The Spence School’s first Conference on Civic Engagement on March 14, 2018, sparked conversations around the topic of reproductive health and justice, beginning with a panel of women from various backgrounds who shared their personal journeys and views on the topic.

 

Spence welcomed the following panelists to speak to Upper School students:

 

Alice Kessler-Harris is the R. Gordon Professor Emerita of American History at Columbia University. She is also an author and a historian of American labor, women and gender.

 

Alexis McGill-Johnson, P’30, ’27, is the executive director and co-founder of the Perception Institute and is a former board chair of Planned Parenthood Federation of America and Planned Parenthood Action Fund.

 

Brittany Alston Caballero is a reproductive justice advocate and communications strategist. She works at Planned Parenthood Federation of America and serves on the board of directors for the New York Abortion Access Fund.

 

Laura McQuade is the president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of New York City and previously worked as the executive vice president and COO at the Center for Reproductive Rights.

 

Heidi Jenkins ’66 is a volunteer client advocate at Avail NYC, a pregnancy care network that counsels those making decisions about unexpected pregnancy. She also holds a certificate in biblical counseling.

 

Susan Cullman ’67 served as chair of the board of the Republican Coalition for Choice from 1991 to 2002 and has also served on the Boards of the Center for Reproductive Rights, Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan D.C. and the New York Women’s Foundation.

 

The panelists discussed the role of civic engagement in their lives and their views on abortion and reproductive justice. Some of the panelists shared their experiences of growing up when reproductive rights were expanding, like in 1965, in the Griswold v. Connecticut case, when the Supreme Court ruled that married couples had the “right to privacy” to use birth control and in 1972 when that right was expanded to unmarried couples. The women also talked about the impact Roe v. Wade had in 1973 and how that landmark ruling is being challenged and discussed today. The panelists asked each other questions and also answered a few questions from students.

 

Following the panel discussion—since the day coincided with National School Walkout Day— the schedule came to a pause at 10 a.m. to allow students who wished to participate in the walkout to do so; Middle and Upper School students joined peer schools, Nightingale-Bamford and Sacred Heart, in a silent protest for 17 minutes on Fifth Avenue and 91st Street. Before the walkout, student body president Eliza G. ’18 talked to Upper School students about how the walkout was to both show solidarity for the Parkland community but also to take a stand against gun violence. For every minute that passed outside, Madeleine W. ’18 said the name of one student, staff or faculty member who was killed in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting that occurred in Parkland, Florida.

 

The students silently trickled back into the school around 10:17 a.m. and then continued their conference day with workshops led by faculty, students and outside speakers.

 

Some of the workshop topics were:

 

 

The conference ended with a presentation by Vie Boheme—a Minnesota- and New York-based vocal artist, dancer, choreographer and Vinyasa yoga instructor— whose performance incorporated video, spoken word, dance and music.

 

The statement of purpose for the conference was: “Standing by our belief that diverse points of view strengthen democratic societies, the Spence Conference on Civic Engagement is a school-wide learning experience that explores the capacity of individuals to work within complex political systems to impact positive change.” Thanks to Director of Academic Programs Michele Murphy, Head of the History Department Stephen Mak and Director of Institutional Equity Rebecca Hong who organized Spence’s Conference on Civic Engagement.