MOSAIC provides spaces for the Andover community to learn about mixed-racial and ethic identities.
Andover’s annual Mixed Awareness Heritage Week (MHAW) kicked off with an open meeting hosted by Andover’s mixed heritage affinity group, MOSAIC. From all-school dinners to a visit from mixed-race and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Tessa Hulls, this year’s MHAW features a wide range of events.
Aya Murata, the Assistant Dean of Students and a faculty advisor of MOSAIC, has helped to organize these events since the first MHAW. She explained that the week presented an opportunity to impact the campus community as a whole, as normal MOSAIC gatherings are limited to affinity members.
“[MHAW] is [an] opportunity to invite the whole school community to learn a little bit more about what it’s like to move through the world as a mixed-race person or a mixed-ethnic person. It’s both an opportunity for education, broadly speaking, [and] of understanding new perspectives that maybe someone who is of one ethnic background or one racial background hasn’t ever thought about before,” said Murata.
In an effort to further education regarding mixed-race experiences, MOSAIC invited Hulls, who will share her graphic memoir, “Feeding Ghosts,” which follows three generations of Chinese women in her family. Nadine Carniaux ’29 expressed excitement for the week’s upcoming speaker.
“Before I didn’t have a community that was specifically for mixed people, so I always felt more ‘other.’ I never really felt connected with either side. Being part of MOSAIC taught me that I didn’t have to choose either side and that I could live with both,” said Carniaux.
She continued, “I’m particularly very excited for the speaker Tessa Hulls to come in. I’m especially excited to discuss with her her graphic novel which she wrote about being mixed because she’s really important and has helped a lot of mixed kids learn more about their identities,” said Carniaux.
Other aspects of MHAW include a photo essay and a display in the Oliver Wendell Holmes Library (OWHL) that explores mixed identity. Micah Nerone, the Administrative Assistant in the Office of Community and Multicultural Development (CaMD), emphasized the relevance of the library display and encouraged students to take a look at the exhibit.
“I hope people take time to go and look at a lot of the books that are laid out in the library. They have some extremely well-documented perspectives on mixed heritage. Some of them are humorous. Some of them are heart-wrenching. I hope everyone takes time to go through MOSAIC and see what we have going on,” said Nerone.
MOSAIC board member Crispin Black ’28 emphasized the role of MHAW in increasing cultural conversations on campus. He mentioned that while Andover hosts many cultural celebrations, mixed identities are often less visible.
“This week is important because we have a lot of events celebrating all different types of cultures. Mixed race is a very broad category, and sometimes it can get overlooked. So, having this event to raise awareness definitely helps the campus culture. I just hope that people learn something new about mixed race as a whole, and will come away with a positive experience,” said Black.
Catalina Smith ’27, another board member, echoed this statement. She spoke on the importance of visibility and education around the mixed identity on campus.
“Mixed identity is often overlooked, so I think that this week is really important for our club to share what we do and to get more representation on campus. Through activities like these, we can create a wider education… We just had our open meeting today which was really fun because we got to have people who were not mixed come to our meeting and share their own experiences,” said Smith.
Murata reflected on what the increasing recognition and support for mixed heritage students has meant to her. She contrasted the current opportunities and spaces for mixed students today with her own experiences as a high schooler.
“I’ve been here 34 years, and as someone who identifies as mixed as well, [it’s exciting] to see that constituency grow here at Phillips Academy, in the world, and certainly in the U.S. It’s exciting to feel that Phillips Academy is the kind of place that provides spaces for students to come together who identify as mixed heritage, mixed race, mixed ethnicities,” said Murata.
Murata continued, “To me, stepping back and just seeing that growth and the opportunity for kids at your age to come together, I couldn’t even have imagined what that would have been like for me in the ’80s. To be at my boarding school and be able to sit in a room [and relate] with other kids who weren’t my sister.”
