PAGE A4, KEIZERTIMES, MAY 31, 2019
KeizerCommunity
KEIZERTIMES.COM
Dwight
Roberson (left),
who started
the Black
Student Union
at McNary
High School, is
pictured with
club president
Katelynn Byrd
(middle) and
club member
Remy Olson.
KEIZERTIMES/
Matt Rawlings
School BSUs grow out of
single desire to give back
BY MATT RAWLINGS
Of the Keizertimes
Last June, Dwight Roberson
was hired as the Community
Resource Specialist in the offi ce
of Student Equity, Access and
Advancement for the Salem-
Keizer School District.
But after a few months on
the job, Roberson had the
urge to get more involved with
students.
“I had this feeling and
motivation of wanting to give
back to the kids,” Roberson
said.
One of the things brought to
his attention was the desire for a
Black Student Union at all the
high schools. So in December,
Roberson began running BSU
clubs at McNary, and all high
schools in Salem-Keizer —
minus West Salem.
One of his main motivations
for starting the clubs was to
provide cultural education for
students.
“A lot kids don’t know
about other people’s cultures,”
Roberson said. “There are even
black students that don’t know
about their own culture as well,
so I want to educate kids on
their own culture, as well as
others.”
“One of my biggest beliefs
is that if we all know each
other’s cultures, we’ll be able
to get along with each other
and be more accepting of our
differences.”
While the club is geared
towards
African-American
students, Roberson encourages
all students to be a part of it.
“It might say the Black
Student Union, but everyone
is welcome,” Roberson said. “It
doesn’t matter what your skin
color is.”
The crew at McNary meets
at 7 a.m. on Thursdays in
room 242 — the time moved
from Thursday afternoons to
accommodate students after
school activities. It’s still in its
infancy stages, the BSU Club at
McNary is often used as a place
for students to do homework or
just hang out.
However, most club sessions
involve conversations that
revolve around black history
and current events — such as
the National Anthem protests
in the National Football
League (NFL) — and what it’s
like to be a teenager in 2019.
“It’s an open discussion,”
Roberson said. “We often have
discussions about what it’s
like to be a student at a place
like McNary High School.
You will always get different
opinions and different views.
It’s very interesting. You learn a
lot about what the students go
through and how they view
things through their lens.”
“I want the kids to always
want to come back, so I try to
gear the conversations towards
what they want.”
In a school that has very
few
African-Americans,
the addition of a BSU at
McNary has been benefi cial
for providing community and
education for students.
“It’s nice to actually have
a community because the
African-American community
in Keizer is very sparse,” said
Katelynn Byrd, who is the
president of McNary’s BSU.
“It’s good to have people that
you can relate to and talk
about social issues with.”
“As an African-American
woman, I don’t hear a lot
about other African-American
women being accomplished,
so it has been really reassuring
to see and learn about like
me and know that I can be
accomplished to.”
Club member Remy Olson
also added: “It was nice to see
that there were other students
just like at the school.”
As the school year comes to
a close, Roberson is preparing
for the BSU’s around the
district to pick up some
momentum next year.
“We’re still growing, but in
time, I think of all our BSU’s
will be really big,” he said.
LIVE
CONCERT
To benefit Keizer Fire Foundation
ABBEY ROAD LIVE
Students use art
to take stand
against gambling
Hundreds of artists from
11 Oregon counties partici-
pated in the Oregon Health
Authority’s statewide art
contest for middle school
students. Designs from three
Marion County youth were
chosen among the top 12 to
be featured in the 2020 Prob-
lem Gambling Awareness
Calendar.
Walea Tombleson, a sev-
enthth grade student from
Claggett
Creek
Middle
School, was awarded the top
state prize and will see her
work featured on the cover
of the calendar. Artwork from
seventh grade students Kelsey
Schauer from Whiteaker
Middle School and McKenna
Morales from Waldo Middle
School in Salem will be fea-
tured in the calendar as well.
Marion County awarded
prizes for the top fi ve en-
tries that moved on to the
state contest and included
their artwork on awareness
posters. These included the
three state award winners, as
well as Jarrod Kohler, Mar-
Submitted
TOP: Art by Walea Tomble-
son. ABOVE: Art by Kelsey
Schauer.
ion County’s top prize win-
ner, from Whiteaker Middle
School and Emmanuel San-
doval from Mt. Angel Middle
School.
Printing and distribution
of the 2020 calendar is sched-
uled for fall 2019. For more
information about problem
gambling prevention or to
request a free calendar or
awareness poster, contact Mi-
chael Keuler, Marion County
Health & Human Services at
503-576-2867.
JOIN US in CELEBRATING MEMORIAL DAY with the
Biggest BBQ Sale of the Year
Sat, June 1st
Grill Demos
Great Food
Great Deals
9:00 am – 5:30 pm
Friday, June 28
GATES OPEN at 5:00 pm SHOW STARTS at 6:30 pm
Presented by
Enjoy an evening of classic Beatles music
and “Fill the boot” to benefit projects of
Keizer Fire Foundation
Facebook.com/Keizer-Fire-Foundation
KEIZER ROTARY AMPHITHEATER
AT KEIZER RAPIDS PARK
June 2
Willamette
mette Humane Society’s
PLEASE JOIN US
THIS SUNDAY
ANNUAL
5K AND
WALK
BENEFITTING
SHELTER
PETS
2019
DOG -FRIENDLY,
FAMILY-FRIENDLY
at Riverfront Park, Salem
Registration: $35 (Includes t- shirt and swag).
Free youth registration with every adult registration.
The fun starts at 9 a.m. with vendors, demonstrations, contests, and more!
The walk/run kicks off at 10:30 a.m., and the festivities continue until 1 p.m.
PRESENTING
SPONSOR:
Visit whs4pets.org/strut
for more information.
Or contact us at
events@whs4pets.org
with questions.
REGISTER AT THE EVENT
1695 Market St NE, Salem
CCB#48630 • 503.364.6339
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Grills, Outdoor Fireplaces & Kitchens, Fire-Pits, Pizza Ovens, Pergolas