​Ambassadors of DEI and GSA clubs host a LGBTQ+ table celebrating important events and people in history.

On Oct. 25 the DEI club and GSA had many tables outside of Willis Hall. These tables were not open to the whole school rather just the Upper school. 
A question wheel with historical questions about LQBTQ+ was run by me, Jacob Johnson ‘25, Kayleigh Johnson ‘26, Caroline Welfare ‘27 and Abby Landry ‘26. After answering a question correctly, students won a pack of Skittles. 
 
Many people praised the cake pops from History teacher Hannah Ewing, who worked at the table with GSA Club members asking students to answer trivia questions in order to win a cake pop. 

The majority of the DEI crew contributed to the success of the tables. 
“The LGBTQ+ table was successful,” DEI coordinator Debbie Taylor said.
 “We had students playing games and taking an active interest in learning. One ninth-grade student playing trivia said, ‘I am learning,’ and students with whom I had a very in-depth conversation about acceptance of the LGBTQ+ community two years ago, came over and played trivia. That makes me happy. Those are highlights for me. Some of our football players stopped by to play the game. Our students are becoming more accepting and willing to learn.”

For the prize of a shirt supporting the LGBTQ+ community, there was a choice between two questions: 1) Q: The Stonewall riots took place in which New York City neighborhood?” The second asking,Which contemporary TV show features the longest running queer character in TV history? (Dr. Callie Torres Grey’s Anatomy) Even teachers felt stumped. 
One person on the table and walls of the Upper School took most students  by surprise. Many people didn’t realize that the famous singer songwriter who produced masterpieces such as “Blond(e)” and “Channel Orange",” Frank Ocean, identifies as bi-sexual. 

“I really didn’t know about Frank,” Chris Carter ‘25 said. “I never really got into his music, but I definitely know his work.”

“We are in the business of teaching here at North Cross and in the DEI program about acceptance and kindness towards everyone”, Taylor said. “We are a community that has space for everyone regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, or religion.”

New student, Kaleb Robinson ‘26, drives to the basket against Patrick Henry High School.                 Kaleb Robinson is a new addition to the NCS community bringing his astounding height standing at 6-foot-4 and 230 pounds. Robinson was previously a student at      Christiansburg, where he played basketball. First getting involved with the NCS summer league Robinson began building chemistry with his future teammates.  Coming in and putting in hard work and efforts to get ready to have a promising season with other  NCS basketball players Jaziel Hart ‘26, Siah Haynes ‘27, and fellow new student Daven Reed ‘28.  Kaleb claims to being confident in the potential they hold for a great season “It’s hard to describe, he’s good at everything. He has a center size but can handle like a point guard, and I’m excited for his first season.” JV basketball player, Hanchen Ou claims.
   “Really it was for basketball and also a better opportunity to go to college because Christiansburg, my previous school, wasn’t really great at that,” Robinson said when asked about the reason for his transfer. As it did with many students who transfer into NCS, it was a big change for him. Most students, especially ones who transfer after going to another highschool, show signs of not so smooth adjustments.“It [the transfer] was very tough for me, especially with the 45-minute drive from Christiansburg to here,” Robinson said. “Also just the expectations that are way higher. Everyone here is on another level from public school. Definitely the drive is the toughest.” A s school is only a few weeks in, Robinson has already immersed himself into a handful of activities. Robinson has begun attending many meetings with the African-American and Latin X affinity group. Also he has been doing offseason training with head boys’ basketball coach, Jamiel Allen. “My previous coach was not reaching out to coaches for me,” Robinson said, “and it’s better for other coaches to reach out. And Coach Allen would have done that. With him doing that, it would give me a better college opportunity,” Kaleb said when asked about expectations from the basketball team. Many have different opinions about NCS and the way the community is run. “The people have been very welcoming, the environment, and the teachers are very personal,” he said. “I like how teachers give you breaks because they know you have vigorous work and they’ll work with you.” Another controversial topic is the phone policy. “It’s not a problem for me because my mom makes me keep my phone at home and gave me a flip phone for emergencies,” Kaleb said. Meanwhile, Robinson has high hopes for the athletic teams. “Im expecting NCS to go far in the playoffs for all sports,” Robinson said with confidence.