It seems that in the past month, I have been doing a lot of serving and not quite enough surviving. I've been extremely sick twice, finally using up all of my sick days - this is not good, as there are about 2 and a half months of school left. I haven't been exercising, I haven't been sleeping, and, worst of all, I haven't been blogging. These three things are probably the most beneficial things I can do for my self, for my my mental and physical health and by neglecting them I have been neglecting personal sanity. Not good.
March seemed to go by in a blur of motion and noise. March 2nd was Read Across America Day, in celebration of Dr. Seuss's Birthday. My awesome team of Alderwood WRC members spearheaded an effort to have a combined, three-school event. We recruited the other two Bellingham teams back in October, and had slowly been working on the event since then. We contacted the Mayor Pike and Sherrif Elfo, asking them to read their favorite Dr. Seuss books at the event. We got donations from several local businesses. We sent out press releases to local media. And on March 2nd, it finally all came together. The turnout for Alderwood was great; we had over 200 people show up. The other two schools didn't have quite as much luck, but we hope that this is just the beginning and the three Bellingham schools with WRC programs will continue to host events like this.
Also on March 2nd I was told that I was not selected for an interview for Teach For America. I was bummed, but I am excited to find some other opportunities, closer to home.
March also saw the final stages of our school garden planning, and on the 27th, a work party of staff, students, and families showed up to make those plans into a real garden. Thanks to a Starbucks grant, we got money for every volunteer that showed up. Money to spend on soil, seeds, and worms! I wasn't there, but I hear it was awesome, and I got to spend most of last Friday in the garden, and am very excited about the future of it.
Why wasn't I at the garden party on the 27th, you ask? Well, I was up at the crack of dawn to drive my Girl Scout Troop to Seattle. We (along with Jenn, another awesome AmeriCorps member), trekked to The Univeristy of Washington and Seattle University to tour the campuses. When you have a troop of teenage girls, you get to do the fun stuff. We had an awesome time, and talked a lot about the girls' plans for their futures. We also talked about everything from boys to the health care bill. It's nice to know that there are teenagers out there that I can relate to and have great conversations with. I feel really lucky to have gotten hooked up with this troop. Jenn and I are trying to convince them to go camping this summer, they so far are not very excited about "sleeping in the dirt." (Crazy, right?)
The day after our college tours, I got sick. Sicker than I have been in a very long time, and sicker than I ever want to be again. The kind of sick that makes you lose ten pounds. That put me out of commission for several days. When I returned to school, several of my students told me how they or their siblings had "puked a lot" that weekend. Thanks, guys.
Luckily, I recovered soon enough to celebrate my birthday. Yes, as of last week I am over a quarter of a century. I celebrated with my friends at trivia night, then dancing, then karaoke the following night, and then celebrating with my Seattle friends on Saturday night. I'm a big supporter of Birthday Week.
Now it's Spring Break, and I am relaxing on the beach. The fifty-degree, windy, stormy, San Juan Islands beach. I'm also applying for jobs and working on a drama program to present to the fifth grade teachers at my school. Hopefully this week allows me the time to relax and remember why it's important to both Serve AND Survive.
Showing posts with label washington reading corps. Show all posts
Showing posts with label washington reading corps. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Thursday, February 25, 2010
End of February Blues
I've been feeling really burnt out recently. Tired all day but can't get to sleep, exhausted by the end of the day, frustrated that my apartment is messy, terrified that I have four and a half months left in AmeriCorps and very little idea what I will be doing next.
The sleep thing - it's stress, I know it. I should be exercising every day but I'm not. I should be getting in bed by 10 every night but I'm not. I know I will just lay there for hours, thinking. So it seems to make more sense to stay up, read, watch a movie, clean my bathroom (really. I did that the other night.).
Yesterday, 3:00pm, I came close to crying. I was exhausted, both physically and emotionally. I realized that Teach For America will let me know if I have made it to the first round of interviews in less than a week, and the whole process (if I make it) will be done in two months. We are having a large, 3-school event for Read Across America day on March 2nd (the same day as invitations to TFA's interviews are sent), which is coming together very slowly. I am turning 26 in four weeks. Life suddenly seemed very heavy.
