Diversity Initiatives at Simley

Cecil Stockdale was hired at Simley in 1987-88 as the learning center coordinator. An African American man, Stockdale was one of the first minorities to work in ISD 199.

Many students got together to learn ways to combat racism in their school and advocate for one another. H.E.A.R. was a way for students to learn about racism and how beneficial it is to teach younger kids to be against racism.

The Students Concerned About Racism Ending Diversity (SCARED) proposal, begun at Humboldt High School in St. Paul, worked with ISD 199 assistant superintendent John Holm and the Simley Student Council to assist minorities in integrating in classrooms mostly consisting of white students.

The initiative began in response to telephone threats made to Black students at Simley and culminated in Simley students taking a pledge to avoid racist language, symbols, and habits, and to educate other students on the dangers of racism at Simley. At the time, minority students made up just 6% of Simley's population.

A 1992 interview with Hamilton Bell.

A 1993 interview with Hamilton Bell as part of a Star Tribune spotlight on diversity in suburban Twin Cities schools.

Hired in 1992 as a diversity specialist, Hamilton Bell taught Simley teachers and staff about solving racial issues.

In one interview with the Star Tribune, Bell mentioned how teaching Inver Grove students about diversity benefited the community by giving people opportunities to accept one another and learn life lessons.