The 'Equity Challenge' At Hinsdale Central

HINSDALE, IL — Hinsdale Central junior Alexandra Collins says she may have a case of "imposter syndrome," which she attributes to her being the rare Latina in STEM classes and activities.

The syndrome is where someone doubts whether they fit in or belong in a certain group. Yet Collins' work suggests she can keep up with the best of them in STEM.

Just last month, the Hinsdalean wrote a story about how Collins and her older sister, Catherine, co-founded a student group to push for a ban on ethylene oxide, the pollutant emitted by the now-defunct Sterigenics plant in Willowbrook.

Still, Collins acknowledges to feeling insecurities. She said a new Central group, Students Organized for Anti-Racism, or SOAR, helps her deal with that.

"Sometimes I call a couple of members for an hour and a half," Collins said in an interview. "We speak our minds. We share our experiences, even if they are really emotional. They are so encouraging."

On Wednesday, SOAR launched the "14-Day Equity Challenge," based on a similar effort at Downers Grove North High.

What is it? It's about "adjusting what we spend our time noticing and doing. The good news is, there's an abundance of resources just waiting to empower you to be a more effective player in the quest for justice."

The challenge involves reading, listening to or watching at least one resource to further understanding of equity, power and privilege. The other steps include noticing the world through an "equity lens," attending a SOAR meeting and completing an equity tracking chart.

Billson Rasavongxay, chairman of Central's social studies department and SOAR's faculty sponsor, said the group formed in response to last summer's events. They included the death of George Floyd in the custody of Minneapolis police officers and the Black Lives Matter protests in response.

"Given the events of the summer, a lot of students and staff reached out to see how we can challenge some of the culture and lack of inclusion in our school," Rasavongxay said in an interview. "With the creation of this new club, our leaders wanted to bring the Hinsdale community, students and staff together to create a unified message of anti-racism."

Both Collins and Rasavongxay stressed that people of all political philosophies are invited to join the group.

"It's important to mention that as a group, we support students of all political backgrounds and create a safe space where everyone's nice to each other," said Collins, whose heritage is Puerto Rican and Panamanian.

Hinsdale Central has held student town halls in the past where Collins said she has heard people's stories.

"It's really an eye-opening experience. That's what inspired me to become part of SOAR," Collins said. "This helps people become more aware about the cultures that surround them at Central."