MYCP - Monroe Youth Challenge Program

Press Releases:

Coral Shores Displays Diversity Quilt

TAVERNIER, FL (548 words) – Flags and banners have been known to separate nations and cultures but today a variety of ethnicities are represented in one piece to show unity at Coral Shores. A diversity quilt, created from squares drawn by students of many cultures and sewn together by volunteers, now hangs in the Coral Shores High School media center. “Monroe Youth Challenge Program seeks to foster acceptance, respect, and success in the youth of Monroe County. The quilt serves as a daily reminder of the mission of MYCP. I’m proud of what the Coral Shores Leadership students have created,” said Sunny Booker, MYCP Chief Administrator.

Photo Credit: MYCP
Coral Shores High School Junior Robert Turbesi and Monroe Youth Challenge Program District Prevention Coordinator Michele Sutter admire the Diversity Quilt that hangs at the CSHS Media Center as a result of an MYCP project done through last year’s leadership class. The quilt was recently finished by volunteers of Florida Keys Quilters and presented to the school.

Both the Diversity Quilt and banner showcase quilt squares made by students at two Cultural Fest luncheons sponsored by Monroe Youth Challenge Program (MYCP) last school year. Because of the skill needed to assemble the quilt and banner, they were recently presented to the school by members of the Florida Keys Quilters’ Club who voluntarily finished both pieces. From Coral Shores, the banners are scheduled to appear at another high school and later at the Monroe County School District Administration Building in Key West.

The Cultural Fest was designed by former CSHS Leadership Class students Brittany West, Largo Miller, and Erica Lundy. This project was a follow up to the MYCP Diversity Conference held as a regional event for students from all three public high schools. At this conference student participants discussed issues as they related to: diversity on campus; some of the challenges students face related to these issues; and brainstormed possible solutions to problems they identified. The annual Cultural Luncheon was one of the ideas they came up with and implemented. The tradition began by those students and was repeated in last year’s Leadership Class coordinated by CSHS Junior Daniel Lavene and Senior Chris Heasly.

“The purpose of the Cultural Luncheon was to bring together a diverse group of students to celebrate the variety of cultural, ethnic, and racial backgrounds that exist on campus,” said Michele Sutter, MYCP District Prevention Coordinator. “This was done through guided activities designed to help students become more aware of each other’s backgrounds in an atmosphere where a variety of music, décor, and ethnic food helped set a tone of celebration at the event.” During the course of the luncheon students decorated quilt squares to be an artistic expression of their cultural heritage. These squares were then sewn together by the Florida Keys Quilters to be displayed at the school – a visual reminder of the rich diversity Coral Shores students represent. The first class created the quilt and last year’s class created the banner. “I was impressed by the artistic ability of the students and was very pleasantly surprised at the end when the squares were all sewn together,” said Mary Lou Wilkinson of Tavernier and president of the quilting club. The Florida Keys Quilters is a group of about 40 women who take on community projects as well as sew for themselves. “The kids really did a great job, it was a pleasure to be involved in this project,” added Wilkinson.

Monroe Youth Challenge Program is a project of the Monroe County Education Foundation to foster acceptance, respect, and success in the youth of Monroe County. For more information call Michele Sutter at (305) 852-1664 or go to www.monroe.k12.fl.us/mycp.