Task: Draw Something about Today
mark's
christina's
cara p.'s
lien's
vanessa's
jheeyae's
jem's
taylor's
clare's
cara m.'s
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Wild and Wonderful (We Believe It)
We are home
THE END
WE WERE FINAILLY ON TIME TODAY (as usually the inhabitances of room 2 were ready before room 1), but we all made it out the door by 10. It was an uneventful night, except for my sleep moans and Mark’s snoring (no attempts were made on his life last night). As the others and I packed our belonging into our bags, I had mix emotions that I believe the other members in the group felt. I was excited to be going home, but I did not want to leave. I did not want to leave the hospitality, the home-cooked meals, my new family, and the wonderful students, teachers and nonprofit volunteers we have met this week. I did not want to leave a place that believes in always making time for the ones around them. I did not want to leave an environment with so much pride in their culture and state. But, I wanted to go home to my state and the people I love to make time for.
We finally got our bags packed and divided into two groups. One group got the opportunity to ride in the creepy white van one last time (this group was being dropped off at the metro station). The more fortunate group members got to ride in the smaller van (a Cadillac compared to the creeper van). We loaded our belongings into the vans for the final time. Lien handed the keys to the Scott’s Run House over to Sarah and we were on our way back to Maryland. The drive back to Maryland was the shortest drive we had all week. It took us six hours to get to Welch (future home of Taylor). It was five hours from Welch to Scott’s Run. The drive home was the usual winding roads and climbing of mountains (Clare had a tuff time on the ride home, her ears would not pop). We made a pit stop at McDonalds for lunch (finally Erica got to eat McDonalds). We briefly ate and continued discussing our experiences we had this week. At McDonalds we said our good-byes because each van was dropping people off in different locations. We hugged and talked about plans for reunions (one being the Rough n Rowdy event next March). As we were driving home, I began to think about what I have learned this week. Here are some of the things I have learned this week:
1. To find a mate:
a. Have shiny shoes. If your shoes are ugly, then there is a good chance you are ugly (life lesson taught by Al Anderson. On tour this summer with his sweet dance moves and is old time rock n roll).
b. Never take the last piece of food from a plate. If you do so, you will never get married.
c. For Women, if you want to marry, you must learn how to cook for a group of 12 by age nine (or don’t move to Kenya)
2. If you don’t recycle, you get beaten and Polar bears die (for more information on recycling, please feel free to contact Lien).
3. You know you are true friends when you can discuss poop.
4. Never walk up to unmarked buildings, you never know what you might find (I found inmates, what have you found?).
5. Stereotypes are crushed when you take the time to get to know someone.
6. Everyone has their own idea of success.
7. Our homelife, race, and SES affects our progress in life.
9. The people of Appalachia take pride in their mountains, families, religions, music, food, history and are the most welcoming and loving people I have every had the opportunity to meet.
10. There is not one cause of poverty.
11. Students in rural areas have many of the same struggles that students in urban settings have.
12. Coal companies still have a strong hold on communities and decide the futures of towns.
13. 12 people from different backgrounds can come together and make a difference in a community.
Sarah, the one with super woman abilities
P.S. Shout-out to MopSickMom
Friday, March 19, 2010
WASAFIRI: Travellers
After a night full of violent sleep walking, moaning, and excessive snoring, we woke up (mildly late once again...) and started taking orders from Pete, the Projects Manager of SRSH. The masculine men, and Lien and Cara P., finished painting the shelves in the food pantry. Once again, group two let us down and we had to paint all the nooks and crannies with Butch watching over our shoulders. Meanwhile, eight ladies put up fencing to keep the small child from running into Osage's main street. Erica once again stood and watched.
After moving the food back onto the shelves, the more capable team members used brute force to move the freezer and ancient stove out of the kitchen; while Erica and the others "washed" the play equipment outside. In addition, the more capable team members organized a group dance (featuring give me that fish).
The explorers, with our shiny shoes, took to the streets of Osage. We finally made it to the river after passing an abandoned sand company and getting barked at by passing trucks. After unsuccessfully hitchhiking, we arrived home to a lively bunch of nappers. Our final service project at SRSH was to collect cans that the Abby and her friends (a.k.a. WVU sororities) had donated.
Before our Kenyan dining experience, we played a fierce game of mafia. Taylor selfishly saved himself each round and Jheeyae fooled us all. After, we decided to eat at the Kenyan Cafe (the only African restaurant in Morgantown). We met the owner, Denis Gekara, who used his own business plan to open up this local hot spot. We convinced him to open up a restaurant in CP, where we will be his employees. Some of our stomachs are still feeling the aftermath of the food, but we would all go back for seconds.
