CfC, working with the Providence Student Union, brought together students from Rhode Island, Arizona, North Carolina, Missouri, and Texas via Zoom to share their insights and experiences in order to reimagine the future of education. The Youth contributing to the symposium have been shaped by their experiences in a variety of schools, and through the remote learning that has been necessary since the pandemic was declared, and most recently by the renewed civic activism in response to recent police violence against black people. They have been invited to voice their opinions on where education needs to move in order to be relevant, meaningful, and equitable. 

There are many actors and decision-makers working towards systems change in education. For us at CfC, our practice focuses on seeing, questioning, and developing pathways for how all the parts should be integrated as wholes to improve outcomes. Students are core decision-makers and change agents to building systems that support them. Clint Smith, author, poet, and scholar, has written, “do not for one moment think you cannot change what exists. This world is a social construction; it can be reconstructed. This world was built; it can be rebuilt. Use everything that you accrue to reimagine the world.” CfC is pleased to be able to provide an opportunity for students from across the US to come together to reimagine education, and through this symposium, to offer a platform for their voices and ideas. 

Cornel West has observed that education “is about the formation of attention. So you attend to the things that matter.” The adults involved in this project provided a Youth-led virtual space with “just enough scaffolding”. Through three sessions, student ideas were developed through creative practice in order to publish outcomes we hope will resonate. Students applied their understanding and imaginations to call us all to attend to the things that matter.