Page 35 - GW_2020Winter
P. 35
Excerpts from “We Stand with Our Zoo Families” video
Initially, the videos had focused on connecting children to “It’s been extraordinary to see our families continuing to
nature, conservation, and the zoo. Then an African-American engage with us,” said Cambrón. “We’re exploring different online
man, George Floyd, was killed in the custody of Minneapolis formats—Zoom to get more live, face-to-face contact with families,
police in late May. His death was followed by mass protests and interactive streaming so we can do activities live with them.”
nationwide against systemic racism. The majority of the King The King Conservation Science Scholars program is under
Academy families are African-American or Latinx. the umbrella of the King Conservation Leadership Academy.
About 300 high school students from Chicago and the Chicago
“Our families have been the hardest hit on all fronts—with suburbs participate in the program at any one time. In general,
COVID and the civil unrest,” said Laura Cambrón, community the King Scholars learn about animals and conservation and have
relations coordinator. “We asked ourselves: What is the most opportunities to prepare for college and careers.
effective, relevant, and responsible way we can help, while being
considerate of the impact all of this is having on them?” Much of the program had taken place at Brookfield Zoo,
which closed to the public in March. Program Manager Sandra
The team decided that the best and most relevant way they Ortiz-Ortega said transitioning students already in the program
could help was to give families an outlet for their emotions from an on-site to an online format was not difficult. “Our
and to let them know they are a valued and vital part of a larger, students live in a variety of places and choose when they come to
supportive Zoo Family. These ideas inspired the next video, the zoo, so we already had a good online communication system
“We Stand with Our Zoo Families,” which affirmed the Chicago and sent them regular email updates.”
Zoological Society’s commitment to equal justice and the principle
that everyone has equal worth. But recruiting and on-boarding a cohort of 36 new students
to start in the summer took more work, she said. New students
The response from children and families was overwhelming. undergo three days of intensive training to introduce them to
They sent in moving videos and texts, including uplifting Brookfield Zoo, Brookfield Zoo as an Association of Zoos and
“Messages of Hope” that were shared with all the King Academy Aquariums-accredited institution, and customer service, among
families. The team also reached out to each family and asked how other program fundamentals.
they were doing. Some families needed material help, so the team
delivered bags of food and cleaning supplies to them.
BROOKFIELD ZOO | WINTER 2020/21 35
