The UTSA Student Leadership Center (SLC) concluded its 2016 Civil Rights and Social Justice Experience with a reflection reception on Tuesday, January 19th. The reception allowed the 35 student participants to describe what the five-day bus trip meant to them and how the program’s learning outcomes were met. Students spoke of being deeply touched and inspired by this immersive journey into the civil rights movement. They expressed gaining heightened appreciation for diversity and new resolve to continue learning about historical and contemporary social justice activism. Participants also spoke appreciatively about the skills they gained for making a difference as social justice leaders in their communities.

This was the fifth annual Civil Rights and Social Justice Experience (CRSJ), and we have strengthened the curriculum with each successive trip by adding more engaging activities and discussion topics as well as better preparing the four students who serve as peer facilitators for small discussion groups each evening. This year’s Student Facilitators were Lauren Lopez (class of ‘16, Multidisciplinary Studies), Katie Hebert (class of ’16, Education), Gianna Desalles (class of ’16, Education), and TaShavia Beverley-Prince (class of ’16, Education). The program’s learning objectives include engaging in cross-cultural interaction; developing awareness of social justice issues; and practicing the skills needed to promote positive social action. Thanks to the UTSA Family Fund we were also able to update our itinerary this year and take students for the first time to Little Rock, Arkansas to visit Central High School, the famous battleground campus of early school integration.

Many students spoke about learning more than they imagined possible from the experience of walking in the footsteps of youth activists of the 1960s. They also appreciated hearing first-hand perspectives from older community members at the sites we visited who lived through the civil rights era. Jay Craft (class of ’16, Business Management) described having a long and very meaningful conversation about the trip with his father in which he was able to relate in a new way to his father’s memories of life as a young black man in 1960’s Mississippi. Sarah Santos, a class of 2017 Psychology major had this to say: “I didn’t expect this trip to have such a profound impact on my life – I didn’t even realize that my eyes needed to be opened. What I learned here was awe – inspiring – the strength and determination of civil rights activists is absolutely unbelievable. I hope that in my own life, I can act with a fraction of a percent of their fortitude – what they did was truly amazing.”

Many students identified resolutions to act upon what they discovered on the CRSJ Experience. Jasmine Gatlin (Class of ’17, Communication) found new motivation to vote after learning more about the sacrifices made to bring about the Voting Rights act of 1964. Many students spoke of appreciating their newfound responsibilities to be more vocal allies and educators on social justice issues within their social networks. Kiana Lalau (Class of ’16, Communication) also identified being a more careful and respectful listener in conversations with individuals with whom she disagrees.

The CRSJ reception was scheduled for the day after the group’s participation in San Antonio’s Martin Luther King, Jr. March. Walking with so many other San Antonians provided another way for participants to reflect on what they gained from the trip and ground that learning in a sense of local community. We hope to reinforce these local, contemporary connections further still through our newest program this upcoming April 2nd, which we are calling Social Justice for San Antonio (SJ4SA). Applications for that program will open on January 25th on Rowdy Link. Please visit the Student Leadership Center website or contact the SLC with any questions.

The University of Texas at San Antonio Student Leadership Center embarked on its 5th year of the Civil Rights and Social Justice Experience, taking 35 UTSA Roadrunners across four states for an immersion into the history of the civil rights movement and an exploration of current social justice issues. Participants were guided through the experience by Student Facilitators, who fostered small group discussion and peer support.

The Civil Rights and Social Justice Experience took place January 5th-9th, and will continue with participation in the MLK March in San Antonio on January 18th. New for 2016 was a stop in Little Rock, Arkansas, where students explored the rich history of Little Rock Central High School and walked in the footsteps of the courageous students known as the Little Rock Nine who desegregated Central High School. From there the trip continued to Birmingham, Alabama and on to Memphis, Tennessee where students viewed other historical markers such as the Civil Rights Institute, 16th Street Baptist Church, Kelly Ingram Park and the National Civil Rights Museum.

As the students toured downtown Memphis, they visited the Slave Haven Underground Railroad, the Mason Temple Church of God in Christ headquarters where Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his last speech ("I've Been to the Mountaintop"), the Stax Museum of American Soul Music and the W.C. Handy Museum. Along with site visits, students followed a curriculum that included documentaries, written journals, group discussions and presentations from guest speakers and activists. Paul Cuellar (Junior, management major) summed up the trip as, “A one of a kind experience. Life changing. You will come out a better person.”

“This trip teaches you what the textbook doesn’t. It gives you the opportunity to explore your passions and what means of justice you are willing to stand up for. I think my favorite part of the trip was developing the desire to do my own research. There are so many questions that I have now and I am more than excited to find the answers. There is something special about learning history from those who actually witnessed it. It takes learning from being just history to being real, that will give everyone the willingness to learn.” (Amber Calvert, Kinesiology major)

Student Diana Davila Elizondo (Junior, Political Science Major) said, “I am very thankful for the SLC and its staff. I don’t think I would have had the opportunity to visit all these places if it were not for this trip. It is one thing to read about all this in textbooks, but being at the actual places is amazing. I also had the opportunity to make new friends but more importantly the group activities taught me how to engage in civil discourse while talking about sensitive topics. I hope the SLC has the opportunity to create more trips like these. Maybe about Cesar Chavez or Women’s rights.”

On Tuesday January 19, 2016, the Student Leadership Center and the participants of the trip will be hosting a Civil Rights and Social Justice Experience Reflection Presentation open to all campus community members. The event serves as glimpse into the impact the trip had on each student’s leadership development and the resolutions to civic participation they have made as a result. The reflection will be held in the University Center Mesquite Room (UC 2.01.24) at 1:30 pm.