack of details.

Have folks asking questions- wanting MORE! Create flyers that are simple, eye catching, and vague. Put them EVERYWHERE!
-Stick them to Lockers
-Post them on walls
-Have an "ambush" style hand out at lunch. Give a group of people a stack of flyers and just bombard all the tables!
-Have it printed in the student newspaper
-Have the folks that do your announcements just start saying, "Are you in?" or "I'm in, are you?" at the beginning or end of announcements everyday.
-Create a video of students saying "I'm in" and end with "are you?" , then play it on the announcements.

Two weeks before your event, start posting flyers with more details. Check back for a poster you can download and customize for your schools event next week!

Here are some examples of ALL IN! "buzz fliers". Click on the flyer to see the full size image. Feel free to save them and use them in your school.

*Make sure you check with your advisor before you start advertising!

ALL IN! School Profile - Denby

Denby PRIDE Club

Denby PRIDE held their first planning meeting on December 11th, 2008 to kick off their ALL IN! Plans!

ALL IN! Goal: The club is planning to host a large event in January where students will take part in dialogue and activities. They will be designed to help them explore issues of diversity and respect, and build a safe, more inclusive school

Advisors: Ms. Manningham and Ms. Lovett


Get an ALL IN! Profile for your school! Visit www.miroundtable.org and download the registration form.

ALL IN! School Profile - DIA

Detroit International Academy

In December, students in Ms. Ayala's class completed a unit on leadership and community that culminated in a trip to the Henry Ford Museum to study the actions of American Civil Rights leaders.


ALL IN! Goal: These student leaders plan to develop a project that will help promote respect, leadership and cultural awareness in their school.

Advisor: Ms. Ayala

Get an ALL IN! Profile for your school! Visit www.miroundtable.org and download the registration form.

1 Month til ALL IN!

Only 1 month until ALL IN! Watch this blog for weekly updates, ideas and profiles of student groups who are participating! Ready to plan an ALL IN week at your school or in your community? Visit http://www.miroundtable.org/ to download your ALL IN! guide.