Luckily, I had volunteered to stay for a school garden meeting. At 3pm, staying at school an hour extra didn't sound like the best idea, but I got to sit and talk with people who are passionate about gardening and community involvement and creating an educational environment with dirt and worms and compost and plants. There are teachers and parents really excited about bringing this program to our school, who won't quit until it is done.
Possibly the best part was talking to one of the younger teachers at my school before the meeting. She is close to my age, and I was telling her that I was trying to remind myself that when I am a "real" teacher, I won't be working with 27 students from grades K-5 in groups of 1-4 over the course of the day, and will be worrying a lot less about being able to pay my bills and still have money left to put gas in the car. We talked a little bit about the money issue, and she said to me "I have friends who are extremely well off. Like private jet well off, and I often can't even imagine what their lives are like. And then I sit back and realize that that is probably what a lot of my students families feel when they look at me."
That is so true, and I think it's fantastic that she realizes that disparity is there. She (along with most of the teachers I am lucky enough to work with this year) is totally aware of the differences between herself and her students, and tries to work through them.
Another big contributor to my 3:00 meltdown is my 5th grade boys. They are the last students I see every day, and they are by far my most difficult students. One of them wants to talk and ask questions about everything except what we are reading, and the other simply wants to know why I don't bring him candy.
We sit in the hallway directly across from a 4th-grade room. This class goes to specialists at the end of the day, so the teacher has planning time while I read with these boys. She often overhears our sessions and gives me tips and encouragement. On Tuesday, after a particularly difficult session, she complimented me on my patience. It's good to know I at least still have the appearance of being patient, even when I feel like my head is going to explode.
The sleep thing - it's stress, I know it. I should be exercising every day but I'm not. I should be getting in bed by 10 every night but I'm not. I know I will just lay there for hours, thinking. So it seems to make more sense to stay up, read, watch a movie, clean my bathroom (really. I did that the other night.).
Yesterday, 3:00pm, I came close to crying. I was exhausted, both physically and emotionally. I realized that Teach For America will let me know if I have made it to the first round of interviews in less than a week, and the whole process (if I make it) will be done in two months. We are having a large, 3-school event for Read Across America day on March 2nd (the same day as invitations to TFA's interviews are sent), which is coming together very slowly. I am turning 26 in four weeks. Life suddenly seemed very heavy.
Luckily, I had volunteered to stay for a school garden meeting. At 3pm, staying at school an hour extra didn't sound like the best idea, but I got to sit and talk with people who are passionate about gardening and community involvement and creating an educational environment with dirt and worms and compost and plants. There are teachers and parents really excited about bringing this program to our school, who won't quit until it is done.
Possibly the best part was talking to one of the younger teachers at my school before the meeting. She is close to my age, and I was telling her that I was trying to remind myself that when I am a "real" teacher, I won't be working with 27 students from grades K-5 in groups of 1-4 over the course of the day, and will be worrying a lot less about being able to pay my bills and still have money left to put gas in the car. We talked a little bit about the money issue, and she said to me "I have friends who are extremely well off. Like private jet well off, and I often can't even imagine what their lives are like. And then I sit back and realize that that is probably what a lot of my students families feel when they look at me."
That is so true, and I think it's fantastic that she realizes that disparity is there. She (along with most of the teachers I am lucky enough to work with this year) is totally aware of the differences between herself and her students, and tries to work through them.
Another big contributor to my 3:00 meltdown is my 5th grade boys. They are the last students I see every day, and they are by far my most difficult students. One of them wants to talk and ask questions about everything except what we are reading, and the other simply wants to know why I don't bring him candy.
We sit in the hallway directly across from a 4th-grade room. This class goes to specialists at the end of the day, so the teacher has planning time while I read with these boys. She often overhears our sessions and gives me tips and encouragement. On Tuesday, after a particularly difficult session, she complimented me on my patience. It's good to know I at least still have the appearance of being patient, even when I feel like my head is going to explode.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
What A Week!