We have all reached a new level in our friendships now that we can discuss our poop. Our final reflection discussed the highs and the lows that we experienced this week, as well as new things we have learned. Overall, we can say that the residents of WV have proved many of our stereotypes wrong and we will truly miss it (good thing Taylor is buying a house for us in Welch).
In the meantime, our financial needs will be met by Christina winning the WV lottery, we will be entertained by Mark's melodious vocal skillz, encouraged by Erica's hard work, educated by Lien's recycling obsession, tricked by Jheeyae's poker face, suffocated by Vanessa's lack of showering, enlightened by Cara P's knowledge of everything, saved by Sarah's super woman abilities, made uncomfortable by Clare's awkward face, and inspired by J to the M's (Jem) vast knowledge of movies.
"Some people do the most useless things on spring break"- Denis Gekara
But,we have been moved by the mountains.
Taylor, with a creepy face
Cara M, sleep walking terrorist
Reunion and House Warming information to come.
After moving the food back onto the shelves, the more capable team members used brute force to move the freezer and ancient stove out of the kitchen; while Erica and the others "washed" the play equipment outside. In addition, the more capable team members organized a group dance (featuring give me that fish).
The explorers, with our shiny shoes, took to the streets of Osage. We finally made it to the river after passing an abandoned sand company and getting barked at by passing trucks. After unsuccessfully hitchhiking, we arrived home to a lively bunch of nappers. Our final service project at SRSH was to collect cans that the Abby and her friends (a.k.a. WVU sororities) had donated.
Before our Kenyan dining experience, we played a fierce game of mafia. Taylor selfishly saved himself each round and Jheeyae fooled us all. After, we decided to eat at the Kenyan Cafe (the only African restaurant in Morgantown). We met the owner, Denis Gekara, who used his own business plan to open up this local hot spot. We convinced him to open up a restaurant in CP, where we will be his employees. Some of our stomachs are still feeling the aftermath of the food, but we would all go back for seconds.
We have all reached a new level in our friendships now that we can discuss our poop. Our final reflection discussed the highs and the lows that we experienced this week, as well as new things we have learned. Overall, we can say that the residents of WV have proved many of our stereotypes wrong and we will truly miss it (good thing Taylor is buying a house for us in Welch).
In the meantime, our financial needs will be met by Christina winning the WV lottery, we will be entertained by Mark's melodious vocal skillz, encouraged by Erica's hard work, educated by Lien's recycling obsession, tricked by Jheeyae's poker face, suffocated by Vanessa's lack of showering, enlightened by Cara P's knowledge of everything, saved by Sarah's super woman abilities, made uncomfortable by Clare's awkward face, and inspired by J to the M's (Jem) vast knowledge of movies.
"Some people do the most useless things on spring break"- Denis Gekara
But,we have been moved by the mountains.
Taylor, with a creepy face
Cara M, sleep walking terrorist
Reunion and House Warming information to come.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
HANDS UP!!!
Today was our first full day at the Scott's Run Settlement House. We got to wake up at 8:30...the extra two hours were great!! We all ate breakfast and then got to relax for another 30 minutes before our work began. We split into two groups; one went on a tour of Osage and one stayed behind in the food pantry to do some hard labor...or paint (you can decide if that's hard labor). By the way we are super jealous of Big Red (the settlement house's 12 person van) because it was much nicer than our 1997 white creeper van.
The town of Osage was nicer than we expected. There were a lot of wealthier homes, but certainly pockets of impoverished areas. When you drove into the impoverished areas all the businesses were abandoned, as a result of the coal business leaving the area. Once a thriving city, the rundown buildings still stand along side mom N pop businesses still trying to maintain a purpose and identity like Al's Shoe Repair ( who kindly shined two pairs of boots today free of charge)...Sarah and Cara's hey that rhymes...hope they have better luck finding love now hehe! While one group was getting a tour the other was back in the food pantry moving food off the shelves preparing to paint them.
"Yeah I wish I had more paint so you guys could paint the whole room" ..(awkward stares but smiles)..of course we would have been willing but we just stuck to the shelves...tomorrow maybe ?? Heavy loading back and forth moving many piles of canned food..yea we're all superheroes now! Paint job began while the cooking for Luncheon with the elderly members of the community took place in the nearby rm..shooutouts to Mark for holding down the fly swatting position while the smoke alarm continuously went off. With one shelf completed and the tour group returned it was time for the luncheon.
