We, the students of Menta Academy, feel that in many ways gun violence is minimized until one feels the direct impact of this heinous crime. Sugarcoating gun violence is a crime in and of itself. Fighting gun violence in order to prevent deaths in our neighborhoods is necessary. We need to instill in the population the belief that killing is never the answer. We need to teach people about the impact one death has on a community, a family, a conscience. Even if we know that we, ourselves, would never hurt someone in this way, it is important that all of us play a collective role in ending this trend. Whether that means participating in rallies, voting for laws that would help cripple this culture of violence, or spreading our opinions by word of mouth we all play a part.
Students of the 912 Program at Menta Academy
Oak Park
Menta Academy Oak Park is designed to assist districts in meeting their obligation of post-school goals and transition outcomes according to IDEA 2004. Our goal is to engage youth and young adults in their own future planning process, provide them with developmentally-appropriate services and support, and involve them and their families and other key players in a process that prepares and facilitates them in their movement toward greater self-sufficiency and successful achievement of their goals related to employment, career-building education, living situation, personal-effectiveness and quality of life, and community-life functioning.
The students of the 912 (high school) program decided to complete a community service learning project and focused their efforts on bringing gun violence awareness to their community.
Aubrey Thornton
Social worker, Menta Academy