Viola Davis’ SAG Speech Shouts Out Segue Institute’s 91% Latino Student Body [Video]

When Viola Davis won a SAG Award for Outstanding Female Actress in a leading role Sunday night her acceptance speech included a special note for the students at Segue Institute of Learning in Central Falls, Rhode Island.

By Jorge Rivas Jan 30, 2012

When Viola Davis won a SAG Award for Outstanding Female Actress in a leading role Sunday night her acceptance speech included a special note for the students at Segue Institute of Learning in Central Falls, Rhode Island. "I have a special note to the kids in Central Falls, Rhode Island and Segue Institute of Learning–dream big and dream fierce," Davis told students in her hometown. Segue Institute for Learning serves Central Falls students grades 6-8. [According to public records](http://publicschoolsk12.com/middle-schools/ri/providence-county/440001400472.html), 91% of the students are Latino and 9% are black. 57% of students are on reduced lunch. Central Falls was one of the cities with a large Latino population that made headlines in 2009 when leaders in the Latino community urged them to not participate in the 2010 Census as a [symbolic protest](http://www.conlamic.org/press_detail.php?press_id=290) for immigration reform.