Meet the speakers: SPA to host Allen and Walker at MLK assembly

Clara McKoy, RubicOnline|January 23, 2022

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Fair Use: spps.org
Allen currently sits as the director of the St. Paul Public Schools board of education, the director of Love First Community Engagement, and a leader of Black Lives Matter Twin Cities

Focusing on their expertise in activism and youth advocacy, Chauntyll Allen and Michael Walker will speak at the Annual Martin Luther King Jr Day assembly. The assembly will take place next Tuesday, Jan. 25th during X period and will be hosted by Intercultural Club for the Upper School. The highlight of the event will be the two guest speakers, Walker and Allen, who were recruited by the Intercultural Club to be involved in SPA’s celebration and observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Chauntyll Allen

Allen has been closely involved in a variety of activism work in the Twin Cities throughout much of her life. She currently sits as the director of the St. Paul Public Schools board of education, the director of Love First Community Engagement, and a leader of Black Lives Matter Twin Cities. Through each of these three titles, she carries the same values of racial justice, youth advocacy, and a deep love for St. Paul. After growing up in Rondo and graduating from Central High School, Allen immediately pursued her passion for youth advocacy in multiple roles, including a teaching assistant, an educational assistant, a basketball coach for middle and high school students, and a program coordinator for Community Education.

Michael Walker

Walker is currently the director of the Office of Black Student Achievement for Minneapolis Public Schools and was a 2017 recipient of a Bush Fellowship from the Bush Foundation—an organization aiming to address racial wealth gaps through grants and opportunities in Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota. As a youth advocate and seeker of racial justice, Walker’s goals include changing the ways Black boys are conditioned to view themselves and providing more opportunities for them to succeed through rigorous and actionable approaches. The Office of Black Male Student Achievement hosts a multitude of events, such as documentary viewings, storytimes, open mics, and family connection meetings—all of which are free and open to the public.
photo from Bush foundation website

Listen to both speakers’ presentations and thoughts next Tuesday, Jan. 25, during the US MLK assembly.