Happy Halloween!
This past week I went to the SERVES institute for Washington Service Corps. Nearly 1000 AmeriCorps members descended on Yakima, WA - the so-called "Palm Springs of Washington," (I've yet to figure out why they call it that) for workshops on everything from tutoring ELL students to lowering your ecological footprint.
I discovered it is impossible to sit down and write a blog after spending nine hours sitting in workshops. Impossible for me, at least. I am not a sitting-still kind of girl, so the past week was pretty much torturous.
Monday morning I woke up at 5:30 am (so begins the torture), picked up two team members and headed south and then east. After a long drive with several coffee breaks, we arrived at the Yakima Convention Center, just in time for lunch. When I asked one of the catering staff if the tortillas in the enchiladas were corn, she scoffed and asked if I was Vegan. Beyond not making any sense, that did not bode well for my future meals.
A big part of Washington Service Corps mission this year is Disaster Preparedness. Our opening keynote speaker was entertaining, but all I can remember is this: Live next to a Mormon, Have Chocolate and Toilet Paper in your disaster kit, and Women and Children First. Obviously, getting up at 5:30 and driving halfway across the state is not good for my mental capacity.
The second speaker was from the Red Cross and spoke about personal preparedness - having a disaster kit in your household, and knowing what to do in case of a disaster. We should all have some sort of disaster kit at the ready, and I know I myself am guilty of often thinking that's a good idea, and then not doing it. However, I would not do well if my power or water was turned off for any length of time. I have some lanterns and candles and that's about it. My new goal is to have some very basic supplies - water, food, battery or hand-crank operated radio, and first aid kit - in a disaster kit by the end of the year. Here is a list of the items the Red Cross recommends having in your family's kit.
Also, did you know that Washington State has the potential for more different types of disasters than any other state? Luckily we don't get hurricanes.
I took several great workshops that I would like to share with you, and I will over the next few days. I also have a new adventure to share - car repairs on an AmeriCorps stipend. Last night, my car would not start. The ignition tumbler will not turn. Unfortunately, this seems to be a common problem for this type of car, but not common enough to have a factory recall on. The car was towed to the local dealership, where it will hopefully be repaired on Monday. As a young, blonde, woman I am often very wary of dealing with mechanics and car dealers, but I do not have a choice. Luckily I am fairly educated on the subject of cars and it should be a simple thing to fix. One important lesson is this: Roadside assistance is WORTH IT. Whether it is through your insurance company or something like AAA, it is well worth the extra little bit of money to know that a tow truck will come save you when it is pouring down rain and your car won't start. (And you are wearing zombie makeup because it is the night before Halloween and live in a college town.)
This past week I went to the SERVES institute for Washington Service Corps. Nearly 1000 AmeriCorps members descended on Yakima, WA - the so-called "Palm Springs of Washington," (I've yet to figure out why they call it that) for workshops on everything from tutoring ELL students to lowering your ecological footprint.
I discovered it is impossible to sit down and write a blog after spending nine hours sitting in workshops. Impossible for me, at least. I am not a sitting-still kind of girl, so the past week was pretty much torturous.
Monday morning I woke up at 5:30 am (so begins the torture), picked up two team members and headed south and then east. After a long drive with several coffee breaks, we arrived at the Yakima Convention Center, just in time for lunch. When I asked one of the catering staff if the tortillas in the enchiladas were corn, she scoffed and asked if I was Vegan. Beyond not making any sense, that did not bode well for my future meals.
A big part of Washington Service Corps mission this year is Disaster Preparedness. Our opening keynote speaker was entertaining, but all I can remember is this: Live next to a Mormon, Have Chocolate and Toilet Paper in your disaster kit, and Women and Children First. Obviously, getting up at 5:30 and driving halfway across the state is not good for my mental capacity.
The second speaker was from the Red Cross and spoke about personal preparedness - having a disaster kit in your household, and knowing what to do in case of a disaster. We should all have some sort of disaster kit at the ready, and I know I myself am guilty of often thinking that's a good idea, and then not doing it. However, I would not do well if my power or water was turned off for any length of time. I have some lanterns and candles and that's about it. My new goal is to have some very basic supplies - water, food, battery or hand-crank operated radio, and first aid kit - in a disaster kit by the end of the year. Here is a list of the items the Red Cross recommends having in your family's kit.
