Eighth grade Civil Rights Trip

above: Gordon's Civil Rights Trip was the topic on RI PBS's Generation Rising in July 2024. Host Anaridis Rodriguez went in depth on the trip and the impact it has on young people who are learning to make change in the world.

Gordon’s Civil Rights Trip is the culmination of a social justice curriculum that begins in Gordon’s youngest grades, and it’s an experience that has shaped the lives of hundreds of Gordon graduates since 2002.

Over four days, eighth graders visit historic sites in Georgia and Alabama, and meet with people who are making change in the present day. On their return to Rhode Island, students start making positive change in their own communities, partnering with local agencies in a full time, four-week service learning project.

The itinerary has been different every year. It has always included the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery and an extended tour of Selma, and (every year but one) a visit to at least one historically Black college or university.

Gordon first met with representatives of Bryan Stevenson's Equal Justice Initiative in Montgomery in 2016, and Gordon has toured the National Memorial for Peace and Justice every year since it opened in 2018.

above: Leah Harrison-Lurie '16 and Maddie Lee '16 returned to Gordon to talk with faculty about the profound impact the Civil Rights Trip has had on their high school experiences

The 2026 trip