As the elderly community members arrived Sarah welcomed them and began chatting right away (she is a big fan of the senior citizens!) There was tons of food...homemade chili, mac and cheese (great, but not better than noodles), fried chicken, and lots more. The food was delicious even though the smoke alarm was going off during preparation! During the luncheon we met Al who had great stories about the history of Osage and serenaded us with his beautiful voice (Mark we are disappointed with your lack of participation...no star for you!!!) After the luncheon we cleaned up and it was back to touring and painting with full stomachs...don't feed the volunteers...after that good food we wanted to nap! The groups switched jobs, one heading off for their tour and the other starting to get their Picasso on!
After a full day of work it was time for a night out on the town! We ventured to Morgantown for some Dairy Queen! The icecream was delicious, but it definitely was not the best part of the night. Riding the WVU personal rapid transit was of course the highlight of the evening...so much better than shuttleUM...especially when we aren't even sure if we paid for it..Thanks Taylor (that's what you get for hiding the fruit snacks!!) After our full loop on the transit we explored the town. During this exploration Taylor came up with a new idea...HANDS UP!!!!...we had to walk through Morgantown with your hands in the air to make sure we were all fully participating in family time. As if WVU didn't like us Terps already...we had to make it VERY clear that we were outsiders! We had some extra time to kill so we went to Barnes and Noble...not Nobles...we are very educational savvy...some books were actually purchased!!
During our reflection we did an activity that required you to take a step forward everytime you agreed with a statement (ex. take a step forward if you had someone to care for you after school). The activity really made us realize how our homelife, race and, SES affects our progress in life. We also had a discussion on affirmative action and whether or not it was beneficial or staggering. Following that intense convo we played a quick round of Taboo (Vanessa needs to improve on her Taboo skills, but we still love her :)...and maybe her showering skills according to Taylor).
Alright well now it is time to shower and get ready for our big sleepover!
~Erica (the girl who still wants McDonalds!!)
++**Christina not MIA typing++**
The town of Osage was nicer than we expected. There were a lot of wealthier homes, but certainly pockets of impoverished areas. When you drove into the impoverished areas all the businesses were abandoned, as a result of the coal business leaving the area. Once a thriving city, the rundown buildings still stand along side mom N pop businesses still trying to maintain a purpose and identity like Al's Shoe Repair ( who kindly shined two pairs of boots today free of charge)...Sarah and Cara's hey that rhymes...hope they have better luck finding love now hehe! While one group was getting a tour the other was back in the food pantry moving food off the shelves preparing to paint them.
"Yeah I wish I had more paint so you guys could paint the whole room" ..(awkward stares but smiles)..of course we would have been willing but we just stuck to the shelves...tomorrow maybe ?? Heavy loading back and forth moving many piles of canned food..yea we're all superheroes now! Paint job began while the cooking for Luncheon with the elderly members of the community took place in the nearby rm..shooutouts to Mark for holding down the fly swatting position while the smoke alarm continuously went off. With one shelf completed and the tour group returned it was time for the luncheon.
As the elderly community members arrived Sarah welcomed them and began chatting right away (she is a big fan of the senior citizens!) There was tons of food...homemade chili, mac and cheese (great, but not better than noodles), fried chicken, and lots more. The food was delicious even though the smoke alarm was going off during preparation! During the luncheon we met Al who had great stories about the history of Osage and serenaded us with his beautiful voice (Mark we are disappointed with your lack of participation...no star for you!!!) After the luncheon we cleaned up and it was back to touring and painting with full stomachs...don't feed the volunteers...after that good food we wanted to nap! The groups switched jobs, one heading off for their tour and the other starting to get their Picasso on!
After a full day of work it was time for a night out on the town! We ventured to Morgantown for some Dairy Queen! The icecream was delicious, but it definitely was not the best part of the night. Riding the WVU personal rapid transit was of course the highlight of the evening...so much better than shuttleUM...especially when we aren't even sure if we paid for it..Thanks Taylor (that's what you get for hiding the fruit snacks!!) After our full loop on the transit we explored the town. During this exploration Taylor came up with a new idea...HANDS UP!!!!...we had to walk through Morgantown with your hands in the air to make sure we were all fully participating in family time. As if WVU didn't like us Terps already...we had to make it VERY clear that we were outsiders! We had some extra time to kill so we went to Barnes and Noble...not Nobles...we are very educational savvy...some books were actually purchased!!
During our reflection we did an activity that required you to take a step forward everytime you agreed with a statement (ex. take a step forward if you had someone to care for you after school). The activity really made us realize how our homelife, race and, SES affects our progress in life. We also had a discussion on affirmative action and whether or not it was beneficial or staggering. Following that intense convo we played a quick round of Taboo (Vanessa needs to improve on her Taboo skills, but we still love her :)...and maybe her showering skills according to Taylor).
