A Note from The President

Did you think I meant Obama? I bet you did. Don't lie, it's okay. 

A Note from The President of UNITE:

As we were flying home from our nation's capital this afternoon, I had a lot of time to collect my thoughts from the past four days of pure awesome-wowness. Yes, I just said 'awesome-wowness.' The experience was all too rewarding and wonderful to even define by just "awesome," or just ,"wow."  Though I am experiencing a case of jet lag and my body feels like bricks in a bag, they are both completely worth it when I think about all that has been accomplished in the past four days. When I started (and my awesome-wowness Vice President, Becky) planning this spring break trip, I had no idea where to start. I had no idea how to start! Can I just say thank goodness for google? It started off by a google search, which turned into an e-mail;which then turned into a phone call. Considering that I was not flying this trip solo, there were so many aspects to consider when planning a trip for 14 other dedicated UNITE members. Am I able to please everyone? Is everyone getting a taste of what they are interested in? Are there different degrees of the schools we will be visiting? Will we be able to compare and contrast? All of these aspects I considered when planning for this trip. Yet, in all honesty, I was going into this trip completely blind. I had no idea what to expect and I had no idea of the outcomes that would occur. As I was riding the plane back to home today with 14 other UNITE members scattered around the packed plane, I wrote a note to these members. It goes a little something like this:

First off, let me say thank you. Thank you for all of your cooperation in this trip. Thank you for all the patience with the ups and downs of getting lost. I swear I had a plan to get places each time but apparently my plans don't like to cooperate either! Thank you for all of the help you brought on this trip (Jorge and Erica, the Metro masters).Thank you for the smiles, the funny laughs and the quality bonding time. 

In a year, two years, three or four years from now when we all put on our teacher's hats (or political science hats), I hope that you all take the insight and lessons you have learned from these experiences with you. I hope that you remember the wall of college acceptance at SWW and never forget the unique qualities of the students and the school. I hope that children who barely know who you are, can warm your heart like the ones at Kid Power. I hope that you take Melvin's great words of advice and truly own your definition as a teacher. I also hope that you will always make certain that you do not treat your students through petty punitives and that you respect who they are as an individual. I hope that you take the motivation from the students at SEED with you and into your classroom. I hope that you remember the enthusiasm of the students at Washington Metropolitan and remember that in that moment, you could have impacted their future just by a simple conversation that you took time out of your day to have with them.

In these next few years when you all become teachers, I hope you know that you will have an advantage over most other teachers in and out of your school  building. Stand proud with your head on your shoulders because this IS something to be VERY proud of. You may not see it now, but someday that four day break that you took to care about education somewhere else in the world will ultimately impact your future students. These won't just be any students. You won't have to say goodbye to them after three hours and walk away wondering if you made any impact in their lives at all. They will be your students and you better believe that they will be in nothing but good hands!

Focus, pay attention, mind your own business, keep your hands to yourself, wash daily, pull your skirts down girls, pull your pants up (Jorge!), and never ever let anyone tell you who you are. :)

Never the end, only the beginning.

Love,

Laura :)

 

Day 4: We saved the best for last

Today UNITE started off with a trip to Washington Metropolitan High School. Due to our recent mastery of the D.C. Metro system, we were able to arrive an hour EARLY and had time to tour the neighborhood! The place was gorgeous, and the houses were brightly colored and spectacularly decorated. I am sure pictures will be added soon.

The school experience was even better. The students and faculty were so excited to have us that they all wore red and black to support our colors. They had even made signs - printed AND hand painted! - with our colors, name, and good ole' Reggie!

The students in the PGC (Peer Group Connection) are the student leaders at the school. They gave us a wonderful tour of the school and we were able to meet most of the teachers as well. We had a lot of group discussion time with them and eventually we were taken into the classrooms to play "college jeopardy" with them. The students were really getting into the game and had a great time. After that we were able to spend more group discussion time. We learned a lot about the students and their lives and issues living in an urban area. It was very enlightening.

Afterwards, half of UNITE stayed to participate in a "College Panel" in which we told our stories and answered their questions. The other half was able to speak with the administration. It was wonderful! After that, we spent more time just chatting and hanging out with the students . The school was gracious enough to buy us pizza for lunch - it was GREAT.




After leaving the school, "Fun-Day Friday" began. We broke into two groups and split up to visit the different museums in the area! One group went to the African Art Museum, the Capital Building, the Library of Congress, and visited the Supreme Court. Apparently, handstands are not allowed outside of the Supreme Court... who knew?! The other group went to the Museum of Natural History and the National Gallery. Seeing the work of Van Gogh, Gauguin, Monet, and others was enlightening and inspiring.

We met up for dinner at "Ollie's Trolley" - a classic burger and fries joint. The food was absolutely delicious and the place was packed with antique decor and coca-cola machines. We ended the night by splitting up again: The majority of us went to visit the Washington Monument, the WWII memorial, the Lincoln Memorial, and the White House. There are some "UNITE" photos that will be posted soon! The monuments were beautiful! The other group, the members who had already seen the sights enjoyed some downtown shopping.


All-in-all, we definitely saved the best for last. The school was SO excited to have us and we learned so much by getting to hang out with some average, typical DC high school students. It was heartwarming to see how much they cared. The sightseeing was also fabulous - we all got to enjoy the city for all that it had to offer. We are all so sad that the trip is over, but the memories we have made are unforgettable. Photos and videos will probably be added soon, so keep checking back. For now, we are all going to rest before our flight home tomorrow!

