At 8:35 in the Diane and David B. Heller Auditorium, the first Francis W. Parker student walkout since the school’s inception, to the recollection of first grade teacher Bev “Greenie”Greenberg, officially began with a Morning Exercise filled with speeches from both students and faculty members.

Delivering the opening addresses of the MX, School President Kaden Florsheim, a senior, and Senate Heads Jenna Mansueto, Sammy Kagan, and Felicia Miller, all juniors, discussed the school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. “Like many of you, I was appalled by the actions of the gunman in Parkland, Florida exactly one month ago today,” Mansueto said. “The violence and large-scale death afflicted upon a population of students saddened me deeply.”

Mansueto declared Parker’s official stance on the issue of gun reform. “It is our firm belief that all students should be able to learn, explore, and grow without the undue burden of fear,” she said, reading from behind the podium. “Students should be able to trust their schools and their nation with their safety.”

Kagan then connected the national debate regarding gun reform to the City of Chicago. “Gun violence isn’t some far-fetched topic, which exists only in the studios of CNN or CBS,” Kagan said. “It’s incredibly important that we remember that gun violence is an issue that should be of great concern to each and every Chicagoan.”

Middle schoolers Celeste Lopez, Ava Utigard, and Tara Cochrane echoed the sentiments of their upper school peers. “We don’t think that this is going to be the end of the march,” Utigard said. “There’s going to be so much more, whether that’s gun control or any other thing that we believe that we should stand up for.”

After preaching gun reform, the three students displayed a video created by eighth-grader Lily Becker.  The video was infused with photos and film from Parkland, Florida and footage from various news networks taken following the shooting.

After applause from the student body, Principal Dan Frank walked to the podium. “Thank you to all the students who have taken the initiative to bring us together to think as a community,” Frank said. “Today is an important day. Today you as students join with other students and schools across our country to foster understanding, raise consciousness, and raise voices.”

Frank, maintaining eye contact with his audience, continued. “Go into today’s activities with respect and optimism for what you can achieve by joining with other citizens,” he said. “Today is an important day, but with your voices, your education, every day should be an important day full of possibilities to think for yourself and engage with the most essential issues facing our society.”