Alright well now it is time to shower and get ready for our big sleepover!
~Erica (the girl who still wants McDonalds!!)
++**Christina not MIA typing++**
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Bringing sunshine to Welch
Today we actually woke up earlier than usual. There was some moaning, snoring, and sleep talking during the night so we were afraid. After the mad dash to the door, we all climbed into the van and made our way to Iaeger for our third and final day.
Before arriving at the school, our whole group was feeling anxious, nervous and excited. We are a pretty diverse group so as a whole we had some preconceived notions about the culture of the area. We (Clare + Vanessa) thought that the students and staff of the school might be cautious and suspicious of our presence as “foreigners” in the area because we were trying to place ourselves in their shoes.
Over the past couple of days we observed some similarities and differences between rural schools in this area and the urban schools back home. The biggest similarity we found is that teenagers are pretty much the same anywhere you go. We found some differences as well. The biggest difference we found was definitely the respect students had for the teachers at both the elementary and high school. If teachers gave students directions, the students would listen the first time they were given (for the most part – still teenagers!), which is something, in our experience, is very rare in urban settings.
At the same time, there definitely seems to be a disconnect between the elementary school and the high school. Overall, the high school seemed to have a more apathetic attitude towards learning as opposed to the proactive elementary school. We think that there are many factors that may contribute to this – age being one of the biggest.
Leaving Iaeger today was bittersweet. We were extremely sad to leave but excited about the new experiences later in the week. We are extremely thankful to the students and staff at both Iaeger Elementary and High School, as well as Arnie and Kathy from the food pantry, for being welcoming and so friendly. As we were leaving the high school, the sun was shining (finally) and we felt as though it was an omen for good things to come.
We believe it,
Clare, the one who thinks that everyday is SUPER exciting &
Vanessa, the girl who showers on the regular
Before arriving at the school, our whole group was feeling anxious, nervous and excited. We are a pretty diverse group so as a whole we had some preconceived notions about the culture of the area. We (Clare + Vanessa) thought that the students and staff of the school might be cautious and suspicious of our presence as “foreigners” in the area because we were trying to place ourselves in their shoes.
Over the past couple of days we observed some similarities and differences between rural schools in this area and the urban schools back home. The biggest similarity we found is that teenagers are pretty much the same anywhere you go. We found some differences as well. The biggest difference we found was definitely the respect students had for the teachers at both the elementary and high school. If teachers gave students directions, the students would listen the first time they were given (for the most part – still teenagers!), which is something, in our experience, is very rare in urban settings.
At the same time, there definitely seems to be a disconnect between the elementary school and the high school. Overall, the high school seemed to have a more apathetic attitude towards learning as opposed to the proactive elementary school. We think that there are many factors that may contribute to this – age being one of the biggest.
Leaving Iaeger today was bittersweet. We were extremely sad to leave but excited about the new experiences later in the week. We are extremely thankful to the students and staff at both Iaeger Elementary and High School, as well as Arnie and Kathy from the food pantry, for being welcoming and so friendly. As we were leaving the high school, the sun was shining (finally) and we felt as though it was an omen for good things to come.
We believe it,
Clare, the one who thinks that everyday is SUPER exciting &
Vanessa, the girl who showers on the regular
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Jheeyae: We started the day with almost getting hit by the truck. It was one of those nearly killed incidents that happened in WV since the day Taylor almost plunged our van into the flooded water. However, we did arrive Iaeger elementary and high school safely.After spending the morning hours split into elementary and high school lovers, we got together to enjoy pizza party hosted by Iaeger HS. We thank Ms. McCoy and Iaeger HS for bringing the Welch pizza and sparing the library during the lunch time for us. It was our first time having a Welch pizza and it was a pleasant surprise to find pepperoni hidden underneath the cheese and the pizza sliced in rectangles. It struck us later that we forgot to ask whether the pizza was Welch style cheese pizza or pepperoni pizza.
In the virtual Spanish class, one of the boys told us that there's no point in studying intense spanish because he'll never use it anyway. That reminded me how difficult it is to provide them the purpose in furthering their education. If they think that they will never be in a situation where speaking spanish comes in handy, why would they study hard other than to get A's in the class or than to graduate HS, it may be more productive in their perspective to use that time to do other things.
