Finding engaging summer camp offerings for teenagers is not an easy task. My daughter, an incoming freshman, is interested in more the usual sports camp because she is more interested in music and art.
And so we are grateful for the genius of social media, which is how we learned that Saturday Academy is offering a "Social Justice" camp for high school-age youth. We learned about the class from a FaceBook post by writer, community leader and social justice advocate S. Renee Mitchell, who led the week-long camp, held at the University of Portland, July 16-20.
The camp focused on the intersections of race and class in examining environmental justice and access to resources and opportunities. The students also explored popular world views on gender roles and sexual identity, and discussed issues related to each. Social justice may seem like a very serious topic to tackle in a summer camp, but Renee Mitchell excelled at facilitating discussions that were meaningful, engaging, thought-provoking, and more importantly, a great deal of fun.
Thank you, Renee, for creating an exceptional curriculum for young people to learn about social issues and understand privilege.
It's quite fitting that the camp's "artivism" piece of performance art incorporated spoken word, photography, and music. Renee has a solid background in the performing arts. Her latest play, "Sacrificing Justice," will be featured in the annual JAW Playwright Festival at Portland Center Stage. The play, done with professional actors, will be part of a collection of other short plays on Saturday, July 28 at 2:30 p.m. the Ellyn Bye Studio Theater, in the Armory building, 128 NW Eleventh Ave. The readings are free, and everyone is welcome to attend. Come out and show your support for Renee and Portland's playwrights and stage actors.
And so we are grateful for the genius of social media, which is how we learned that Saturday Academy is offering a "Social Justice" camp for high school-age youth. We learned about the class from a FaceBook post by writer, community leader and social justice advocate S. Renee Mitchell, who led the week-long camp, held at the University of Portland, July 16-20.
The camp focused on the intersections of race and class in examining environmental justice and access to resources and opportunities. The students also explored popular world views on gender roles and sexual identity, and discussed issues related to each. Social justice may seem like a very serious topic to tackle in a summer camp, but Renee Mitchell excelled at facilitating discussions that were meaningful, engaging, thought-provoking, and more importantly, a great deal of fun.
It's quite fitting that the camp's "artivism" piece of performance art incorporated spoken word, photography, and music. Renee has a solid background in the performing arts. Her latest play, "Sacrificing Justice," will be featured in the annual JAW Playwright Festival at Portland Center Stage. The play, done with professional actors, will be part of a collection of other short plays on Saturday, July 28 at 2:30 p.m. the Ellyn Bye Studio Theater, in the Armory building, 128 NW Eleventh Ave. The readings are free, and everyone is welcome to attend. Come out and show your support for Renee and Portland's playwrights and stage actors.