Candidate for Ward 1 City Council

Fellow Affinity Lab member Brian Weaver was recently featured on the Washington City Paper’s website with the debut of his new political commercial. The video features Weaver moving through some of Ward 1′s most notable locales, including restaurants, bars and a other landmarks. The film was directed by Olivia Abtahi, director of Dreaming Out Loud’s “When Dreams Emerge, Communities Arise!” commercial and a forthcoming documentary on the experience of our summer program Project Dream Green.

Weaver has a strong record of community-engagement and youth-advocacy through organizations such as Hoops Sagrado. Sum of Change – a blog dedicated to socially, politically and culturally conscious media – has included the Ward 1 contestant among its coverage of this year’s DC election season.

With the hotly contested Democratic Primaries slated for September 14th, this is a critical stretch-run for all of the candidates. Jeff Smith, Executive Director of DC Voice and incumbent Ward 1 Councilman Jim Graham will vie for the seat which Graham has occupied since 1998.

With the increased attention brought by the ad debut on the Citypaper’s site -District’s premier source for all things fresh and new – the Weaver Campaign hopes the momentum can help springboard them to victory.

Dennis Chestnut gives reporters a tour of the Center for Green Urbanism.

In the May issue of the East of the River Magazine, Groundwork Anacostia River DC’s Center for Green Urbanism was featured as one of the Ward 7 community’s newest additions. Executive Director Dennis Chestnut gave the magazine an exclusive tour of the Center in its opening phases.

Located at 3938 Benning Road NE, the Center for Green Urbanism (CGU) is positioned primely between both Minnesota Avenue and Benning Road Metro Stations. In addition, it sits directly across from the recently completed Benning Neighborhood Library.

This summer the Center has played a central role in the implementation of Project Dream Green – the program collaboration between Groundwork and Dreaming Out Loud. With 72 youth participants reporting and working from the Ophelia Egypt Center, Ward Memorial AME Church and SEED Public Charter School the CGU provides a central meeting point.

Important program activities such as training the Team Leaders responsible for supervising the youth participants; communications and video-camera training for youth media teams; and tool-safety training have been hosted at this historic building. In the coming months, the CGU will also play a key role in hosting high-school green teams from local charter schools as Project Dream Green enters a new phase.

A view from the front.

Come support DOL! Rain begone...

Help Support Dreaming Out Loud on Saturday July 17!

Two big happenings:

1. We begin shooting our commercial called “When Dreams Emerge!” at our administrative offices located at 920 U Street NW.

2. Support our Fundraising Efforts!

Summer A’Fair Market Day at Unity Church of Washington, DC from 10am-5pm. Unity is located at 1225 R Street NW. Come out for summer time and shop till you drop as you browse through one-of-a-kind items from one of their many vendors, listen to music and informational speakers.

Please stop by Reiko’s table featuring her greeting cards, jewelry and other artwork.  Ten percent (10%) of the proceeds from her sales that day will go to a dynamic new nonprofit organization, DreamingOutLoud,  headed by Chris Bradshaw.  This organization serves youth in the Washington DC area.

COME OUT FOR SOME SUMMERTIME FUN!

Education is the key!

Publicly and privately funded, charter schools operate with more freedom than traditional public schools. With greater independence and funding, charter schools often produce better results than traditional public schools. In the article “Good Data for Charter, but Some Urge Caution,” Meg McSherry Breslin discusses the successes of Chicago-area charter schools as well as the areas in need of improvement.

This past spring, six charter high schools funded by the Renaissance Schools Fund graduated its first class of students with a college matriculation rate of over 90 percent. In contrast, surrounding Chicago Public Schools have a 52 percent college matriculation rate, according to 2008 data. Looking at outgoing data, charter schools are clearly doing something right to get students into college. Unlike other high-performing schools with high college admission rates, those six charter high schools have open-enrollment and a majority student population coming from low-income minority families. What are these schools doing right and what can we learn from them?

