Breaking Down the Walls Workshop Described as Transformative

The theme of this year’s spirit wear T-shirt says it all: “Lions are better together.”

That theme is the driving force behind a workshop opening today at Saint Viator, and taking place again on Wednesday, called “Breaking Down the Walls.”

“Its goal is to create a culture where people feel seen, heard, and included,” says Br. Rob Robertson, C.S.V., who brought the program to Saint Viator. “The workshop empowers students to be themselves and realize that we are all in this together.”

In its first year here, more than 240 students signed up for the workshop, including 50 student leaders. They spent the day on Monday training for the program.

“The students responded to the program,” Br. Rob said. “They’re excited.”

Breaking Down the Walls was created by Phil Boyte, a California native who also created the LINK Crew leadership program. The program was designed 30 years ago to build an inclusive culture in organizations and schools. 

Specifically, the program creates a safe environment for students to build empathy and understanding through its "play, trust, learn" model. 

“By first helping students laugh together, they start to trust one another, and eventually want to learn from those outside their normal friend group,” program officials say. “The assembly, training, and workshops leave everyone with the realization we are truly better together.”

Br. Rob first participated in the workshop in 2017, when he was in Campus Ministry at Bishop Gorman High School, which was started by Viatorians in Las Vegas. He experienced the program and its impact and saw the difference it made in students.

“Kids told me they talked to kids they hadn’t spoken to in four years,” he says. “They realized they had a lot more in common than not.”

The moderator when Br. Rob first attended was Michelle Young, a 2002 Bishop Gorman alumnus and former Student Activities Director there. She is facilitating the workshop at Saint Viator, as one of the eight workshops she will lead this semester, around the country.

According to officials with Breaking Down the Walls – which is now managed by the organization Ignite2Unite – the outcomes of the program for schools are powerful. For starters, the programs strengthen social and emotional learning (SEL), by specifically building social awareness and relationship skills that are vital to student growth and success.

Over the course of the day, the workshop brings students together to make meaningful connections and positive relationships. It leads to building empathy and understanding – and a thriving campus culture.

Officials with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention agree, saying: “Students who feel connected to their school are also more likely to have better academic achievement, including higher grades and test scores, have better school attendance and stay in school longer.”