Past Town Halls

RJ&E and our partners conducted three prior Town Hall Symposiums on race for Black, Brown and Asian High School Students in 2018, 2019, and February 2020.

Town Hall: Let’s Talk About Race - October 11, 2018

A total of 110 people participated in Central Oregon’s first ever Town Hall on race held at Central Oregon Community College’s Wille Hall. 

Local leaders of color facilitated small restorative justice circle groups. A local mental health therapist of color was available to provide additional support. In addition to small group discussions, students responded to a chalk talk exercise, viewed videos on race put together by students at Portland’s Grant and Redmond High Schools, and provided recommendations for the next steps they wanted to see from participating schools.

Town Hall: Let’s Talk About Race: Part 2 - April 19, 2019

A total of 121 individuals participated in the second Town Hall. Small restorative justice circles were used again to facilitate discussions around race and racism, with student groups of eight or nine at tables facilitated by local leaders of color. 

Two 40-minute discussions were held. The prompt for the first discussion was, “Describe the first time you noticed being treated differently because of your race or ethnicity.” And the second prompt was, “Discuss what changes are needed at your school to create a welcoming and inclusive environment that would respect your culture and racial or ethnic identity.”

One of the new segments offered students the chance to present all of the great things they have been doing through their schools’ multicultural clubs, based on what they learned at the first Town Hall. Furthermore, local COCC students hosted a panel where they could openly share their experiences with racism during high school and their transition to college.

What is the impact of the Town Halls?

The students who attended the past Town Halls have returned to their schools with the knowledge and confidence to continue the conversations and work around race. Students have conducted presentations and panels for teachers and administrators and have developed programs to inform other high school and middle school students about racism and anti-racism work.

For example, students of color who attended from Summit High School gave an hour and a half presentation to faculty at their school about their experiences with racism and changes needed to improve their school environment to make it a more welcoming and inclusive place. 

Students of color from La Pine High School invited other members of the Student Advisory Council from Bend, Summit, and Mountain View High Schools and conducted a similar event with their faculty. They showed the Redmond High student-generated video on racism, conducted small group table discussions with their teachers in which they described their personal experiences with racism, and ended with a large group restorative justice circle in which participants shared what they had gained from the experience.

RJ&E Town Halls in the News

Six students who were involved in the first Town Hall were interviewed in December of 2018 by local radio host Michael Funke for his KPOV radio program, “The Radical Songbook.”

Dr. Dalton Miller-Jones was interviewed by The Source in March of 2019 in an article titled, “Calls To Action On Race.”

Beth Hoover, Dr. Dalton Miller-Jones, and a number of students who attended the second Town Hall were interviewed in May of 2019 by Michael Funke for “The Radical Songbook.”