Photo courtesy of Dean of Equity and Inclusion Dr. Rachel Myers
By Francesca Howard ’26 and Leanne La ’26
Choate students explored their identities and connected with students from other schools at various conferences across New England throughout April. At these conferences, they learned and discussed different social issues, such as diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI); LGBTQIA+ concerns; and aspects of the Asian American experience.
CAIS Student Diversity Leadership Conference:
On April 7, Choate students traveled to the Hopkins School in New Haven for the annual Student Diversity Leadership Conference, organized by the Connecticut Association of Independent Schools (CAIS). At the conference, student leaders from grades 7-12 as well as faculty and administrators from Connecticut independent schools discussed ways to improve DEI, facilitated conversations about social justice, and strengthened the network of diversity advocates across Connecticut. This year’s theme, “Reigniting Your Fire For Justice,” inspired a full day of workshops and discussions.
The symposium included interactive educational sessions such as “Language & Words Matter,” which focused on the impact of language in shaping attitudes and behaviors, and “Moving from Allyship to Co-conspirators,” which highlighted the dangers of performative activism and pushed participants to involve themselves in justice initiatives.
Blake Steremberg ’26 returned to the conference for their second year to bounce ideas off their peers and “learn about the differences and things that have worked at their schools and things that haven’t.” They particularly appreciated the 10th-grade workshop — “Who Am I & Social Identifiers” — which explored how people define identity and its intersectionality with different aspects of themselves. “Everyone’s identity is multifaceted,” they explained.
The conference also featured similar sessions for educators. One session, titled “Silence and Inaction Equals Oppression,” was aimed at educators who identify as white and provided a framework for moving beyond mere awareness into action. During the session, renowned Black author and nominee of TIME magazine’s 100 Most Influential People, Ibram X. Kendi, discussed white privilege and microaggressions, aiming to equip educators with actionable strategies to foster inclusive communities within their respective institutions.
The conference allowed Choate students to scrutinize what it means to be a leader and how to effectively integrate DEI into curriculum and communities. It inspired students to carry these discussions forward into their own communities and incentivized them to initiate change and promote a culture that embraces DEI. Steremberg advised future attendees to make the most of the conference: “Stay curious and ask as many questions as you have,” they said.
Asian American Footsteps Conference (AAFC):
On April 14, Choate students attended AAFC at Governor’s Academy, joining more than 300 Asian-identifying students from various independent schools in the New England region. Originally established in 2011 by Aya Murata, a college counselor and advisor to Asian students at Phillips Academy Andover, AAFC hopes to create a space for Asian-identifying students to embrace and learn about the cultures they come from, in addition to affirming and challenging their understanding of the Asian experience. The overarching theme for this year, “Creating Our Narrative,” focused on empowering attendees and creating an Asian community across the independent school network.
Kaylin Lam ’27 signed up to connect with others who shared aspects of her identity by participating in various student-led, interlocutory workshops. One notable workshop she took part in was “China’s Path to Democracy,” in which students discussed the history of authoritarianism in East Asian countries. In a different session, she learned about the history of H Mart, the largest Asian supermarket chain in the U.S. Lam found the student-led nature of these workshops particularly engaging. “They’re all student-led, so it’s really interesting to see what they could come up with,” she said.
This year’s keynote speaker was author, musician, and self-proclaimed troublemaker Simon Tam. Mr. Tam is the founder and bassist of The Slants, an Asian American dance rock and anti-racist band that won Matal v. Tam, a landmark U.S. Supreme Court case in 2017 that helped extend civil liberties to minority communities. His work has been highlighted in more than 3,000 media platforms across over 150 countries, including Rolling Stone, the British Broadcasting Corporation and The New York Times. He has spoken at thousands of events across four continents and holds a world record for TEDx Choate students explored their identities and connected with students from other schools at various conferences across New England throughout April. At these conferences, they learned and discussed different social issues, such as diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI); LGBTQIA+ concerns; and aspects of the Asian American experience.
CAIS Student Diversity Leadership Conference:
On April 7, Choate students traveled to the Hopkins School in New Haven for the annual Student Diversity Leadership Conference, organized by the Connecticut Association of Independent Schools (CAIS). At the conference, student leaders from grades 7-12 as well as faculty and administrators from Connecticut independent schools discussed ways to improve DEI, facilitated conversations about social justice, and strengthened the network of diversity advocates across Connecticut. This year’s theme, “Reigniting Your Fire For Justice,” inspired a full day of workshops and discussions.
The symposium included interactive educational sessions such as “Language & Words Matter,” which focused on the impact of language in shaping attitudes and behaviors, and “Moving from Allyship to Co-conspirators,” which highlighted the dangers of performative activism and pushed participants to involve themselves in justice initiatives.
Blake Steremberg ’26 returned to the conference for their second year to bounce ideas off their peers and “learn about the differences and things that have worked at their schools and things that haven’t.” They particularly appreciated the 10th-grade workshop — “Who Am I & Social Identifiers” — which explored how people define identity and its intersectionality with different aspects of themselves. “Everyone’s identity is multifaceted,” they explained.
The conference also featured similar sessions for educators. One session, titled “Silence and Inaction Equals Oppression,” was aimed at educators who identify as white and provided a framework for moving beyond mere awareness into action. During the session, renowned Black author and nominee of TIME magazine’s 100 Most Influential People, Ibram X. Kendi, discussed white privilege and microaggressions, aiming to equip educators with actionable strategies to foster inclusive communities within their respective institutions.
