At the end of the 2024-2025 school year, Highland Park High School unveiled its very first Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Wall. The wall features photographs of HPHS staff members from AAPI heritage. This event was filled with love, happiness, and celebration for AAPI students and staff in our school.
Prior to the unveiling of the wall, Dr. Joaquin Stephenson, Director of Student Activities, gave a wonderful introduction highlighting the purpose of the wall and spotlighting each of the featured faculty. Then, many of those staff members addressed the crowd, sharing heartfelt speeches and poems. The display of unapologetic self-expression emphasized the importance of celebrating differing cultures within our school community.
While the wall, located across from the E-Hallway, is capable of speaking for itself, celebrated staff members shared why the wall and AAPI visibility are so important.
“This wall reminds Asian-American students that they are not alone, while also showing our HP community that we are not a monolith but a diverse group whose perspectives enrich all students’ learning. It serves as a reminder that our voices are essential to building the inclusive school we all aspire to,” Sachin Jhunjhunwala, Math Teacher, said.
“As both a student and teacher who has attended many schools, a lot of them did not celebrate all of the identities that existed within their walls” Julia Bascon, English Teacher, said. “[At other schools] I did not feel welcomed or appreciated. The schools made me feel ashamed of myself and my differences, which made me want to change everything about who I was in order to “fit in” with the rest of my peers. I feel proud and grateful to teach in a school that welcomes and celebrates all of the identities that walk through our doors.”
When asked about what emotions the wall made them feel, Faisal Mohyuddin, English Teacher, shared: “Members of the AAPI community, especially in schools, have often felt invisible and been silenced, and we have learned not to challenge this invisibility and silencing. So being visible means being seen, and being seen is empowering — both for an individual and for other members of their community.”
Ambar Rizwan, Social Studies Teacher, stated: “As an adult, I know how valuable it is to me to feel included and seen in all of the spaces that I exist in. As a student, I would have appreciated the highlighting of my own heritage, as well as that of others. It’s so important for us to create spaces where we can celebrate each other and learn from each other. It took me a long time to feel comfortable with my Desi/South Asian identity because I didn’t feel like I fit in. The photo wall is one small way to demonstrate that there is no one way to be of a certain identity. We exist as a multitude of possibilities and experiences, and this is one way to demonstrate that.”
A common theme shared by staff was pride and gratitude.
“I feel proud when I see these photographs on the wall, and I feel a deep sense of appreciation for these staff members as every single one of them has positively impacted my life as a teacher at HPHS,” Mr. Mohyuddin said. “Each one has helped me feel a greater sense of belonging at our school, and like a more complete person. I am proud of my Pakistani and Muslim heritage, and proud of how these aspects of my identity have guided my experiences in the world, even when I have faced discrimination and have felt my voice and presence have been dismissed or marginalized.”
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Kunal Pujara, Science teacher, shared his deep appreciation for the wall: “It is amazing that HPHS is celebrating staff from AAPI affinity backgrounds. As a staff member who was hired in 1994 and not recognized for the content of my character but often recognized for my brown skin color by some colleagues, the AAPI wall of photos validates my identity.”
Mr. Pujara also shared how the wall might connect to some students who have felt unseen at some point in their lives. “All student take-aways are valid reactions and should be acknowledged because I think that every student probably has their own experience of being on the outside, or not being seen in some way.”
Other staff commented on the wall’s impact on students: “Given how few AAPI students and staff there are at HPHS, I hope the visibility offered by these photographs (which showcase only some of the AAPI staff at our school) helps everyone at our school more fully recognize and appreciate the richness and diversity all of us in the AAPI community represent” Mr. Mohyuddin said.
Ms. Rizwan hoped students would understand that ultimately, we are who we are, and that is what’s beautiful about each other. She added, “We all have something to teach and learn from one another, and that’s the beauty of being in a place like HPHS.”
This isn’t just a wall of photos; it’s a story. A long one. That is what is amazing about this project — a group of individuals coming together, making something bigger than just themselves, and presenting an idea of what it means to celebrate culture. It was a lot of work to make the vision of this wall a reality, which is why each member of the wall is so grateful for it and hopes everyone reading this article appreciates it too.
Other HPHS staff members featured on the AAPI Wall include Emma Forquer, World Languages teacher; Melorie Masacupan, former teacher in the English department; and Weifang Wang, former teacher in the World Languages department.