Student Leaders Visit Washington 

Last weekend, two Xavier students who have committed themselves to justice and inclusion work visited Washington, D.C. alongside fellow student leaders from across the Archdiocese.

Joe Boumoussa ’18 and Race Calderin ’18 received a private tour of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture and visited the Supreme Court, where they met with Justice Sonia Sotomayor, a graduate of the Bronx's Cardinal Spellman High School.

The visit stemmed from “Diverse America: A Catholic Lens,” a March 10 event at the Sheen Center for Thought and Culture. Boumoussa and Calderin attended the event with fellow Xavier students and math teacher Cindy DeRose, moderator of The Spectrum, a student group devoted to racial justice.

“You’re here,” Father Bryan Massingale told students in attendance that day, “because we need you to be models, catalysts, exemplars and examples of Christian leadership in a diverse nation and in a diverse Church.”

Dr. Timothy McNiff, superintendent of schools for the Archdiocese of New York, challenged students at the Sheen Center to take the lessons they learned back to their schools. Boumoussa and Calderin were chosen to work with student leaders nominated from each of the schools in attendance. That work began in earnest in Washington.

Calderin, who hopes to pursue a career in law, said the trip helped him better empathize with others. “I think I’ve brought a deeper understanding of others back to Xavier,” he said. “I’ve been very isolated from people who don’t look like me, and this helped me understand a little bit of their struggle.”