METROFAMILY Magazine – June 2006

Central Oklahoma’s Monthly Celebration of Family

Respect Diversity Art & Poetry Contest – 2006 Winners

Last month the Respect Diversity Art & Poetry Contest Awards honored more than students and teachers. They paid homage to those who persevere to overcome bigotry, stereotyping, and all that can result from such thinking.

Each winning work of art at the statewide Respect Diversity Art & Poetry Contest Awards was a collaborative effort inspired by a lesson about a different culture or human rights diversity issue. All entries were displayed for six weeks at the Respect Diversity Symbol Exhibit at the Kirkpatrick Science & Air Space Museum at Omniplex.

HOW THE PROJECT AFFECTED STUDENTS AND TEACHERS

Kelley Oshel (teacher at Edmond North High School) said, “My students and I sat down one day and discussed being the victim of someone’s verbal or physical abuse. All of the kids had had such an experience. I believe this project was enlightening for most of the students. Art is the perfect way to express yourself and who you are – it is the energy within manifested into a provocative and inspirational _expression. All the animals the students created in their ‘zoo with a twist’ were diverse, but made of the same thing. We are all made of the same components, however we are all unique in our own way and must respect each other enough to live, work, and walk, side by side, each and everyday.”

The children involved in creating the Jefferson Elementary (Sapulpa) project do not normally “hang around” together, according to teacher Nancy Toomey. “Initially,” Ms. Toomey said, “they were shy around each other. As they worked on the project, they began to speak frankly about their unique qualities, situations, and issues and about how others perceive them. It surprised me that those conversations just seemed to surface without any prompting. I think it made each student more tolerant of others’ differences. I think just talking made them feel less negative about their own differences.”

Jo Anne Alexander (Peace Challenge Camp) said, “This project grew out of a week of activities that included teambuilding challenges, directed lessons, speakers, music, dance, and the visual art project. I think the visual art project gave the children an opportunity to internalize much of what they were learning as well as express their feelings about it. They focused on one aspect of what had been taught and created a visual _expression of what that meant to them – tolerance, forgiveness, heroism, or compassion. When all the pieces were combined, they could see the differences and the beauty of what they created.”

Teachers and students alike are hooked on the Respect Diversity project. Erin Cowan (belle Isle M idle School) said, “We will definitely participate in the project next year; it is an experience of a large scale that cannot be replicated in the classroom. The Respect Diversity Foundation is such a wonderful organization, and when Michael Korenblit came to speak at our school, it was truly inspirational to the kids; they wanted to do something to show their commitment to respect all people and things.”

RESPECT DIVERSITY HITS THE ROAD

These works of art are among the many symbols of respect that have become traveling art pieces. After leaving Omniplex, the exhibit will travel the state. Venues include the O.U. Medical Center’s Child Study Center, Children’s hospital, Downtown Norick Library, Edmond Fine Arts Institute, Multicultural Activity Center of Edmond, and Gold Dome’s Multicultural Center.

Sponsors for the Respect Diversity Symbol Exhibit include the Oklahoma Arts Council, National Endowment for the Arts, Oklahoma Natural Gas, MetroFamily Magazine, Edmond Women’s Club, ICelebrate Diversity.com, the Jewish Foundation of Oklahoma City, Wal-Mart Stores, and the Respect Diversity Foundation.

To receive an entry form for the 2006-2007 Respect Diversity Art & Poetry Contest, visit RespectDiversity.org, write to: rdfrdf@cox.net, or call 359-0369