At all six schools, college attendance is an integral part of the discussion and culture. Schools hire more college counselors than other Chicago public schools. Just as a lower student-to-teacher ratio is ideal and beneficial to learning, a lower student-to-counselor ratio is beneficial for advice and counseling. Counselors become more familiar with students and can more effectively guide and counsel students about college. In turn, students feel more comfortable knowing their counselors and are more willing to communicate.

The schools also make college more feasible and easily accessible to their students. They take students on the road for college tours—a luxury often reserved for students with more means. Physically experiencing and visiting colleges allows students to visualize themselves in college. Schools also hold a yearlong course about completing college applications and forms. This is a valuable asset and tool for students. Many students do not gain admission to a university because they fail to complete their applications. And considering the high cost of college and the fact that many students come from low-income households, students must also complete financial aid forms properly in order to fund their education. Students are less likely to be overwhelmed by the lengthy, document-laden process if they are educated about the process and know that they will be guided all the way.

With their heavy focus on college attendance, no wonder these charter schools boast a 90 percent college matriculation rate. However, college acceptance does not necessarily mean college attendance and completion. A 2008 report by the Consortium on Chicago School Research shows that 9 percent of students accepted into college did not enroll due to financial trouble and family obligations. The ultimate question after getting students into college is “How do we keep them in college?”

Charter schools are answering the call and hiring full-time guidance counselors to track graduated students once in college. Schools cannot guarantee that all students will attend college, but they can ensure that those who do attend complete their college education. Unlike traditional public schools, charter schools can and have the means to go above and beyond for their students. Now, in addition to getting a large portion of their students into college, charter schools (at least the six in Chicago) are taking much-needed steps towards keeping their high school graduates in college. Though imperfect, charter schools are taking initiative to improving their already fantastic record. Charter schools are proving to be a a great alternative to traditional public schools and are perhaps the future of education.

What's your ideal community like?

Union College, located in the heart of Schenectady, New York, has been awarded several top honors in the category of “worst school-town relationship” in the past decade.  However, recently, Schenectady has been seeing tremendous increases in size, population, wealth, and entertainment life.  It is through this example that I will examine the Adinkra ethics symbol of NKONSONKONSON, and the effect it has had on me and my community.

As a Sociology and Political Science major in school, I recently took a class on the Sociology of the Community.  It was an interesting class in which we learned about the importance of the community and the people within it.  Identifying core dimensions such as identity, mutuality, and plurality, and integration we compared and contrasted several communities and the ways in which some were stronger and weaker than others.  It was in this class that I really saw how important every person in a given community really is to the success of that community.

The Adinkra symbol that speaks of a “chain link” can be used in almost every facet of community building.  As Schenectady has recently seen incredible progress in the strength of the community, it is important to understand how the core values encompassed in this Adinkra symbol have made these strides possible.   Understanding that the success and strength of a community lies in its members and their unity is the foundation of this particular symbol.  Rebuilding a community is a process that cannot happen with a community identity, another important aspect of this Adinkra symbol.   A question that we must ask ourselves when working with this symbol is “How to I contribute to my community, and how do I facilitate others and their contributions to this community?”  This is perhaps one of the most important questions that must be asked when organizing a community, whether this community is a town or city, or an office or workplace.  In order to succeed, any group environment must get their strength from the participation of the individuals that are involved.

“A group is a community to the extent that it encompasses a broad range of activities and interests, and to the extent that participation implicates whole persons rather than segmental interests or activities.”  This short definition by Philip Selznick illustrates the importance of community participation.  However, it is also important that this participation range across a broad spectrum of activities and interests.   Using Schenectady as an example, we can see how some different institutions have worked together to form and strengthen the community.  In the 1930’s, Schenectady was the 8^th largest city in the country, third largest city in New York, and was known as “the city that lights and hauls the world”.  This was because General Electric and the American Locomotive Company were both located in Schenectady, and the economy was thriving and leaping forward.  However, during the 40’s and 50’s the country was seeing huge economic declines, and Schenectady followed suit.   Businesses were sold and shut down, General Electric relocated much of its interests, and the American Locomotive Company was sold and moved out.  In a town which formed its community identity around these two corporations, it was left with nothing when they were gone.  It was not until the late 1990s and early 2000s that Schenectady began to see some life in its community.  This rebuilding phase was sparked by a group of concerned citizens that purchased the oldest and most historic building in town, from the city, for the sum of one dollar.  This was Proctor’s Theater, and was built as an original vaudeville theater in 1903. Using Proctors as a starting point, the citizens and township of Schenectady began rebuilding, this time focusing on the strengths of the city as an “Arts and Entertainment” district.   The participation of the members of the community has been vital, as many storefronts have been purchased by local citizens, opening restaurants and several mom-and-pop stores along Main Street.