Cara: I've been spending my days in Ms. Justice's Virtual Spanish II class which is quite a shock. The students complete online assignments and receive calls and very occasional visits from an actual Spanish speaker. To be honest, I was astonished and saddened to see students in this environment, yet impressed with their progress despite the considerable handicap of not having a Spanish teacher in the classroom. Learning the grammar of Spanish (i.e. ALL OF SPANISH II) can be VERY dry, especially when nobody is actually there to teach. The students dealt with this incredible challenge of learning on their own in different ways, but it was difficult to blame those so frustrated that they gave up. However, some of the students approached the subject with a sense of humor and intellectual curiosity. The third block was especially lively, teasing me about West Virginia stereotypes. A sample:
Me: So what do you all do for fun around here?
Student: Have you ever dated kin?
These kids were so welcoming and open, sort of self-derogatory but still comfortable with their town. They definitely exaggerated their accents around us, playing "real West Virginia music" (that banjo music at the beginning of Car Talk) and demonstrating the "flat-foot." Yesterday, they gave us a movie they made in drama class brilliantly entitled The Bloody Attack of the Evil Demonic Giraffe Puppet.
Yes. The Bloody Attack of the Evil Demonic Giraffe Puppet. It lived up to its title.
Then we headed over to the elementary school, which is always really fun. I miss first grade so much! Highlights include eating pears, sitting on those tiny chairs, and playing with those . . . . shape . . . things? . . . that you make pictures with. It's real. I promise. I definitely did it in elementary school, and I was proud to see that the Wildcats of Iaegar Elementary carried on the tradition. The kids were incredibly welcoming. I think most of us are going to have a really hard time leaving Iaeger tomorrow. I also caught a bit of Scooby Doo as the kids were leaving. Ah, childhood. . . .
After school, we made our triumphant return to Walmart, the place where everyone in these parts seems to do most of the shopping. We picked up some supplies for the schools and, of course, some "Rough and Rowdy: McDowell (MAC Dowell, to the locals) County" tee shirts. Which are awesum. Expect some matching shirt pictures from the cool kids soon.
With very little time to put away our purchase and grab a bagel to assuage our hunger, we headed out to the McDowell County Board of Education meeting. Iaeger High School is currently in the process of being consolidated with its rival school. I will be sad to see the quintessential movie-set-perfect high schooliness of Iaeger be demolished, but apparently the new school will have state of the art facilities. Since football is such a unifying force around here, the Board was concerned with the lack of communication involved in building their athletic facilities. If the football fields aren't prepared in time, the new school will have to miss a season, an inauspicious beginning to an already difficult process. It was absolutely amazing and completely frustrating how complicated the process of making a football field is. It involved contractors and subcontractors and fights over liability and sod. It was a pretty disillusioning experience. This scene of tangled governance and blame passing was so familiar. The idea that someone should do something was there, as were ideas to make changes. But the Board members seemed to think they had been talking about the same issue for months without result. It makes you wonder how any significant change can ever happen anywhere if it's nearly impossible to get a football field ready by the fall.
On the contrary to the first part of the meeting, the rest of the meeting ended with positive note. The teacher at Iaeger HS requested for Board approval to take the HS students out for a field trip. It's their second time providing students the opportunities to visit the symphony and museums of Charleston, the state capital. Of course, the Board approved the request with 100% support.
After the Board meeting, we could not resist the taste of Welch, the Drive-In. We had our eyes on that restaurant the moment we entered the town of Welch and finally, we had our chance. A lot of us expected to get our food and eat in the cramped van but we, obviously, shouldn't make them bring out the food for 12 people to the car. So we had our food inside the restaurant. We also could not hide our excitement over the Drive-In and had to show our "touristy" pride by taking pictures just outside of the restaurant. The food was great. We got to experience a piece of Welch culture.
We headed back to the creepy church to reflect on the day's activities,while trying not to venture into the dark hallways by ourselves. We watched the first part of the PBS documentary Declining by Degrees which provides insight into the failure of American higher education, and followed it up with an intense discussion away from the mysterious clanking noises in the kitchen.
If it seems like we're rambling and more than a little bit sleep deprived it's because we are. We have to leave by 7 in the morning (!!!!) and we're NEVER late. We've had to cope with Lien's blatant discrimination against the lovely ladies of the Pioneer Room (that's what it's called, don't let anyone tell you otherwise) and threats to our personal welfare should we fail to recycle. Between all the service, in-depth conversations and internet hijinx, we are simply exhausted. And of course, we have loads of stuff to do tomorrow, including: actually getting to Iaeger on time, taking a picture with their cub mascot, taking in some culture at the Cracker Barrel, and leaving Welch for Osage. We're all sad to be leaving Welch and its environs, but we're looking forward to the next chapter in our West Virginia epic. (It's really late, so I can use cheesy metaphors!)
