Letter to the Parents at New Trier High School

February 27, 2017

To the Parents of New Trier High School:

I have often quoted lines from the brilliant article Betsy Hart wrote years ago about the ways parents cushion their kids from the harsh realities of the world around them. She quipped, “Millennials expect a ticker-tape parade for showing up for work on time.” I cheered her on as I laughed out loud.

So now she and other New Trier parents are making a fuss because your kids will attend a seminar about race? This seems like an About Face.

As Director of Education at an alternative high school on the west side, I think that your movement to ban discussion about sensitive issues is the definition of cushioning your affluent, mostly white kids. Education requires listening to voices beyond simplistic sound bites, and more importantly, listening for voices too often silenced. Education is sometimes uncomfortable.

This reactionary, “Us vs. Them” mentality will do anything but Make American Great Again.

Nancy Stanner

Director of Education

Sister Jean Hughes Adult High School, A Program of St. Leonard’s Ministries

2120 West Warren

312-226-6270