If we look at this example through the scope of the Adinkra ethics symbol of the importance of the “chain link” of a community, it is an incredible example of how important this “chain link” is to the success of the community.  Without the participation and integration of its members, a community cannot prosper, and will never truly reach its full potential.  Without the constant development and pursue of goals, a group will not grow into a blossoming community. This is as important as ever as we set out to create a curriculum that will facilitate community growth and interaction, and as we help those who will shape future of our country learn and grow as students and as people.

By several standards, T.C. Williams seems like a well-off American high school, an institution successful at pumping out college attendees. Not only does the school offer over twenty Advanced Placement courses and free laptops to every student, but 80% of its graduates go on to college.

Why then, given these reputable results, has then has the school been placed on a federal list of schools in most need of reform? Alexandria’s superintendent Morton Sherman questions the placement, even writing to Obama to convince the President to reconsider the decision.

However, even Sherman acknowledges that T.C. Williams is far from perfect. The fact remains that 80% of the school’s graduating students proceed to college. What of those students that do not last through the four high school years? Though T.C.’s college-bound students perform well academically, minorities and students with disabilities consistently get lower test scores and are less able to graduate. Standardized reading and math tests are causing particular trouble. Last year, only half of special education students passed standardized math tests. Minority students had lower pass rates than white students, 10 percentage points lower in reading and 20 points lower in math. Only 75% of black students and 66% of Hispanic students graduate on time.

This article brings up a critical point. T.C. Williams has fallen into the trap in which it appears to be performing well, with its record of sending kids to college. However, only a small subset of the students is succeeding academically; the majority of the students face a very different reality. Commonly seen in schools with socioeconomically diverse students, the small proportion of high-achieving students masks the larger failings of the school; the problems faced by minority and special education students never get addressed. Though T.C. Williams appears to be a decently-performing school, its placement on the federal list is needed. The placement brings the disparities in performance to light and begins conversations on how such gaps can be closed.

Over the coming summer, T.C. teachers and other faculty members will continue discussions on how to reform the school. There is talk of implementing programs which encourage community-building and try to make people of all cultures feel welcome. Additionally, T.C. will have new math and writing centers in the fall, as well as an initiative to encourage special education students to join mainstream classes. With the placement on the federal list comes $6 million in funding for these new projects.

The assessment of high schools must be based on more than the percentage of graduates that go to college. Such assessments have to take into account the percentage of students from the original class that actually graduate. Digging even deeper, it’s important to consider the percentage of students that graduate on time. Schools cannot continue to ignore major shortfalls in performance; they cannot use the success of a few to shield fundamental problems. Once these problems are recognized, the schools can begin to make reforms where they are most needed.

Ethical Reflections on the Oil Spill

In my previous blog, I talked about the interconnectedness of different countries.  As it turns out, the planet itself is interconnected.  The recent and devastating oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico proves this point precisely.  One incident, an explosion on an oil rig, has had massive implications for several surrounding regions.

The offshore drilling rig Deepwater Horizon experienced an explosion on April 20.  Two days later, the rig sank.  The sinking caused a major pipe to break, and the breaking caused crude oil to flow out from the ocean floor into the surrounding water (at a rate that is yet to be determined, estimates range from 12,000 to 100,000 barrels per day).  Though owned by Transocean, the rig was being leased by BP at the time of the explosion.   For this reason, the US government has laid the blame on BP.  BP grudgingly accepted responsibility, insisting that Transocean is at fault.  BP argues that, at the time of the explosion, Transocean employees ran the rig.

