Earlier this month, junior Ellenia Paty, senior Addy Darnell, and I were invited by the Metro Bethesda Rotary Club to a breakfast on November 3 at Jose Andres’s Spanish Diner. We represented Jackson-Reeds’s Community Coalition for Change Club (CCC) and presented its recent efforts in youth peacebuilding. 

Youth and Peace in Action (YPA) is an initiative for high schools and youth clubs that puts young people at the center of building and sustaining a culture of peace. Thanks to sponsors like the Rotary Club, YPA’s interactive online courses have been made accessible to students. Jackson-Reed students have been participating in these courses since last school year.   

Among other issues, Jackson-Reed’s CCC Club has been striving to address the historical injustices that occurred with the demolition of Reno City, a Black enclave that thrived throughout the 19th century. The neighborhood was torn down to build both Alice Deal and Jackson-Reed, along with the park in Fort Reno. This ties into the club’s efforts to canvas for affordable housing in DC throughout the year.

    The club has also pushed for the renovation of the abandoned Chesapeake House[briefly say what this is] to display educational panels on the history of Fort Reno Park. The club has begun to work with the National Park Service and met with its superintendent to achieve its goals. 

These student-written panels are set to be displayed at the PEPCO Substation on Wisconsin ave by December 5 before the Chesapeake House is renovated.

Following the presentation, the CCC club received an additional donation of 500 dollars from the Rotary Club to fund the online peacebuilding courses.

Students who are interested in getting involved in peacebuilding and the club can contact ninth-grade Assistant Principal, Mr. Minsker, for more details. •