Something new has arrived in the Lakeville South Cafeteria. It’s not a new student, nor is it a new drink in the vending machine. Lakeville South has a new mural at the school located on the second floor, on the far wall of the cafeteria and across from the entrance doors. The mural was made by Student Voices, which is led by Mr. Woollen. The mural took Student Voices 3-4 days to complete.

I discussed the process for making the mural with one of its members, Radhiya Ahmed. They explained to me that, during the planning process, Student Voices was able to discuss the mural’s location and it’s design.  They also informed me that they had a vote to decide what kind of mural they would make and that “There were multiple different mural designs including mine in which people had to choose from to represent LSHS”.

Since it went up, the mural has been positively received at South.  When asked about what they believed the mural represents, a Lakeville South student, Silassa Williams answered that it represents how “people of any color can come together as one”. They also stated that they see unity being shown at Lakeville South by the inclusion of another black teacher at Lakeville South. Silassa Williams stated that “it’s the first step to making the school more diverse”. I also asked one of the Student Voices presidents, Elliot Ciemnicki, about the mural. They commented that it made them feel “accomplished”.  They also said the following statement, “I believe that the mural represents the bringing together of students and people of all races, genders, sexualities and more. The hands are just that. Hands. There is no gender behind them which to me connects the the non-binary experience. That connected with the different races as hands and the rainbow droplets really makes the whole piece feel welcoming”.  It’s quite comforting that we have something at school that can proudly show that aspect of Lakeville South and the students statements certainly reflect this.