As the oil gushes into the Gulf of Mexico, its accumulation is twofold.  On the one hand, an oil slick is developing on the ocean surface.  The area of this slick is increasing; it struck Louisiana shoreline in the middle of May; by June, Mississippi and Alabama were also hit.  As of June 4, oil was reported on Florida’s coast.  Surface oil is incredibly dangerous; it can spread to and destroy critical wetlands (including marshlands) along the coast.  In addition to the surface accumulation, the oil is also building up beneath the water’s surface; the oil aggregating into massive, deepwater plumes.  The plumes, like the surface slick, are harmful to the local ecology.  Oil plumes deplete the water of oxygen, ultimately killing organisms in the area.  Furthermore, the high concentration of oil has triggered a fishing ban on almost half of federal waters in the Gulf.  The rig explosion, though a confined incident itself, has had severe consequences for the Gulf waters, precious coastal ecosystems, and a regional economy.  The consequences worsen as more oil escapes into the water.

Because the affects of this tragedy are so large and wide-ranging, they involve people from regions all around the country.  Though the oil spill is causing much pain, it is opening up an opportunity for people to work together and help each other.  The oil spill is actually providing a chance for the Ethics Mirror to shine.

NKONSONKONSON:    community

The oil crisis has defined a community in terms of a shared economic lifeblood.  The Gulf community depends on its coastal access to sustain major fishing and tourism industries.   Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi are currently suffering the consequences of resource misuse.  As oil fills the Gulf of Mexico, fishing and shrimping activities have been severely limited, and tourism has declined significantly.  The spill has revealed the community’s reliance on these industries, and what the Gulf gives to people in the region.  However, the spill is also proving the community’s ability to work together to overcome a disaster (this scenario sounds familiar).  Countless organizations and volunteers are cooperating to remove oil, revitalize local wildlife, and begin economic activities again.

The oil crisis is also expanding the definition of community; the oil spill is affecting people and wildlife from faraway regions.  The spill’s repercussions are rippling through the economy; they can be felt even in New York City.  Migratory species, though only in the Gulf for a small amount of time, are harmed by the oil spill.  The oil’s effects are deep and widespread, bringing our interconnectedness to light.   Likewise, the response to the spill comes from both near and far.  People around the world share the local community’s outrage at the unsafe extraction of oil.  The federal government is working with state agencies to coordinate cleanup efforts.  Though in terrible circumstances, the oil spill underscores the shared interests and responsibilities of the larger, even global community.

BOA ME NA ME MMOA:  cooperation

Though the journey has been a little rocky, people are finally cooperating their efforts to stem the oil spill and complete the cleaning process.  Initially, cooperation was nonexistent, and BP, Transocean, and the US government engaged in much finger pointing.  When BP was deemed responsible, it resolved to clean the Gulf itself.  However, on April 28, the government joined BP’s cleanup effort, officially taking some of the responsibility.

The overall cleanup has taken the form of a “unified command.”  In this way, all involved groups have access to each other and consensus decisions can be made.  The groups include BP, Transocean, and federal agencies (including Minerals Management Service, NOAA, the EPA, Homeland Security, the Coast Guard, the Department of the Interior, the Department of State, the Department of Defense, the Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Park Service, the US Geological Survey, the Centers for Disease Control, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration).  Cooperation allows the groups to pool their knowledge and resources.

Cooperation is also present between state and federal officials.  Louisianan state officials favored the construction of sand berms to help shield their wetlands.  However, federal officials questioned both the effectiveness and long term effects of such berms.  Louisiana was unable to build any berms without federal permission, and arguments arose.  Fortunately, Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell asserted the state’s right to build berms in the face of possible coastal damage.  The federal government cooperated with the state’s wishes, and the berms were approved on June 1.

ASASE YE DURU:   sustainability

Based on the effects of the Deepwater Horizon leak, offshore drilling is not sustainable (at least not at current levels of investment in spill prevention).  The ecological consequences of the spill are deep and potentially irreversible.  Though the lesson is harsh, the oil spill teaches us that unchecked resource extraction can impact many nonhuman species.  If this ecosystem is to be sustained, the oil extraction industry must be amended.

