

Food for Thought | Sidetrack
May 10, 2023 @ 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
JOIN US FOR AN ADVENTURESOME AND ENLIGHTENING
FOOD FOR THOUGHT SUPPER AND DISCUSSION OF
SIDETRACK
AN INNOVATIVE 1971 EXPERIMENT IN EDUCATIONAL INTEGRATION FOR
LINCOLN AND ROXBURY 7TH GRADERS
WITH PARTICIPANTS
PETER THOMSON (LINCOLN) AND TRACY STEELE (ROXBURY)
- What was their experience as Roxbury & Lincoln 7th graders in the program?
- How did it affect their lives & help shape the adults they have become?
- What can we learn today from this “forgotten” experiment in educational integration?
WHAT WAS SIDETRACK? In 1971 two groups of 7th graders from Roxbury and Lincoln spent the school year studying together for the first semester in one community and the second semester in the other. A 50-50 project as determined by race, gender, geography, and teachers, its purpose was, in part, to enable students to explore each community beyond the classroom. Fifty years later, one of those 7th graders, Peter Thomson, has tracked down a good portion of his classmates to see whether and how the experience has affected their lives. He has written of this experience in an extensive article which you can read in the Ideas section of the Boston Sunday Globe, January 22, 2023.
LOCATION: Parish House, 14 Bedford Road (across from Bemis Hall)
INTRODUCTION: Rev, Nate Klug
FACILITATORS: Ken Hurd and Barbara Slayter
SPONSORED BY: FPL’s Racial Justice Journey
No RSVP Required! Childcare provided.
Recommended donation to cover cost of the home-cooked meal prepared by our own talented FPL “Chefs”!
Adults $10, children $5, families $25 max.
Peter Thomson is an award-winning journalist, author, editor, and radio producer with special emphasis on environmental and climate concerns. He is widely known for his book, Sacred Sea: A Journey to Lake Baikal, published by Oxford University Press. Peter grew up in Lincoln, was active in First Parish’s YPC, attended Lincoln-Sudbury High School, and now lives in Boston with his wife and daughter.
Tracy Steele is a Boston native with strong ties to his community. Now living in Ashland, MA, Tracy is a Senior Vice President at a leading Software Technology company, where his passion for giving back has been realized through the company’s charitable giving program. Tracy has teamed up with Nonprofit Tech Goes Home and NETSCOUT to Expand Digital Access in the greater Boston community, making a tangible impact on his hometown of Roxbury.
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