photos courtesy of the Kean University Leadership Conference

SPF’s Diversity Council took a field trip to the annual Kean University Diversity Leadership Conference in late May. Students involved in the trip would congregate with other students all over the state and discuss solutions on how they could combat discrimination and prejudice in their communities.
An approximate 300 students attended the event to learn about how to become upstanders in their community.  
“It is more than a club,” said junior Ben Mazza. “It’s an outlet for the community as well as large-scale change in diversity.” The diversity club consists of juniors and is headed by both Daniela Davidzon and Elyse Freudenfels as advisors.
“It’s a great way to get involved with other schools and see what they are doing and get to take what they’re doing to our school and put a spin on it,” said Caroline Drubulis when asked about what she thinks about the council.
Other schools have discussed what projects they have done in order to combat the social issues regarding their community, but the students at the Scotch Plains-Fanwood Diversity Council’s project fell short. “Our project was this multicultural thing, where we had tables set up and the [students would bring] food from different cultures,” said Drubulis. “I wished our project worked out better but there is always room for improvement for us.”
But that has not swayed the eagerness the council members have for their senior year. “I feel like we learned more this year than last year, ” said Hunter Marshall. Marshall has been in the council since his sophomore year. “I feel like we could make an impact on the community more with this program.”