The Deepwater Horizon spill affects Gulf ecology from the ground up.  Plankton, which are very susceptible to oil, form the basis of the Gulf food chain.  If plankton die, the effects could ripple through the entire ecosystem.   Scientists do not know how extensively the local ecology will change, but it could potentially be weakened for years to come.  Furthermore, the oil threatens coastal wetlands.  Wetlands are important sources of biodiversity as well as storm surge buffers.  Like plankton, such lands are critical components of the Gulf ecosystem.

The spill also poses a direct threat to species in the higher trophic levels.  Oil bogs birds down and renders them flightless.  The sticky stuff is also lethal to turtle eggs.  Scavenger species, including bald eagles, inadvertently ingest oil when they feast on victims of the leak; ingestion can lead to organ failure and other troubles.  These larger animals face a double attack, both direct exposure and indirect loss of their food supply.

AKOMA:   patience ∙ tolerance

Central to the oil spill crisis is the need for a peaceful solution.  The researchers, politicians, and businesspeople involved must be tolerant of each other’s ideas.  Furthermore, people must find patience and humility when their ideas prove unsuccessful.  During such times, it is important to acknowledge failure and allow others to contribute their ideas.  At the spill’s outset, both BP and the Obama administration were looking for someone to blame.  More important, however, was the need for the various groups to recognize a common failure, and to begin the solution process.  Fortunately, they reached this point within a few weeks after the rig explosion.

AYA:   endurance ∙ resourcefulness

Though BP has experienced several disheartening failures in their attempt to stop the leak, they endure; the company is continuously searching for better solutions.  Initially, BP tried to implement the rig’s blowout protector, a set of valves which was designed to stop oil outflow in emergency situations.  When the valve system failed to halt the flow, they tried to build containment dome.  The dome was also unsuccessful.  Operation “top kill,” which was a government-approved attempt to plug the well with heavy fluid, also lead to a dead end.  Insertion of a giant “straw” to suck up some of the escaping oil found limited success.  BP held further consultations with the government, and on June 3 a loose-fitting cap was successfully placed over the broken pipe.  BP is now in the process of building relief wells to reduce the stress placed on the cap.

The oil spill also brings resourcefulness to light; the events of the past seven weeks force us to question our oil use.  Can we continue to use this resource so readily?   We now see the incompatibility between heavy dependence on oil and assured protection for the oceans.  The investment put into extracting oil has not been matched by investment into research on accident prevention (specifically, the federal Minerals Management Service never developed an adequate response plan for spills).  In other words, we are too focused on oil use and have not taken proper safety measures.

The federal government has placed a moratorium on the Gulf, an order which will limit exploratory, deepwater drilling for months to come.  While a reduction in drilling lessens the chance of another spill, it also puts people out of work.  This Gulf community, which has already proved its resilience during the aftermath of Katrina, will again have to endure a period of hardships.  In pursuit of that elusive silver lining, the moratorium may provide a backdrop which shifts the regional economy away from drilling and toward green jobs.

AKOFENA:  moral courage

Though the challenge is daunting and the stakes are high, neither the government nor BP has the option to give up.  This crisis must be handled thoroughly and immediately.  Though some may still be looking to blame others for the spill, people must step up and admit their mistakes.  Furthermore, politicians have to find the courage to pressure giants such as BP and major federal agencies into action.  Many people are under a great deal of pressure to end this tragedy.  Even under such a strain, they have shown a great moral strength in their determination to find a solution.

Don't you remember the computer game?!?

As I am about to become a senior in college, it was difficult for me to look back over all the years of education to come up with the most powerful educational experience I have had.  I attended Princeton Montessori School, a very small school, from kindergarten to 8^th grade, and then a small private high school in Princeton from grades 9-12.   Because of this, I had an incredible educational experience from start to finish, and it was very difficult for me to think of one defining moment that has really changed me the most.

