Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Depart: 6:21am
Chicago, IL
Arrive: 9:10am
Charlotte, NC
Depart: 11:30am
Charlotte, NC
Arrive: 1:29pm
Guatemala City, Guatemala
Saturday, June 7, 2008
Depart: 2:25pm
Guatemala City, Guatemala
Arrive: 8:14pm
Charlotte, NC
Depart: 10:20pm
Charlotte, NC
Arrive: 11:22pm
Chicago, IL
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Swimming with crocodiles for an education
A South African village is demanding that a bridge be built across a crocodile-infested river to stop children swimming it to get to school.
Read more here.
Read more here.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
A $125,000 Starting teacher's salary: brought to you by TFA alum
I will be closely following this experiment...
Saturday, March 01, 2008
It's a Dream Day, Baby
I fell in love with Pedro Albizu Campos Elementary within the first 30 minutes of my interview on Tuesday. Located in Central Harlem (on 134th street), and named after this guy, the school's student body is made up of about 83% Latino (mostly Puerto Rican and Dominican), 14% African American, and a small but growing number of Middle Eastern students. While about 96% of students qualify for free/reduced lunch, the school sets high expectations for their students and and demands a committed staff in pursuit of academic success.
To make sure that students aren't held back by limited resources, the faculty recognizes the importance of collaboration between the public and private sector, and continues to apply for and receive corporate grants in order to create a resource-rich learning environment in an under-served district. Because of these efforts, the school boasts:
-2 fully equipped computer rooms. (Children begin to learn dual-systems in kindergarten!)
-1 fully equipped music room with keyboards (through a partnership with VH1)
-A theater (this made my day).
-Beautiful, colorful classrooms with electronic chalkboards
-A colorful library media center
-An art room
-A science room
-A 2 million dollar athletic track and field complex
-The "Say Yes to Education" grant, which allows 114 kindergarten students, upon high school graduation, to attend the college of their choice for free. In addition, it provides tuition support for all siblings, and full time social service workers throughout their k-12 educational experience.
Oh, and, Albizu Campos Elementary won the "Best of the Best" Intel and Scholastic Schools award in 2006 for their innovative "school as a community" model.
I know. It kind of seems like I made this place up. But I promise, it's real.
I will be teaching there this fall.
To make sure that students aren't held back by limited resources, the faculty recognizes the importance of collaboration between the public and private sector, and continues to apply for and receive corporate grants in order to create a resource-rich learning environment in an under-served district. Because of these efforts, the school boasts:
-2 fully equipped computer rooms. (Children begin to learn dual-systems in kindergarten!)
-1 fully equipped music room with keyboards (through a partnership with VH1)
-A theater (this made my day).
-Beautiful, colorful classrooms with electronic chalkboards
-A colorful library media center
-An art room
-A science room
-A 2 million dollar athletic track and field complex
-The "Say Yes to Education" grant, which allows 114 kindergarten students, upon high school graduation, to attend the college of their choice for free. In addition, it provides tuition support for all siblings, and full time social service workers throughout their k-12 educational experience.
Oh, and, Albizu Campos Elementary won the "Best of the Best" Intel and Scholastic Schools award in 2006 for their innovative "school as a community" model.
I know. It kind of seems like I made this place up. But I promise, it's real.
I will be teaching there this fall.