The conference allowed Choate students to scrutinize what it means to be a leader and how to effectively integrate DEI into curriculum and communities. It inspired students to carry these discussions forward into their own communities and incentivized them to initiate change and promote a culture that embraces DEI. Steremberg advised future attendees to make the most of the conference: “Stay curious and ask as many questions as you have,” they said.
Asian American Footsteps Conference (AAFC):
On April 14, Choate students attended AAFC at Governor’s Academy, joining more than 300 Asian-identifying students from various independent schools in the New England region. Originally established in 2011 by Aya Murata, a college counselor and advisor to Asian students at Phillips Academy Andover, AAFC hopes to create a space for Asian-identifying students to embrace and learn about the cultures they come from, in addition to affirming and challenging their understanding of the Asian experience. The overarching theme for this year, “Creating Our Narrative,” focused on empowering attendees and creating an Asian community across the independent school network.
Kaylin Lam ’27 signed up to connect with others who shared aspects of her identity by participating in various student-led, interlocutory workshops. One notable workshop she took part in was “China’s Path to Democracy,” in which students discussed the history of authoritarianism in East Asian countries. In a different session, she learned about the history of H Mart, the largest Asian supermarket chain in the U.S. Lam found the student-led nature of these workshops particularly engaging. “They’re all student-led, so it’s really interesting to see what they could come up with,” she said.
This year’s keynote speaker was author, musician, and self-proclaimed troublemaker Simon Tam. Mr. Tam is the founder and bassist of The Slants, an Asian American dance rock and anti-racist band that won Matal v. Tam, a landmark U.S. Supreme Court case in 2017 that helped extend civil liberties to minority communities. His work has been highlighted in more than 3,000 media platforms across over 150 countries, including Rolling Stone, the British Broadcasting Corporation and The New York Times. He has spoken at thousands of events across four continents and holds a world record for TEDx stage appearances. In his speech, Mr. Tam emphasized the importance of artistic activism and the potency of enacting social change through creative mediums.
Lam’s favorite event of the day was listening to Mr. Tam’s speech. She appreciated how his work sought to control the narrative around stereotypes, specifically about eye slants. Lam resonated with his message and said, “Obviously, there is a lot of systemic oppression in the law and the government, [and] there always needs to be a change. There needs to be pride in the community of any identity to be dignified and proud of themselves.”
Lam also advised future participants to “try to get to know as many people as you can. Everyone is pretty open to learning more about each other, and you always get to know people or learn about things that you wouldn’t have if you had stayed at Choate,” she said.
Spectrum Interschool Gender and Sexuality Alliance Conference:
On April 14, Choate hosted the 15th Annual Interschool Gender and Sexuality Alliance Conference in the Ruutz-Rees Commons with students and faculty advisers from 15 schools across New England. This year’s event, led by Spectrum, Choate’s gender and sexuality advocacy club, was themed “Stepping into Frame: Queer Representation in Media.” The conference aimed to provide a safe space for attendees and delve into the ways queer characters are portrayed in TV, film, media, and more.
The conference commenced with various opening activities, where participants were given time to socialize with students and faculty advisors from other schools. Humanities teacher Mr. Timothy Yun proposed a few icebreakers for students to get to know one another, such as sharing their “favorite queer icons” and “fun facts no one knows about you.”
The first keynote speaker was award-winning playwright, performer, and authoer Gina Femia, whose work has been featured at the Goodman Theater, MCC Theater, Playwrights Horizons, Ensemble Studio Theatre, Page 73, and New Georges, among others. They shared their experience in facing adversity as an artist aspiring to craft authentic queer stories in an industry where commercial value takes precedence over the merit of the work itself. Actor, director, and educator Brett Radke then spoke as the second keynote speaker about his career and perspective on queer representation in media.
Femia and Radke’s presentations broke down prominent queer tropes in the media and allowed students to join the conversation. Questions that were addressed included: “Does the queer character always have to die?”; “What in queer media sells versus what doesn’t?”; and “Why do queer stories depicting two men fare better than two women?”
Later in the day, student leaders of Spectrum hosted their respective workshops in locations across campus. Spectrum President Candace Beverly ’25 led the workshop “And That’s What You Missed,” exploring queer representation in 2010s TV shows such as “Glee,” “Orange is the New Black,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” and “BoJack Horseman.” Other workshops included “An In-Queer-y into Musicians’ Lives and Lyrics” by Leanne Parks ’25 and Alexandros Antonopoulos ’26, “Lesbians in Media” by Nia Watts ’25, and “Queering Art: Arts & Crafts” by Blake Steremberg ’26.
Beverly appreciated the sense of community and belonging at this year’s conference, and Parks described the conference as an “empowering and almost emotional experience.” Parks shared that she had “never been a part of a community that is so supportive of this side of [her] identity,” and that the conference provided a safe space to explore her queerness.
For future Spectrum events, Beverly encourages all to “show up, learn, and have fun, regardless of if you identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community or an ally!”
These conferences were eye-opening for Choate students. They learned from the experiences of others, networked with peer schools, and discussed ways to advocate for marginalized groups within the Choate community and beyond.