Until tomorrow. . .
Jheeyae- the turtle flapper.
Cara Paul- the champion shower-er
In the virtual Spanish class, one of the boys told us that there's no point in studying intense spanish because he'll never use it anyway. That reminded me how difficult it is to provide them the purpose in furthering their education. If they think that they will never be in a situation where speaking spanish comes in handy, why would they study hard other than to get A's in the class or than to graduate HS, it may be more productive in their perspective to use that time to do other things.
Cara: I've been spending my days in Ms. Justice's Virtual Spanish II class which is quite a shock. The students complete online assignments and receive calls and very occasional visits from an actual Spanish speaker. To be honest, I was astonished and saddened to see students in this environment, yet impressed with their progress despite the considerable handicap of not having a Spanish teacher in the classroom. Learning the grammar of Spanish (i.e. ALL OF SPANISH II) can be VERY dry, especially when nobody is actually there to teach. The students dealt with this incredible challenge of learning on their own in different ways, but it was difficult to blame those so frustrated that they gave up. However, some of the students approached the subject with a sense of humor and intellectual curiosity. The third block was especially lively, teasing me about West Virginia stereotypes. A sample:
Me: So what do you all do for fun around here?
Student: Have you ever dated kin?
These kids were so welcoming and open, sort of self-derogatory but still comfortable with their town. They definitely exaggerated their accents around us, playing "real West Virginia music" (that banjo music at the beginning of Car Talk) and demonstrating the "flat-foot." Yesterday, they gave us a movie they made in drama class brilliantly entitled The Bloody Attack of the Evil Demonic Giraffe Puppet.
Yes. The Bloody Attack of the Evil Demonic Giraffe Puppet. It lived up to its title.
Then we headed over to the elementary school, which is always really fun. I miss first grade so much! Highlights include eating pears, sitting on those tiny chairs, and playing with those . . . . shape . . . things? . . . that you make pictures with. It's real. I promise. I definitely did it in elementary school, and I was proud to see that the Wildcats of Iaegar Elementary carried on the tradition. The kids were incredibly welcoming. I think most of us are going to have a really hard time leaving Iaeger tomorrow. I also caught a bit of Scooby Doo as the kids were leaving. Ah, childhood. . . .
After school, we made our triumphant return to Walmart, the place where everyone in these parts seems to do most of the shopping. We picked up some supplies for the schools and, of course, some "Rough and Rowdy: McDowell (MAC Dowell, to the locals) County" tee shirts. Which are awesum. Expect some matching shirt pictures from the cool kids soon.
With very little time to put away our purchase and grab a bagel to assuage our hunger, we headed out to the McDowell County Board of Education meeting. Iaeger High School is currently in the process of being consolidated with its rival school. I will be sad to see the quintessential movie-set-perfect high schooliness of Iaeger be demolished, but apparently the new school will have state of the art facilities. Since football is such a unifying force around here, the Board was concerned with the lack of communication involved in building their athletic facilities. If the football fields aren't prepared in time, the new school will have to miss a season, an inauspicious beginning to an already difficult process. It was absolutely amazing and completely frustrating how complicated the process of making a football field is. It involved contractors and subcontractors and fights over liability and sod. It was a pretty disillusioning experience. This scene of tangled governance and blame passing was so familiar. The idea that someone should do something was there, as were ideas to make changes. But the Board members seemed to think they had been talking about the same issue for months without result. It makes you wonder how any significant change can ever happen anywhere if it's nearly impossible to get a football field ready by the fall.
On the contrary to the first part of the meeting, the rest of the meeting ended with positive note. The teacher at Iaeger HS requested for Board approval to take the HS students out for a field trip. It's their second time providing students the opportunities to visit the symphony and museums of Charleston, the state capital. Of course, the Board approved the request with 100% support.
After the Board meeting, we could not resist the taste of Welch, the Drive-In. We had our eyes on that restaurant the moment we entered the town of Welch and finally, we had our chance. A lot of us expected to get our food and eat in the cramped van but we, obviously, shouldn't make them bring out the food for 12 people to the car. So we had our food inside the restaurant. We also could not hide our excitement over the Drive-In and had to show our "touristy" pride by taking pictures just outside of the restaurant. The food was great. We got to experience a piece of Welch culture.
We headed back to the creepy church to reflect on the day's activities,while trying not to venture into the dark hallways by ourselves. We watched the first part of the PBS documentary Declining by Degrees which provides insight into the failure of American higher education, and followed it up with an intense discussion away from the mysterious clanking noises in the kitchen.
