RAHWAY, NJ — On learning that it had received a prestigious Engage NJ grant in support of service day events in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Kean University’s Human Rights Institute reached out to Rahway High School, announcing that it had selected Rahway as one of its recipient schools.
The Engage NJ award is a “three-year $750,000 grant with the purpose of honoring the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.”
Institutions of higher learning that receive the grant are tasked with choosing schools that support underserved and marginalized individuals and communities to participate in service activities on or around Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
In selecting RHS, Kean organized an MLK Day Civics Day Presentation right in the high school auditorium on Tuesday, Jan. 21, the day following the nationally observed holiday.
RHS English as a Second Language teacher Susana Monteiro remarked that the high school was chosen for the notable honor by Kean, because “I’m the advisor for the Multi-Ethnic Cultural Club and the students attend events at the university.”
In addition to inviting her MECC students, Monteiro also asked a number of RHS freshmen and several of her ESL students.
The day’s opening presentation provided biographical information about King and Anne Frank, followed by a discussion about the differences between the terms equity and equality, along with a brief student activity designed to reinforce the distinctions between the two concepts.
Students then split up into two groups, both discussing methods and strategies to support one’s community and brainstorming possible questions the students would like to ask about leadership and the qualities that good leaders possess.
The Rahway students completed the activity by writing their reflections on soccer balls, which Monteiro kept.
All participants also received a book that included King’s famous 1963 “I Have a Dream” speech.
The day was, by all accounts, an inspiring one, filled with service, education and community.
Article by Rahway Public Schools
Photos Courtesy of David Brighouse
