LREI’s “Choosing to Participate” social justice project is the cornerstone of the eighth grade humanities curriculum, and this year, a new collaboration with designers who want to change the world—that is, masters students from the School of Visual Arts Design for Social Innovation (DSI) program—is adding innovation to the projects.

 

DSI faculty and students are working closely with LREI students on research methodology, design thinking and fieldwork strategies. Earlier in the school year, eighth graders formed groups around a social justice topic of interest and are studying the topic in-depth while meeting with individuals and organizations that are making a difference in the community. DSI students have helped LREI students discover the best research methods for their projects.

 

The masters students are social impact designers of all kinds, studying how design can function at a strategic level within business, government and the social sector to solve major challenges facing humanity and to create a positive impact. This fall, they led interactive workshops for the eighth graders aimed at helping the students understand how to gather information "in the field.” LREI students received a research methods "toolkit” with multimedia interviewing tips and talked about interviewer bias and developing deep research questions with DSI students.

 

As the eighth graders head out into the field and gather research, they blog about their findings and the interview process on the Social Justice Project Blog. Some field projects so far include, interviews with film director Dan Lohaus, juvenile incarceration photographer Steve Liss, and Martha Brooks, executive creative director of L’Oréal Paris. Eighth graders also welcomed to campus Ashley Coneys, project organizer at the Police Reform Organizing Project, attended LREI’s Speaker Series on mass incarceration, and interviewed LREI high school students committed to social justice causes. 

 

While many of the students’ blog entries are focused on fact gathering, some are more observational. A group studying veterans’ issues visited the New York VA Hospital and commented, “We were surprised by how many people were there for help. We also noticed it seemed dark and sad.” Read more entries on the Social Justice Project Blog and follow the students on Twitter @SJProjectLREI.

 

All of the research leads up to LREI’s annual Social Justice Teach-In on March 4, during which the eighth graders plan and run a set of workshops and assemblies for the rest of the middle school around their topics. “Through the research and teaching process, the students come to better understand the rewards and challenges of active citizenship and the need for all individuals to choose to participate,” said Middle School Principal Mark Silberberg.

 

The collaboration with DSI also gives middle school students a unique opportunity to witness graduate-level work. To prepare for their workshops, they visited SVA and provided feedback on workshops piloted by the DSI masters students for their own course projects, which addressed topics like water management, gun control and educational equity.

 

“It is our hope that the relationship with DSI provides an additional opportunity for our students to gain insight into how they can choose to make the commitment to social justice, activism and innovation a part of their life's work,” Mark said.

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The eighth grade students' social justice project topics include:
A Brighter Future: Children in Gangs
Child Abuse Prevention
Fighters 4 Fighters: Veteran Issues
How Young is Too Young: Juvenile Incarceration
No Water, No Life
Sex Trafficking 
Stop Rape. Educate.
Teens Against Racial Profiling
Women and Children in Poverty
Women in the Media: Pretty in Pink
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