Your World. Your Stories. Everyday.

METEA MEDIA

Your World. Your Stories. Everyday.

METEA MEDIA

Your World. Your Stories. Everyday.

METEA MEDIA

Student and police forum serves as community initiative

Photo+by+Ethan+Meyers.
Photo by Ethan Meyers.

Metea Valley took part in an empowering discussion Thursday night along with seven other local high schools and the Aurora Police Department. The community came together in Meyer Ballroom in Downtown Aurora for a forum and by the end of the night everybody departed their own ways with a universal purpose and responsibility.

Students and police seized the fortuity of discussing initiatives to building relationships and a better environment throughout their community and schools. The discussion involved stories that came laced with lessons and perspectives. Mustangs were excited to go back and spread the word of kindness and respect towards different races, genders, backgrounds, religions, and sexual orientations with themselves and staff. From this idea, Metea Valley already implemented respect around the school with examples like the thirty day integrity challenge.

“What a police officer wants in this world is respect, and if we could do that and demonstrate that in the hallways, in the classrooms, [and] in the cafeteria, we wouldn’t have any problems,” Principal Darrell Echols said.

Metea Valley School Resource Officer Dustin Coppes elaborated on Echols’ words. “Relationship building and communication comes to play again, so you treat people the way you want to be treated, and hopefully it comes back to you,” Coppes said.

The forum began with an introduction given by Mayor Tom Weisner, as he welcomed the incoming crowd of students. As things settled down, he passed the mic to Dr. Brandon Kooi, associate professor of criminal justice at Aurora University, who set the stage with a general overview of national state affairs, and APD Chief Kristen Ziman expounded on community and relationships with an analysis of the department.

Dr. Brandon Kooi moderated conversation of violence by and against police. He then asked the students to consider movements like Black Lives Matter and why they thought minorities are chosen for prejudice. Students didn’t hesitate to participate once the large and small group discussions were conducted.

As the forum came to an end, everybody came to a consensus and reached a mission. They stressed that there should be a need for understanding various cultures and an effort to reach out to different peoples despite who they are. Students, police officers, and others suggested that people should look at both sides of the story by seeing the bigger picture instead of being so quick to judge.

“All different schools were there; they were there to state their mind, and they were there without judgement, so people are going to take what they’ve learned back to other schools. As a result, a chain reaction begins,” Metea Valley senior Demetrius Steele said.

The night consisted of an unpredictable and underlying tone that took some by surprise. Oswego East High School Principal Scott Savage expressed the importance of this event and our role in the community by telling police officers, students, and among others that he wished “the world was watching this forum. We are going to be ok, this world is going to be ok because of you all,” Principal Savage said.

“This has been a powerful experience, and I hope we do it again,” East Aurora’s interim principal Marina Kosak said.

View Comments (1)
About the Contributor
Zyma Lakhani, Profiles Editor and News Reporter
Zyma is a senior at Metea Valley High School and is a creative, thoughtful writer who enjoys a good nap or two here and there. She is a profiles editor and a news writer, and it is her second year on staff. Besides napping and eating, you’ll find Zyma occasionally jamming out to some rap or contemporary R&B music. She is also loves painting and highly recommends checking out some of her paintings in the art display case.

Comments (1)

Thank you for adding your voice to the conversation. Please note that all comments are moderated. Metea Media will not publish comments if they contain the following:

▸ Rude or obscene language (i.e. swear words, sexual jokes, violent threats, etc.)
▸ Hate speech (i.e. racism, sexism, homophobia, etc.)
▸ Insults towards a specific student or a teacher
▸ Content that is irrelevant to the article or does not add to the discussion
▸ Submitting comments under somebody else's name

Refer to the student handbook for further specifics on what is considered appropriate.

The Social Media Editor will read and evaluate all comments. Should there be any issues with a particular comment, the Social Media Editor will consult the newspaper adviser and Online Editor-in-Chief.
All METEA MEDIA Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

  • F

    fanSep 21, 2016 at 12:03 pm

    good.

    Reply
Activate Search
Student and police forum serves as community initiative