If it seems like we're rambling and more than a little bit sleep deprived it's because we are. We have to leave by 7 in the morning (!!!!) and we're NEVER late. We've had to cope with Lien's blatant discrimination against the lovely ladies of the Pioneer Room (that's what it's called, don't let anyone tell you otherwise) and threats to our personal welfare should we fail to recycle. Between all the service, in-depth conversations and internet hijinx, we are simply exhausted. And of course, we have loads of stuff to do tomorrow, including: actually getting to Iaeger on time, taking a picture with their cub mascot, taking in some culture at the Cracker Barrel, and leaving Welch for Osage. We're all sad to be leaving Welch and its environs, but we're looking forward to the next chapter in our West Virginia epic. (It's really late, so I can use cheesy metaphors!)
Until tomorrow. . .
Jheeyae- the turtle flapper.
Cara Paul- the champion shower-er
Monday, March 15, 2010
Word of the Day = Reality
Today was a slap in the face to my views on a successful life. As an educator and a future teacher I was an advocate in believing that education can fix everything. I thought that if you want to go from bottom to top, working hard academically will open the gates to the golden city. But starting at the schools today was a reality check.....
As the nine (out of 12) of us walked up to Iaeger High School it felt like we were on the Real World or True Life, with all eyes on us. Students stared and some even took pictures. Even though all of us were college students, I felt the anxiety and nervousness of the first day of high school. As we walked up into the school it felt like we were walking into a tv screen into the All-American rural high school. School colors and pride filling the building. We were approached by Principal Gentry who welcomed us with open arms. As we took a tour of the two-story school we continued to endure the intensive stares. Teachers were friendly and accommodating. Afterwards we dispersed to our classes.
Cara M. and I first sat in with the AP & 10th grade English teacher's class. She is originally from northern West Virginia and a former college professor. She was very enthusiastic to tell us about the school systems and life in a rural country. She had introduced us to two guidance counselors who were very aware of the issues taking place in the school system. Apparently, grades are changed to ensure that the school do not have high failing rates. Meeting her students were less intimidating as expected. The students were very friendly and willing to engage in conversation. They were very interested in learning about college life, College Park, and life in DC. They thought my name was "pretty" and unique. They wondered if we thought they had accents, which to us, they did. To them apparently, we speak "real proper."
We then sat in on an English 9 class, which reminded me how much I hated English in high school. I learned that the school did not have the resources to give every student a book, which meant no one could have a book to take home. During reading time there weren't enough books of one kind to give out, so every student was reading a different book to do their assignment. This disturbed me a little, because knowing that when I was their age, I read really slow. Having only 20 minutes to read a book each class period with a book report due every 2 months would be overwhelming. It doesn't sound that hard as a college student, but imagine trying to read an entire book with other people moving back and forth in the the room around you. It must be frustrating.
Overall, what I gained from the students we talked to, they did not enjoy the curriculum they were learning. A lot of it is really boring to them. They were completely aware of their stereotype, they were aware of the lack of diversity, they were aware of what else is out there.
After lunch I was able to work in the elementary school, which was walking distance up the road. The principal there was also very friendly and welcoming. The school was very organized and disciplined. I helped out in a 1st grade class room which was a shock. The kids were very smart and understood the material in class. Like every other 1st grader, the attention span at the end of the day was minimal. It was clear that the teacher I was working with was burnt out. Seeing teachers so exhausted and overwhelmed sometimes worries me about my future career, but if I could help out students like these, who really need it, I can find self-satisfaction. In reflection, we were wondering at what point in these childrens' lives is the drastic change from engaged in school to skipping school constantly. An issue in theses schools is attendance. Teenagers in high schools, skip school for work, play, or the lack of interest in education.
One thing that stuck out today was lack of knowledge in diversity. In the high school, the students seemed aware of other ethnicities, but the only ones they have encountered are one Latino student, a half Asian student, and half Black student. That was the extent diversity in the school. In the cafeteria, we observed a large group of young children at lunch. In our group, the Vietnamese girl (Lien), Korean girl (Jheeyae), El Salvadorian (Vanessa) and Filipino (me) were called Chinese by young boys standing in line. What I would like to see in the future in these schools is education on multiculturalism and/or human geography. The high school is taking small steps in educating students about feminism and the civil rights acts, so maybe multicultural learning will come soon. The school day was interesting and a real educational experience.