Peace, Love, and UNITE!

Day 3: D.C. Drizzles can't bring these dawgs down!

So today we woke up to a bright and shiny - Erm, I mean, wet and rainy - morning looking forward to African Heritage Dancers and Drummers as well and a tour of the D.C. SEED school. Despite the rain, we managed to have a great time laughing and joking with one another and had some great experiences as well.

The African American Dancers and Drummers seminar was amazing. There is a video of us dawgs gettin our groove on to the beats of Melvin's drumming a couple of posts below. Melvin founded this program 55 years ago while attending Howard University as an elementary ed major. He was asked to utilize his skills of dance to help urban students learn and grow. He eventually decided that the students needed him more in the community, where he can work with all sorts of students, rather than in only one classroom. He works with students in groups ages 4-13 and 14-18. He runs both after school programs and a summer program.

He started out by showing us some simple hand motions that stood for things we often need to tell our students such as, "focus," "pay attention," "keep your hands to yourself," and others. The signs could really help us save time in our classroom! Melvin also taught us quite a bit about "Afro-Native American History," which is the history of those with both African and Native American blood. He gave us much insight and information on different issues regarding slavery, past culture, and present culture. After that he explained his program and how it works. He gave us quite a bit of insight on the different ways that teachers need to allow students to grow and how they can use dance, meditation, and art in the classroom to facilitate that. One of his main points was that teacher need to make sure that students know they are important. A great quote to sum up his advice:
"As teachers, we have to own our definition. We cannot let someone take that away from us. Know who you are and be confident enough in yourself to know that you can impact students. Some people (parents, fellow teachers, etc) might tell you that you shouldn't do this and you shouldn't do that; that it will have no impact on the students. Prove that it can. Own your definition."
He then gave us an example of his drumming and taught us some killa moves! Check out the video below.

We also went to tour the SEED school, featured in Waiting for Superman, which is the first public boarding school in America. Our path to the school became a bit convoluted after a few wrong turns, and we ended up walking in the rain up and down a few hills unnecessarily. We found a way to make it fun, though, and we had a great time bonding on the way! The ironic part was that at the beginning of our tour we saw a SEED school van and thought, "Hey! Maybe they could give us a ride!" but laughed that idea off and assumed the van was on school business. We later found out that the school had, unbeknownst to us, sent the van to pick us up - we learned this about thirty minutes later when we finally arrived to the school soaked and silly.

Our tour was lead by a junior and senior who had both been there since 7th grade, when the school accepted students. They now start accepting in 6th grade. The tour was very genuine and interesting! We got to see the whole school, many of the students, the dorms, the classrooms, and ask the students as many questions as we wanted to ask. Our tour guides were very funny and interesting. They were definitely doing all that they could to make us comfortable and ensure that we were getting all that we wanted and needed.

After the tour we had some free time since our appointment with Dr. Kanter got cancelled, so we went downtown and had a nice meal and a short bit of sight seeing. Tomorrow when we have our designated sight-seeing time, we will already have an idea of where we want to go! We are looking forward to a great time and will certainly keep you all updated again. Be sure to check out the videos and reflects below this entry!

Peace, love, and UNITE!

Reflect and Collect:: Day 3

Some reflect and collects about our day at the African Heritage Dancing and Drumming and SEED school!

Colleen Burger:

So often, as teachers, we introduce ourselves by our content area; "I'm an English major"----"I"m a biology major." We learned today, though, that before we can even consider our content area or subject matter, we must first create people of our students. We must first become people teachers. Urban or rural, money or not, we all come from places and have experiences that tell us we are unworthy --people who make us believe we cannot succeed or even be helped. Everyone in this room, though, in one way or another, has moved beyond and succeeded in spite of that negativity. Now, then, it's our job --not to teach Hamlet or mitosis -- but to believe in and love our students so that they can go forth as whole beings with an internal conviction to achieve nothing less than greatness. As we learned today, we must recreate the personhood and self esteem in all of our students and peers -- black or white, young or old-- because, in the end, isn't that what it's all about? How could we ever go forth without it?

Day 2: Dancing Our Way Through D.C.

At African Heritage Dancing and Drumming, UNITE dances away the rainy day.

Reflect & Collect: Day 2

Some reflect and collects about our day at School Without Walls and volunteering with Kids Power DC!

Bess Lanker:

-While playing Little Sally Walker (see post below), a brave student named Carla showed Bess up by breaking out into the splits for her dance move! We were ALL impressed!

Sarah Ledbetter:

- Wow, couldn't have said it better myself!

Sarah Davis:

- When working one on one with a student during the after-school program, Sarah's student said to her, " I hate math. I like reading. Why can't I just read a book?"  At School Without Walls, they had an entire bulletin board full of college pennants that their seniors have been accepted into!

Jenna Grites:

- "A school is as good as a community that keeps it." This saying was on the Barnard Elementary school sign. This statement really hit home for UNITE members.

We ended the day by cramping into one small motel room to share our thoughts about the events of the day. The day was nothing short of amazing! As we are getting ready to get some rest for tomorrow, I can't help but think, "You'll miss the best things if you keep your eyes shut."

Night world!

UNITE: The Sally Walker Edition

After a long day of volunteering and commuting, UNITE members unwind a little by dancing it out with the students from Kid Power DC.