What is Solidarity Week?
Solidarity Week is one of Berry’s biggest campus traditions — a week when we come together to practice what peace and belonging look like in real life. This year’s theme is It Begins with Me: A Good Neighbor’s Path to Peace.
The week kicks off with a student march and a keynote from Trent Shelton, a former NFL player and motivational speaker who will share about resilience, mental health, and how choosing peace in our daily lives can strengthen community. Later in the week, Grammy-nominated artist Jamie Grace will bring music and stories that highlight her journey with neurodiversity, inviting us to think about belonging and peace in new and powerful ways.
Throughout the week, you’ll also find panels, art, a self-care retreat, and a candlelight vigil, all designed to help us explore peace from different perspectives — in ourselves, in our relationships, and in the world around us.
Day one
Let's start this together.
On our first day of Solidarity Week, we invite all students, staff, faculty, and other Berry community members to join us for an event that speaks to the heart of understanding and storytelling.
Day Two
Begin with yourself: peace within creates peace together.
Our second day of Solidarity Week focuses on cultivating peace within as the starting point for creating peace in community. Breakout sessions will invite students, staff, and faculty to reflect on personal well-being, resilience, and growth—offering tools to strengthen inner balance and prepare us to contribute to collective peace.
Day Three
Create and Reflect.
Our third day of Solidarity Week centers on the transformative role of the arts in cultivating peace. Beginning with a conversation on how unfolds into a visual arts gallery and a performing arts showcase that bring this year’s theme—It Begins with Me—to life. We close the day in community with an interfaith candlelight vigil, reflecting on peace as both a personal practice and a shared commitment.
Day Four
Live Peace in the World.
Our fourth day of Solidarity Week turns to peace in the world—how we live it out in our work and communities. Morning panels explore peace in the workplace and in healthcare, highlighting the role of justice and equity in human dignity. In the evening, Grammy-nominated artist Jamie Grace shares a keynote performance that connects neurodiversity and peace, showing how difference and creativity strengthen community.
Day Five
Let's celebrate.
On our final day of Solidarity Week, we pause to rest and celebrate. The Wellness Retreat offers space to slow down, care for ourselves, and find peace within, while the Block Party and Fashion Show invite us to gather in joy and community. Together, these moments of renewal and celebration remind us that Solidarity does not end here—it continues in the ways we live, connect, and create beyond this week.