The Gryphon Gazette

By: Claire Z. ‘26

Recently, at the Crystal Upper School, we hosted the annual Building CommUNITY Conference today. This week started with an amazing “punk” rock presentation on an inspiring Supreme Court Case that revolved around taking back power by Simon Tam and “The Slants” and was followed shortly by PAC and student-led workshops on a diverse amount of topics. Such varying topics included Allyship, Self-expression, Debunking Stereotypes, Family Ties, First-Generation Experience, “D”eaf DEAR World, Multiracial Identities, LGBTQIA+ Identities, Kuleana, Purpose over Perfection, Asian Representations in Film, Perceptions on Christianity, Indigenous Gratitude, Southeast Asian Diaspora, U Dance, Understanding Affirmative Action, understanding “where are you from?”, and finally Identity, Ethics and AI Algorithms. Every choice of the multitude of options was no doubt inspirational and deep, opening a pathway for students to not only educate themselves on things they may not have even considered before but also connect with their Crystal community and classmates. 

Here are the 2 options I participated in:

Recognizing Your Kuleana

By Casey Louie ‘28, Camila Melchor ‘28, Allison Huh ‘25, and Ms. Schorn

This workshop was mainly led by a group of amazing students who went on the Shanti Alliance trip. They shared the experience of visiting not only the beautiful physical landscapes in Hawaii, but connecting with the land and the people on a spiritual level. We started by speaking about Kuleana, which means someone’s purpose, gift, or contribution to their community. This Kuleana could be a super empathetic person, or always listening to other people. Whatever it was, everyone’s gift and Kuleana was equal. We later practiced this by writing our own Kuleanas on a card and mingling with other students in the room. We introduced ourselves with our names and Kuleana, not our occupations or grades. This was to eliminate all chances of the usual subconscious hierarchy so that we could all truly have a grounded, deep connection and conversation with the other people in our community. Additionally, Kuleana isn;t bragging about yourself but truly recognizing your excellence and contribution, creating an increasingly compassionate, inclusive, and flourishing community.

Understanding Affirmative Action: Evaluating Its Role in Racial Discrimination

By Bethany Wong ‘26 and Qingyang Wu ‘26, Ms. Kearney, Ms. Carleton, and Ms. Rochman

Led by two amazing upperclassmen and,d of course, our lovely college counseling office, this workshop led us through Affirmative Action and how it has affected the college application and decision processes for high school seniors throughout the course of history and even in the present. We not only discussed supreme court cases and current events (such as ongoing legal battles), but also the other, more complex implications, such as deeply rooted systematic discrimination and how that plays into both accessibility and opportunity. We pondered specifically on the question of limited opportunity, equality versus equity, DEI and how to “split up” spots for college students. This workshop focused a lot on education, with a well planned and thought provoking slideshow, but also importantly a discussion. Each person had the chance to share their opinions, thoughts, or even questions on Affirmative Action and its impact.  It certainly outlined a clearer understanding of DEI policies and how recent and historical changes have shaped the future of higher education and racial equity.

Although each student only had the chance to participate in 2 workshops of their choice, there were countless options, each one just as great as the other. Here are some opinions from the Crystal community. 

One junior, referring to the workshop called Rewriting the Script: Asian Representation in Film, said, “It was really interesting and eye-opening to think about Asian Representation in Film and the connotations that come with that. I had never thought about it so in depth before, and I am glad I was able to expand my knowledge base and truly allow myself to be educated.” 

Another student commented on the presentation from Tuesday, saying, “It was so cool to have a real life person from an inspiration and important Supreme Court Case talk at Crystal! The music and guitar playing added to the excitement as well.”

Overall, this CommUNITY building week was successful in being both a fun and educational experience. Students had both the opportunity to share about causes important to them, but also, all members of the community were able to come together to really listen and to learn, which is what CommUNITY is all about. I truly hope this annual conference will remain a Crystal tradition for years to come.