Also, did you know that Washington State has the potential for more different types of disasters than any other state? Luckily we don't get hurricanes.
I took several great workshops that I would like to share with you, and I will over the next few days. I also have a new adventure to share - car repairs on an AmeriCorps stipend. Last night, my car would not start. The ignition tumbler will not turn. Unfortunately, this seems to be a common problem for this type of car, but not common enough to have a factory recall on. The car was towed to the local dealership, where it will hopefully be repaired on Monday. As a young, blonde, woman I am often very wary of dealing with mechanics and car dealers, but I do not have a choice. Luckily I am fairly educated on the subject of cars and it should be a simple thing to fix. One important lesson is this: Roadside assistance is WORTH IT. Whether it is through your insurance company or something like AAA, it is well worth the extra little bit of money to know that a tow truck will come save you when it is pouring down rain and your car won't start. (And you are wearing zombie makeup because it is the night before Halloween and live in a college town.)
Friday, October 23, 2009
No Pig Flu!
So here it is, Friday night. The week went by fast.
Monday I came home early from work - was not feeling well at all. I ended up staying home, with a fever and sore throat on Tuesday as well. Luckily, it was not The Swine Flu, just the regular flu.
Being sick messes up my whole life. Missing one and a half days of work somehow made the week seem longer.
I'm pretty terrified I'm going to get Swine Flu (I guess we are supposed to call it H1N1 now), and be sick for a long time. We are only allowed 8 sick days, and I've taken two and a half. And, children are walking petri dishes. They don't know how to cover their mouths when they cough, they touch everything, and they don't wash their hands. For some reason, I still love working with them. I am planning on getting the vaccine as soon as it is available, and hoping it won't be too late. Several of my team members (not at my school, thankfully) have already come down with H1N1.
Next week my whole team goes to Yakima to SERVES with the whole Washington Service Corps, which comprises about 1/3 of the AmeriCorps members in Washington State. We arrive on Monday and listen to people talk for the afternoon. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday morning we get to attend a variety of workshops covering topics from using the education award to tutoring ELL students to lessening your environmental footprint. I've been planning out what workshops I want to take and I am planning on a class on Volunteer Management, one financial management on the AmeriCorps stipend, paying for graduate school, living a sustainable lifestyle, and one on avoiding burnout. There are a couple others I want to take but they conflict and I am having a hard time deciding! I am looking forward to the week, and I promise to share the good stuff I learn with you all.
Tomorrow is Make A Difference Day, billed as "America's largest day of doing good." According to the USA Weekend's official website, last year 3 million people participated in Make-A-Difference-Day. Our local Volunteer Center is hosting a big event, with a breakfast beforehand. I will be planting trees with four of my team members, and am hoping that it won't be pouring down rain. Even if it is, I am looking forward to it. I am excited to be doing some service that is different - being outside and not in a school at a desk sounds like a nice change of pace. I've been thinking that I would like to do some environmental education work, so this will be a nice way to dip my toes in and test the water.
So, what are you doing for Make A Difference Day? It's not too late to find a project - if your town has a volunteer center check with them, or your church, your school, check your newspaper, or just look around your neighborhood to see if anyone close to home might need an extra hand.
Monday I came home early from work - was not feeling well at all. I ended up staying home, with a fever and sore throat on Tuesday as well. Luckily, it was not The Swine Flu, just the regular flu.
Being sick messes up my whole life. Missing one and a half days of work somehow made the week seem longer.
I'm pretty terrified I'm going to get Swine Flu (I guess we are supposed to call it H1N1 now), and be sick for a long time. We are only allowed 8 sick days, and I've taken two and a half. And, children are walking petri dishes. They don't know how to cover their mouths when they cough, they touch everything, and they don't wash their hands. For some reason, I still love working with them. I am planning on getting the vaccine as soon as it is available, and hoping it won't be too late. Several of my team members (not at my school, thankfully) have already come down with H1N1.
