SAN FRANCISCO
The Pac-12 announced today that 46 student-athletes, coaches, administrators, conference staff, and other key stakeholders from across the Conferences 12 world-class institutions will be part of a delegation traveling to Selma and Montgomery, Alabama. The experience is set to take place from July 15-17 and include an immersive journey to one of the centers of the civil rights movement. The group will participate in a variety of activities highlighted by a march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge, the site of the 1965 "Bloody Sunday" attacks.
"The Pac-12 is committed to developing meaningful educational opportunities for our student-athletes, including in the critically-important area of social justice," said Pac-12 Deputy Commissioner
Teresa Gould
. "The trip to Selma & Montgomery will provide an unforgettable opportunity to learn about the civil rights movement, and to use the positive impact of those learnings to build a better society for all."
The initiative, conducted in collaboration with the ACC and Big Ten, is part of a commitment to supporting student-athletes through meaningful educational opportunities, including the area of social justice. The Pac-12 has developed a unique social outreach initiative with "Pac-12 Impact," under which this trip is being conducted. Learn more about the initiative at
Pac-12.com/impact
.
The Pac-12s social justice experience will begin Friday night in Montgomery with
Sheyann Webb-Christburg
author and an in-person eyewitness of the original Bloody Sunday attack serving as the keynote speaker. The trip continues Saturday in Selma as
Lydia Blackmon Lowery
will share her story marching at the Selma Voting Rights march alongside Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as the group visits the First Baptist Church, the headquarters for the Dallas County Voters League, which was the student nonviolent coordination committee. The church earned the name "The Movement Church" and is where hundreds of students began their days-long journey from Selma to Montgomery in 1965. The trip will continue with a march across the historic Edmund Pettus Bridge before the group returns to Montgomery to visit a series of landmarks, museums, and learning centers.
In Montgomery, the group will visit the Interpretive Center at Alabama State University, a Historically Black University (HBCU), to learn more about the profound impact that students had on the civil rights movement. The group will also spend time at the Civil Rights Memorial Center, the Alabama Department of Archives and History, and the award-winning Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) Legacy Museum, which provides a comprehensive overview of Americas history of racial injustice from enslavement to mass incarceration.
On Saturday evening, EJI Legacy Museum founder and social justice lawyer
Bryan Stevenson
will address the group while campus diversity, equity, and inclusion director lead small group debrief sessions with the student-athletes to discuss the Selma to Montgomery experience.
All 12 member institutions will have conducted a series of introductory virtual meetings prior to traveling to Alabama to discuss the purpose of the trip and to prepare for their experience. Upon returning to campus after the trip, the conference will provide tools and opportunities for each attendee to convey their experiences about the trip to their peers.
Pac-12 Student-Athlete Attendees
University
|
Student-Athlete
|
Arizona
|
Morgan Rhett, Women's Track & Field
|
|
Diego Marquez, Men's Track & Field
|
Arizona State
|
Juliette Boyer, Women's Gymnastics
|
|
Isabel Redmond, Women's Gymnastics
|
California
|
Tramayne 'Trey' Paster, Football
|
|
Jameson McKenna, Women's Rowing
|
Colorado
|
Ian Gilmore, Men's Track & Field
|
|
Karly van Leer, Women's Lacrosse
|
Oregon
|
TJ Gilbert, Football
|
|
Zoe Williams, Women's Acrobatics & Tumbling
|
Oregon State
|
Ariana Young, Women's Gymnastics
|
|
Tre'Shaun Harrison, Football
|
Stanford
|
Nya Harrison, Women's Soccer
|
|
Elijah Higgins, Football
|
UCLA
|
Charisma Osborne, Womens Basketball
|
|
Sam Herenton, Mens Track & Field
|
USC
|
Julien Simon, Football
|
|
Jalaysiya Smith, Womens Track & Field
|
Utah
|
Maya LeBar, Womens Track & Field
|
|
Hannah Truax, Womens Swimming & Diving
|
Washington
|
Nia Lowery, Womens Basketball
|
|
Langston Wilson, Mens Basketball
|
Washington State
|
Chris Jackson, Football
|
|
Anna Rodgers, Womens Track & Field
|
About Pac-12 Impact
Pac-12 Impact is the social outreach initiative of the Pac-12 Conference. In the pioneering spirit of the West Coast, the Pac-12 is committed to using the power of sport to promote a culture of diversity and inclusion. The Pac-12 is spreading the message of inclusion, celebrating diversity, standing strong against bullying, and fostering fairness and good sportsmanship. Learn more about the initiative at
Pac-12.com/impact
.