However, such moments do exist, and I have had several educational experiences that I feel have changed me, and will continue to change me as I learn and grow as a student and as an adult.  The one I have chosen to write about was in the 8^th grade, at the very small Princeton Montessori School.  The way the curriculum was set up, there was a different history theme every year.  Because the school was so small – only 9 people in my graduation 8^th grade class – the entire middle school was broken up into only two classrooms, and each class was made up of students from 6^th, 7^th, and 8^th grades.  This enabled the rotation of history and science curriculums.  The three history themes were American History, Ancient Civilizations, and European History.  At the end of each year, the 8^th grade class would go on a complete immersion experience to the location of that particular year’s history curriculum.  When I was in 6^th grade, we learned about European History, and the 8^th grade class visited Paris and London.  The following year, the 8^th grade class visited Greece and Rome as part of the Ancient Civilizations study.  In my 8^th grade, year, the theme was American history, and we were to spend a week on the Oregon trail, traveling by wagon and horseback, sleeping in tents, and learning all about the history of our country.

To many, this trip would appear like a complete letdown after the previous two trips ventured to Europe.  However, not to my class.  We saw this experience as perhaps the most powerful educational opportunity we had ever had.  It was a ten day trip, beginning with a huge steak dinner at a Nebraska lodge.  We then set out on the covered wagon, carrying all of our belongings and spending most of the day either walking or riding on horseback.  Putting ourselves in the shoes of those that walked across the country to find new land was an incredible experience.  There is no better way to teach a student than to show them.  It is commonly said that the best writing will show not tell a story, and this experience on the Oregon train was a precise example of the merit of that statement.  No amount of work or studying we did could have possibly given us the depth and immersion experience that we had out in Nebraska and Utah.  We hiked and rode for 8 days, sleeping in authentic canvas tents and cooking authentic meals.  Ironically, our tour guide couldn’t read or write, much like many of the settlers we read about in our American History textbooks.

This experience, I believe, has been my most important and influential educational experience.  Not only did I learn an incredible amount of American history, but it really taught me the best way to teach and learn.  Teaching and learning is about more than sitting in a classroom and lecturing; it is about letting the students experience whatever you are trying to teach.  Of course, the overwhelming majority of students will never have the type of opportunity I had in the 8^th grade, but teaching and learning strategies can be taken from it, and applied to the typical school classroom.

This experience also showed me the important of teamwork, and that a strong team has the ability to do whatever we set our mind to.  The 8 days on the trail were not easy, and they were certainly not the same as Greece, Rome, Paris, or London.  We knew we had a more difficult experience ahead of us before we began, but we knew to use this experience to draw us together as class, and the bonds became stronger than ever.  It is because of all this, in addition to the immersion experience itself, that I believe had made my 8^th grade trip to the Oregon Trail the most important educational experience of my life.

Join us at Marvin from 5-9pm on 6/28!

Come join us for a Happy Hour Fundraiser on Monday June 28th at Marvin (2007 14th Street NW) from 5-9 pm.

• Enjoy one of DC’s best rooftop locations, one of the City’s hottest DJs and a great cause!
• Empower young people to improve the environment, the community and themselves!

We need your help! We have set a goal of raising $1,000.00 to provide supplies for group-projects such as markers, paint and more. Come out and support our summer program from 5-9pm and then party at Marvin (2007 14th Street NW) on their legendary Monday nights!

This summer Dreaming Out Loud will host 72 young people (ages 14-21) with the launch of a new program called Project Dream Green. Working from three different sites in Ward 7, we will be working to improve the environment through river clean-ups, caring for trees and trails in our National Parks and doing community outreach to promote energy efficiency.

$10 suggested donation (but more if you can!)

www.facebook.com/DOLDC
www.twittter.com/DOLDC
http://supportdreamgreen.eventbrite.com/

They are currently learning about our mission and programs; developing a text message campaign to inform their classmates about the “green” movement; and writing blog posts about their experience. At the end of their Fellowship they will produce an Op-Ed piece and give a speech in a public space about our organization. Stay tuned for the updates!

Click here to sign-up to receive texts for the Campaign Dream Green! Or text “DCGREEN” to 69302!