Nazareth Academy Students Mix It Up at Lunch

Submitted by Nazareth Academy.

On October 27, 2105, Nazareth Academy freshmen joined more than one million students across the country to help break down social and racial barriers by participating in the 13th annual Mix It Up at Lunch Day.

The event, launched by the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Teaching Tolerance project in 2002, encourages students to sit with someone new in the cafeteria for just one day. Nazareth’s participation was spearheaded by the school’s Diversity Club, which chose to structure the day around the slogan, “Lose the Labels.” Students were each given a card with a balloon description and assigned to sit at the table with the corresponding balloon.

“At the heart of our Nazareth and Congregation of St. Joseph mission of unity, is the basic concept of respect -- respect for ourselves, one another and all of creation,” explains Principal Deborah Tracy. “Mix It Up is a hands-on exercise to further deepen our students’ awareness and appreciation of the unique gifts, talents, cultures and experiences of themselves and others. It is our hope that young people are able to recognize and celebrate all of these positive contributions to our school, local community and ultimately to our world.”

Administration, faculty, staff and students worked together to plan small group discussions and activities which encouraged Nazareth’s newest students to question their assumptions about others and to open themselves up to meeting new people.

“When thinking about bringing this activity to Nazareth, the members of our Diversity Club thought it would be a great idea, particularly for our freshmen as it provided an opportunity to meet new people and to build unity among still new classmates,” says Therese Hawkins, Director of Curriculum and Advancement.

Nazareth offers a special thanks to the dozens of students who worked to plan the event and facilitate the lunch table discussions.

Nazareth Academy, a Catholic, coeducational, college preparatory high school serving families from 55 communities and 115 grade schools in Chicago and the western suburbs, established in 1900 and sponsored by the Congregation of St. Joseph, values scholarship, service, spirit, and unity.