stronger together

In May 2020, the video capturing the tragic murder of George Floyd showed us that our society could no longer be complacent towards racial injustice. This was the catalyst needed for America to take a serious look at its ongoing racial inequity. Our town was no exception. Empowered by this awareness, Coronado Unified School District (CUSD) students broke their silence about racial injustices within their school system. Coronado students created an online petition calling for CUSD to address systemic racism.

5000 people signed

Nearly five thousand people signed the petition, and a community initiative was born. Other students used social media and newspapers to speak about their direct experiences with racial injustice at school, online, and off-campus.

Astonished by the level of the emotional suffering of so many students, Coronado parents and community members coordinated a rally and a march that supported these students. On June 13, 2020, Black CUSD students and alumni spoke out about their horrendous experiences while other students narrated what they had witnessed for years.

After the march, concerned parents and engaged students created InclusioNado, a community initiative for all CUSD students who embrace Inclusion and Diversity. With community support, InclusioNado is now a resource to build Awareness, Acceptance, and Actions within the school environment, one step at a time, so that all students feel safe at school. Students and community members are making long-lasting positive impacts for generations to come by tirelessly volunteering their time to educate our community and the CUSD Board and staff and show a way forward.

Learning Together

Model civil conversations on race, inclusion, and equity so others can join in.
Create a safe place for adults to have these conversations.
Explore the cognitive dissonance of race relations.
Clarify language use around diversity.
Aid parents in having these conversations with their children.
Understand the concern with children’s emotional safety in school.
Understand the social dynamics of children aside from school.
Align the conversations with our overall objectives of the organization.

Meet Our Steering Committee

STUDENT VOICE

Chloe is the InclusioNado student representative. She is a current student at Coronado High School and has lived in Coronado her whole life. In Summer 2014 and Fall 2017, Chloe was a family member on Semester at Sea and traveled the world. After observing the global social unrest in Summer 2020, Chloe felt Coronado should respond, so she created the CUSD Address Racism petition on change.org that received almost 5,000 signatures from the Coronado community. Chloe is additionally a writer for the Coronado Times where she chooses to publish race-related articles relevant to the Coronado schools and community.

STUDENT ADVOCACY

Marely is a passionate champion of the underprivileged and underrepresented, actively involved in advocacy groups promoting justice and equality at the local, state, and national level. She is an immigrant from Mexico and a parent to a student at CUSD. Her experience of assimilating into the US culture has provided her with both sympathy and empathy for those excluded from the mainstream during their formative years. She is a strong believer in self-reliance and the power of education. She’s passionate about identifying and implementing the necessary academic tools to empower students to feel accepted and included to successfully express their uniqueness and prepare for success in their future endeavors.

LEARNING HUB

Tendayi, a parent to three children, two of whom are current students of the Coronado Unified School District. The CUSD student march led her here! She was called upon to lend her voice, input, and knowledge to this passionate and talented group of community members, who together continually work to seek and ensure safe spaces for all students. She continues to be energized by the community’s ever-growing voice calling for this journey of inclusion. She has also been able to lend her insight into global perspectives, with her acquired experiences living on three continents and having worked in both tech and mental health industries.

COMMUNITY OUTREACH

Doreen, a strategic communications specialist with 15 years of international business relations background, was born in Uganda but moved to Stockholm, Sweden, where she lived for 37 years. In 2017, she and her husband moved to Coronado with their daughter, a current student of CUSD, and their son, a 2021 University of Notre Dame graduate. After a horrific incident where she and her daughter were attacked at pickup by a CUSD staff member’s adult son and called the N-word and the march last year, Doreen felt compelled to be a part of the change. Having grown up from an early age in predominantly white neighborhoods, she brings a valuable lived experience.

ADMINISTRATION

Synthia was brought to San Diego through her family’s Navy deployment and has been a proud Islander since she joined Silver Strand Elementary’s 3rd grade. She went through the CUSD school systems and graduated from CHS (and CoSA) in 2013. She is currently doing her PhD, having completed her Bachelors and Masters abroad in London, and is thrilled to lend her experience with administrative work and social media outreach. She is excited to be a part of the InclusioNado team as she has had first hand experience going through the CUSD school system as a First-Generation American and Child of Color. She hopes that her work in this space can empower the future generations in ways she wished were available so many years ago to her and her fellow peers.