Next week my whole team goes to Yakima to SERVES with the whole Washington Service Corps, which comprises about 1/3 of the AmeriCorps members in Washington State. We arrive on Monday and listen to people talk for the afternoon. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday morning we get to attend a variety of workshops covering topics from using the education award to tutoring ELL students to lessening your environmental footprint. I've been planning out what workshops I want to take and I am planning on a class on Volunteer Management, one financial management on the AmeriCorps stipend, paying for graduate school, living a sustainable lifestyle, and one on avoiding burnout. There are a couple others I want to take but they conflict and I am having a hard time deciding! I am looking forward to the week, and I promise to share the good stuff I learn with you all.
So, what are you doing for Make A Difference Day? It's not too late to find a project - if your town has a volunteer center check with them, or your church, your school, check your newspaper, or just look around your neighborhood to see if anyone close to home might need an extra hand.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
The Wild Things Are Here!
Our theme was the book Where the Wild Things Are, by Maurice Sendak. We planned to have it this week because the movie adaptation, directed by Spike Jonze, opens tomorrow. It looks amazing and I, for one, am really excited to go see it.
Our Family Night included two art projects, readings of the story in both English and Spanish, a raffle, and refreshments.
Since it was Washington Reading Corps first event at the school, we had no idea how many people to expect. I had a brief moment of panic yesterday afternoon when I was convinced that we were going to have fifteen volunteers and five families. As it turned out, we had 47 families attend, and that’s only counting the ones who signed in – I’m sure there were a few who got past us. Forty-seven families – most families consisted of three people, be it two parents and a student, one parent and two students, and even some families with grandparents in tow. So that comes to approximately 141 people attending our very first event! Very exciting. 
We have a great community of staff members at our school – we had several teachers and students teachers attend and many of them helped out with parts of the event. Our librarian showed a short movie version of the book in both English and Spanish, and read the book in English. Our Principal Intern read the book in Spanish, which was very exciting for a lot of our Spanish-speaking students and families. Our PTA donated movie tickets and a copy of Where the Wild Things Are for the raffle, and my favorite local bookstore, Village Books, donated two books – Where the Wild Things Are and a bilingual (English/Spanish) book. Each family got a raffle ticket as they walked in.Many community businesses donated food and supplies for our event, which is awesome. It is great when businesses, small and large, participate in community events such as this. They get great advertising and publicity, and we get things that we wouldn’t be able to otherwise afford.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
One Month In
Today marks the end of the first month of my second year of service. The beginning of my second month. I am still feeling good about deciding to sign up for a second term. It won't be easy, especially paying my bills in the winter months (when I'm sure my gas bill won't be small - it gets COLD here!), but I know I can do it.
Today was also the first day I got to spend tutoring. I work with third graders first thing in the morning, then first and second graders. After lunch, I go to a fourth grade classroom where I will be working with several students who are just below grade level. When I finish there, I go to the afternoon Kindergarten program for 45 minutes. After the Kindergartners go home, I finish up my day working with two fifth graders. It's a full day but it is so nice to actually be working with students. We will be starting a morning reading program in November as well.
One thing I have noticed while talking with my students today, something that really impressed me, was how excited all these kids are about reading. Every single kid I worked with was thrilled to tell me about the books they are reading, the books they want to read, and the kind of books they like to read.
The fourth grade teacher has asked us to work with his students on choosing good books to read - books at the right level, books that will help them be better readers. My team member and I were discussing how we are pretty sure no one ever talked to us about that when we were in school. A lot of these kids want to read what their peers are reading - even if those books are really too hard for them. It is exciting that they want to read Harry Potter, but if they are reading at a second grade level, Harry Potter is going to be way too difficult for them. They will get there, they just have to work up to it.
I have also been asked to lead a local Girl Scout Troop. I'm extremely excited about that. I was a scout up through Cadettes, in early high school. My troop kind of fell apart, but these girls are all sophomores in high school and want to see it through. I spoke to one of the girls today and she sounded very excited to have a troop leader who isn't a mom. (Because what 15-year old girl wants to hang out with her mom?)
