Students provided with many opportunities to communicate, connect with peers

Milford High School has taken major steps this year to become a place where students are encouraged to accept, help, and learn about their peers. Students from all walks of life attend Equality Club, the Harbor seminar sessions, and some were selected to go on this year’s returning Communication Camp trip. These opportunities, however big or small, are opening up students’ eyes to a whole new world of kindness, inclusion, and philosophical thinking.

Junior Will Cairns stared Equality Club, which highlights issues not found in our textbooks, and is open to any student who needs or wants to give support. Cairns, along with junior Katy Trame, feel that the Equality Club will have a lasting impact on the students who attend.

“Just talking about these issues that go on is really important because a lot of times they’re hidden from the media,” said Trame. “By having a place where we are able to share our thoughts and opinions with our own peers, people that we see every day, it creates this unification.”

The Equality Club will be effective in the future, showing that each and every student at our school is alike, and equal. But Cairns’ end goal is to actually discontinue the club.

“I think it would be great if one day, the Equality Club wouldn’t even need to be a thing at Milford or in other schools.”

The Equality Club meets on Wednesdays for an hour after school in Mrs. Pryor’s room.

Also new to the building this year are Harbor seminar meetings, where students watch videos created by motivational speaker Mike Smith, and discuss the topics portrayed in the videos and connect them to their everyday lives. Often times, students are divided into groups with other students who they do not know, which adds to the experience and allows students to make new friends.

The videos touch on a wide variety of topics, all designed to get students thinking about their own life what they can do to make their communities better.

“I believe that we all want to be a part of a school that beats the odds by creating an environment that is not separated by superficial ideas and prejudices,” said junior Kaley Plaxton. “The Harbor gives us a chance to speak our thoughts and impact the world around us.”

The Harbor, put on by Mr. Gilbert and the Leadership class, has received rave reviews from many of its attendees. 80 students who have shown they have embraced the Harbor this year will get a chance to meet Mike Smith when he gives a speech to Milford High School on March 24th. The Harbor meets in the Little Theater during seminar each week.

Also brought back this year was Communication Camp, a three-day adventure to Camp Copneconic where students are not allowed to bring their cellular devices and electronics. It’s designed to bring students from all walks of life together to discuss real world issues. Teachers nominated students from every social group to attend this year’s camp, and it was a massive success.

The best result from Communication Camp has been the new friendships created around the school from people who would have never talked if it wasn’t for the experience. Barriers between social groups have broken down, with nobody from the camp feeling “too cool” to go and befriend someone from a different friend group.

“I think the more people that get to go to Communication Camp, the closer the Milford community will get,” said junior Anthony Davis.

The success from this year’s camp has been more than apparent. Communication Camp is supposed to be back next year and following years.

There is a new wave going on at Milford High School, with less cliques, more random acts of kindness, and more inclusion of other students. There is a majority of students who are embracing their opportunities and are committed to making the school and community a better place, and it has truly been amazing to see.