Later on, we ate left overs, while the Gentlemen's Club of the church occupied the kitchen. For our evening entertainment we embarked on the infamous bowling alley of Welch, while wearing our teal ASB t-shirts and Iaegar High pins. The hot spot was packed with elderly men and women. After a long and intense game we concluded that Mark is a beast...and Taylor sucks.
Fun Facts of the Day
1. If you loose Cara M., she is actually editing prize-winning papers.
2. Vanessa and Lien <3 Ocean Blue Eyes
3. Apparently, Lien and Jheeyae are setting up these kids for spelling failure.
4. Taylor saves is best bowling skills to the absolute last moment of the game.
ASB WV IS AWESOME...with a 'som' not a 'sum'
Love,
Jem, I forgot to dot the "i"
As the nine (out of 12) of us walked up to Iaeger High School it felt like we were on the Real World or True Life, with all eyes on us. Students stared and some even took pictures. Even though all of us were college students, I felt the anxiety and nervousness of the first day of high school. As we walked up into the school it felt like we were walking into a tv screen into the All-American rural high school. School colors and pride filling the building. We were approached by Principal Gentry who welcomed us with open arms. As we took a tour of the two-story school we continued to endure the intensive stares. Teachers were friendly and accommodating. Afterwards we dispersed to our classes.
Cara M. and I first sat in with the AP & 10th grade English teacher's class. She is originally from northern West Virginia and a former college professor. She was very enthusiastic to tell us about the school systems and life in a rural country. She had introduced us to two guidance counselors who were very aware of the issues taking place in the school system. Apparently, grades are changed to ensure that the school do not have high failing rates. Meeting her students were less intimidating as expected. The students were very friendly and willing to engage in conversation. They were very interested in learning about college life, College Park, and life in DC. They thought my name was "pretty" and unique. They wondered if we thought they had accents, which to us, they did. To them apparently, we speak "real proper."
We then sat in on an English 9 class, which reminded me how much I hated English in high school. I learned that the school did not have the resources to give every student a book, which meant no one could have a book to take home. During reading time there weren't enough books of one kind to give out, so every student was reading a different book to do their assignment. This disturbed me a little, because knowing that when I was their age, I read really slow. Having only 20 minutes to read a book each class period with a book report due every 2 months would be overwhelming. It doesn't sound that hard as a college student, but imagine trying to read an entire book with other people moving back and forth in the the room around you. It must be frustrating.
Overall, what I gained from the students we talked to, they did not enjoy the curriculum they were learning. A lot of it is really boring to them. They were completely aware of their stereotype, they were aware of the lack of diversity, they were aware of what else is out there.
After lunch I was able to work in the elementary school, which was walking distance up the road. The principal there was also very friendly and welcoming. The school was very organized and disciplined. I helped out in a 1st grade class room which was a shock. The kids were very smart and understood the material in class. Like every other 1st grader, the attention span at the end of the day was minimal. It was clear that the teacher I was working with was burnt out. Seeing teachers so exhausted and overwhelmed sometimes worries me about my future career, but if I could help out students like these, who really need it, I can find self-satisfaction. In reflection, we were wondering at what point in these childrens' lives is the drastic change from engaged in school to skipping school constantly. An issue in theses schools is attendance. Teenagers in high schools, skip school for work, play, or the lack of interest in education.
One thing that stuck out today was lack of knowledge in diversity. In the high school, the students seemed aware of other ethnicities, but the only ones they have encountered are one Latino student, a half Asian student, and half Black student. That was the extent diversity in the school. In the cafeteria, we observed a large group of young children at lunch. In our group, the Vietnamese girl (Lien), Korean girl (Jheeyae), El Salvadorian (Vanessa) and Filipino (me) were called Chinese by young boys standing in line. What I would like to see in the future in these schools is education on multiculturalism and/or human geography. The high school is taking small steps in educating students about feminism and the civil rights acts, so maybe multicultural learning will come soon. The school day was interesting and a real educational experience.
Later on, we ate left overs, while the Gentlemen's Club of the church occupied the kitchen. For our evening entertainment we embarked on the infamous bowling alley of Welch, while wearing our teal ASB t-shirts and Iaegar High pins. The hot spot was packed with elderly men and women. After a long and intense game we concluded that Mark is a beast...and Taylor sucks.
Fun Facts of the Day
1. If you loose Cara M., she is actually editing prize-winning papers.
2. Vanessa and Lien <3 Ocean Blue Eyes
3. Apparently, Lien and Jheeyae are setting up these kids for spelling failure.
4. Taylor saves is best bowling skills to the absolute last moment of the game.
ASB WV IS AWESOME...with a 'som' not a 'sum'
Love,
Jem, I forgot to dot the "i"
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