Week 19: Conversing

Oh just working at the office at 10pm, after a regular 10-hour work day.

Prepping schools on the south side for 800 awesome volunteers next week

 This week was full of:  Meetings with important people and deep conversations with students.  I met with a representative of The Bulls to share what we do and how I've impacted my students, I was interviewed by a researcher who is investigating the effectiveness of City Year, and I had a phone interview for a position on the planning committee for Camp City Year.  Also, spending a day prepping for our MLK Day of Service, leaving notes for some students to get on a day we're not there, and putting in in my second 60-hour week in a row. 


Quotes of the Week: 
"Hope you're having a nice start to 2011, Ms. Lewis!" - One of my fourth-graders from last year, via email :-) 

Me: Why are you having such a good day, M?
M: I'm starting to learn math!!

"When you find what you love to do, take that opportunity and don't let it go." - The Community Relations Manager for The Bulls 

"I hate black people.  All they do is kill and rape and go to jail...  I'm black and I dislike black people."  - A Junior, on an essay (Later, conversations with a school counselor and my roommate informed me that this isn't uncommon in the black community.  This junior also has the lowest confidence of any student I've ever met.  I can't imagine having to untangle my opinions about my very own race while constructing my self-concept... I guess not having to form an opinion of, or even be ashamed of, my race is something I've taken for granted.)

"Kids love the attention that you (City Year) are able to give them... and for some of them, that's the only attention they get." - Our Principal

"It's imperative we build a system that demonstrates it can effectively and consistently prepare students for graduation and beyond, and in order to do so we need real change." - Reverend Bachus, in a Letter to the Editor in the local newspaper of my school's community

"Ms. Lewis, will you stay in this class and help me?" - A Junior, while I stopped by his class to print something (I stayed :-)

Joys:  Having one student who is hard to reach and rarely comes to school actually stick around to chat with me and show me a photo of his friend who was shot and killed; seeing kids at the school on the south side we prepped to paint (I forgot I missed little kids!); meeting one of my favorite student's little brother who has autism; helping a student on an assignment for another class during lunch; and really deep, genuine conversations with V about his fears and dreams for the future, D about his anger and lack of effort, and J about drugs and his family.