Reginald A. Sample
Ed.D. in Educational Administration & Leadership 2009
School of Education
July 1, 2014
Reginald Sample, Ed.D. Honored with “Walk a Mile in My Shoes” Display
Walk a Mile in My Shoes, a public artwork started in 2011 by Kim Abeles (MFA from UCI in 1980), was commissioned by the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs and the Bureau of Engineering.
The initial display, a redesign of two traffic medians, opened to the public at Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard and Rodeo Road in Los Angeles. The display features photographs of the shoes of participants of the peace marches and colleagues of Dr. King. Artist Abeles (recipient of the 2013 Fellowship from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation) and professional photographer Ken Marchionno photographed the shoes in Atlanta, Georgia, from the collection of Xernona Clayton’s Civil Rights Walk of Fame.
A second site has been introduced at Jefferson Boulevard and Rodeo Road. The site occupies 20,000 square feet that has been transformed from a traffic median into a mini-park for visitors. The photographic tiles at this second site feature shoes of local, community-based activists.
From http://walkamileinmyshoes.us/
As explained by Artist Abeles:
The [Walk a Mile in My Shoes] artwork is inspired by a wish for all of us to walk in the footsteps of Martin Luther King, Jr., and those who walked in solidarity with the Civil Rights Movement. The sculpture of boots on the platform at the Jefferson site is a symbol of the hard work and journeys of those who take great risks for us. The artwork at both sites pays homage to the people who fight for us and who march together, and celebrates each of our roles in that effort.
Dr. Reginald Sample, Principal of Susan Miller Dorsey High School, and his shoes were selected for commemoration at the Jefferson/Rodeo site. During the June 26th unveiling ceremony, Dr. Sample, alumnus of the CSU/UCI Joint Ed.D. in Educational Administration and Leadership, was acknowledged as a “community member who goes that extra mile to help others.” His monumentation includes the following text:
Dr. Sample is an educator who believes in giving back to the community. He has dedicated 18 years to education working as a teacher, Education Specialist, and administrator at both the district and school site levels. He is the principal at Dorsey High School, and previously worked at Cimarron Avenue School and Henry Clay Junior High School, his elementary and junior high alma maters. He chose to work in the community that had a positive impact on his life educationally, mentally, socially, and spiritually. His late mother, a retired LAUSD teacher and community leader who became physically disabled, was his growing inspiration to teach, lead his community, and provide public service to others. He has also worked collaboratively with the Division of Special Education to develop and implement district-wide training to assist paraeducators in proving services to students with learning disabilities throughout the district.
