Together Towards Peace: A Day of Connection, Courage, and Community
“Peace is stability and comfort… Peace feels like acceptance and love.”
— TTP Student Participant
November 13th — Together Towards Peace Kickoff, UIC School of Public Health
In attendance, seventy-eight students from five Chicagoland highschools: Baker College Prep (South Chicago), Richards Career Academy (Back of the Yards), Roosevelt High School (Albany Park), Highland Park High School (Highland Park) and DRW College Prep (North Lawndale).
Many had never met before, but within minutes, the room began to warm with the kind of energy only young people can create: curious, hopeful, and ready for something new.
The first session was an opportunity for students to build a community outside of their neighborhoods and schools. It was a chance for young people to talk openly about the state of the world, peace, gun violence, and the changes they want to see in themselves and in Chicago.
Starting with Peace: What Does It Mean to You?
The morning opened with a simple but powerful prompt: “What does peace mean to you?” Students wrote their answers on colorful sticky notes and filled a board with definitions of calmness, comfort, togetherness, stability, rest, and community.
The 78 responses spanned a broad spectrum, mirroring the diverse experiences each young person brought to the question of what peace looks and feels like in their lives.
“Peace to me is a group being able to coexist with one another. It appears when people are helping one another and coming together in the community.” -TTP Student Participant.
From there, the room shifted into laughter and movement. Students paired up to create secret handshakes, mirrored each other in mini dance battles, and hummed songs for their partners to guess. The awkwardness melted. The smiles grew. What started as hesitation quickly turned into connection.
By the time everyone sat back down, you could feel the space settle into something more open, no longer a room full of strangers.
“Gun violence is not a headline; it is our reality.”
-TTP Facillitator
Students were reminded that this program isn’t about sitting back. It’s about dreaming up new solutions, telling their stories, and building empathy by listening to each other. It’s about facing violence and imagining what peace could look like for them and by them.
One TTP facilitator put it simply:
“Chicago is segregated, but it is a place that has the people and resources to change that. That’s why we must come together to make change. Change starts with connection.”
Throughout the day, students learned that their voices would be at the center of everything, whether through Youth Participatory Action Research, healing circles, policy brainstorming, or upcoming “Peace Talks” interviews.
Finding Direction: The Personality Compass
Then came a crowd favorite, the “personality compass” quiz.
Students circled A, B, C, or D as questions revealed whether they leaned North, South, East, or West in personality. Some laughed when their results matched them perfectly. Others argued their direction didn’t define them, and that became an insight in itself.
One student summed it up beautifully:
“You already know who you are. A quiz shouldn’t decide that. But it shows how we’re all different, and that’s okay.” -James, Baker College Prep.
Around the room, pairs discussed their results: creative Wests, organized Easts, compassionate Souths, and ambitious Norths. What mattered wasn’t the label. What mattered was realizing they needed each other’s strengths to build something meaningful.
What Do We Value? What Do We Need From Each Other?
After learning about themselves, students shifted into conversations about the community they wanted to build together.
What values mattered most?
What would help them feel safe, heard, and respected in the months ahead?
Groups circled words like honesty, listening, empathy, and accountability. They debated what was “non-negotiable,” wrote their choices down, and reflected on how a shared set of values can guide a community through challenges.
One student captured the moment perfectly:
“Respecting all voices matters; it helps us understand each other’s point of view and create a kind environment.” — Chanel, Richards Career Academy.
Another added:
“Keeping the peace in your environment and taking care of yourself is key to keeping a safe community.” — Shawn, Baker College Prep.
These conversations laid the foundation for every session to come, and students will return to them throughout the program.
Stories, Laughter, and New Friendships
The final part of the day brought students into one-on-one interviews.
They asked each other questions about their communities, passions, favorite music, traditions, and memories.
“Talking to people from different schools today gives us a chance to learn about different perspectives, and we get to understand what others value.” — Alexa, Highland Park High School.
Another student lit up after interviewing a teacher who loved the song Fight the Power by Public Enemy, because it inspired him to speak out against injustice.
Moments like these rippled across the room, reminders of how powerful it can be when young people ask meaningful questions and listen deeply.
By lunch, students were dancing, laughing through a Macarena moment, and challenging each other in spontaneous dance battles. The community was building itself right in front of everyone’s eyes.
Youth Power in Motion
The afternoon closed with reflections on past youth-led movements. Students watched videos of teens organizing in Little Village, protesting ICE involvement in their community, and leading the Black Lives Matter movement.
“The little village walkout really inspired me because they were able to do this large movement that got put on the news, and they were high schoolers just like us, and that is really inspiring. We can’t do it alone. But if we come together, we can.” — Josie, Highland Park.
“People can’t tell us we’re powerless, because we’re not. We are capable of creating change.” -Ren, Richards Career Academy.
“If there is a book you want to read but hasn’t been written, you must write it yourself.” -Naomi Wadler.
These conversations weren’t theoretical. They were launching points for the projects students will build this year, fundamental ideas aimed at improving the wellness and quality of life for the students, their families, and the communities where they live.
A First Day Full of Possibility
Session 1 ended with students creating bright, colorful posters about unity, strength, and community power. Hung proudly around the room, phrases like:
“Empathy, not apathy.”
“The power of unity is greater than the unity of power.”
“Young choices will make our future choices.”
What began as a room full of strangers ended as a growing community, one committed to connection, courage, and reimagining peace together.
“When discussing gun violence, youth are the majority who are affected by it, but are disproportionately underrepresented when discussing it. I have personally learned so much from these students, and if we prioritize their voices, the policies we create can be so much more efficient and effective,” — Mr. Matthews, Richards Career Academy
This was only the first day.
And if this session showed anything, it’s that Chicago’s youth are ready. Ready to listen. Ready to lead. Ready to build a different future, side by side.
“Unity is a beautiful thing, especially when we are courageous enough to embrace it.” -David, Richards Career Academy.
