Diversity Day: Connecting Through Performances

By Gratia Lam

May 21, 2024

Since the start of the school year, JMS students have planned and practiced for the February 14th Diversity Day showcase celebrating different talents and cultures in the JMS community.

Each Monday starting in September, a group of students from sixth to eighth grade at Jericho Middle School met after school to prepare for the annual Diversity Day showcase. The purpose of Diversity Day is for students to share their experiences and learn from others in the JMS community. According to Diversity Day advisor Ms. Murphy, “We have a bunch of strong talented people that are going to be up there sharing their cultures and talents, which I think is going to be exciting for everybody.” As Diversity Day grew closer, students practiced their performances and rehearsed in the auditorium in front of other Diversity Day club members. There was then one final rehearsal in the auditorium before the day of the performances.

There are many positive outcomes from the Diversity Day performances. According to Ms. Murphy, “The purpose of Diversity Day is to share many cultures with all the students of Jericho and try and bring in some new learning for them to see the world through a different lens,…which happens to be our theme this year.” As a result, many performers chose to showcase their cultures with different dances and songs. Diversity Day also creates meaningful memories that can inspire conversation long into the future. As evidence, many highschoolers bring up memories of Diversity Day from their time at JMS. Finally, Diversity Day creates an opportunity for students to share the skills and talents that they have been cultivating outside of their classes. For example “we have one of the kids playing [an instrument] called Guzheng,” Ms. Murphy stated.

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Through celebrating what makes us unique, Diversity Day brings the students of Jericho Middle School together as one. It also creates a deeper bond between teachers and students, as staff and students across different classes and teams work together to make the day a success. When asked if she felt closer to her students during the preparation of the event, Mrs. Murphy replied, “What makes it exciting for me is that some of them are students I teach now or I've taught in the past but most of them are not, so I get an opportunity to know even more kids in the building. And so they'll just know that I'm another person that they can turn to if they need something. I like that. I like creating relationships with my students. That's why I teach.”