In addition to the Girl Scouts, it looks like I will be volunteering as the Education Coordinator at the Heritage Flight Museum. I am absolutely thrilled to have been offered this opportunity. I will be creating education programs for open house days, school tours, and in-school workshops. Since I am trying to get my private pilot's license, and love to work with kids, it is the ideal opportunity for me. I have an official interview on Wednesday for the position, but I am confident I will get it. I can count the time towards my required AmeriCorps service hours, and will hopefully stay in the position after my term is up. Simply getting to put "Education Coordinator" on my resume will be amazing.
This year, I plan on taking full advantage of the opportunities that AmeriCorps offers. I have registered for a Grant Writing class at the community college and will probably have the opportunity to write grants for the flight museum. AmeriCorps itself is a great experience, but there are so many more things I can do this year. I look forward to them!
Today was also the first day I got to spend tutoring. I work with third graders first thing in the morning, then first and second graders. After lunch, I go to a fourth grade classroom where I will be working with several students who are just below grade level. When I finish there, I go to the afternoon Kindergarten program for 45 minutes. After the Kindergartners go home, I finish up my day working with two fifth graders. It's a full day but it is so nice to actually be working with students. We will be starting a morning reading program in November as well.
One thing I have noticed while talking with my students today, something that really impressed me, was how excited all these kids are about reading. Every single kid I worked with was thrilled to tell me about the books they are reading, the books they want to read, and the kind of books they like to read.
The fourth grade teacher has asked us to work with his students on choosing good books to read - books at the right level, books that will help them be better readers. My team member and I were discussing how we are pretty sure no one ever talked to us about that when we were in school. A lot of these kids want to read what their peers are reading - even if those books are really too hard for them. It is exciting that they want to read Harry Potter, but if they are reading at a second grade level, Harry Potter is going to be way too difficult for them. They will get there, they just have to work up to it.
I have also been asked to lead a local Girl Scout Troop. I'm extremely excited about that. I was a scout up through Cadettes, in early high school. My troop kind of fell apart, but these girls are all sophomores in high school and want to see it through. I spoke to one of the girls today and she sounded very excited to have a troop leader who isn't a mom. (Because what 15-year old girl wants to hang out with her mom?)
In addition to the Girl Scouts, it looks like I will be volunteering as the Education Coordinator at the Heritage Flight Museum. I am absolutely thrilled to have been offered this opportunity. I will be creating education programs for open house days, school tours, and in-school workshops. Since I am trying to get my private pilot's license, and love to work with kids, it is the ideal opportunity for me. I have an official interview on Wednesday for the position, but I am confident I will get it. I can count the time towards my required AmeriCorps service hours, and will hopefully stay in the position after my term is up. Simply getting to put "Education Coordinator" on my resume will be amazing.
This year, I plan on taking full advantage of the opportunities that AmeriCorps offers. I have registered for a Grant Writing class at the community college and will probably have the opportunity to write grants for the flight museum. AmeriCorps itself is a great experience, but there are so many more things I can do this year. I look forward to them!
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
What's the point?
Today I was asked for some advice from a fellow AmeriCorps member who was feeling like she couldn't make it through the next nine and a half months.
I know exactly where she was coming from.
My first year in AmeriCorps, I wanted to quit more times than I could count. I went so far as to apply for jobs, and was even offered a pretty good one in Seattle, but I decided I had to see it through or I would forever regret it.
AmeriCorps is not easy. It's not all fun family events and helping the less fortunate and feeling good about yourself. It's being too strapped for cash to go to movies with your friends. It's being too tired to even see your friends. It can be really hard to remember what great things you are doing when you are worrying about how you're going to make your car payment, or your electric bill.
One particular moment from my first year of service sticks out in my mind - I was hating my job, hating the program I was teaching, feeling like the kids hated me and didn't want to be there - and then, as the first graders were walking past my desk to the bus, one of them called out "Bye Miss Rosie! I'll miss you!"
I cried.
That was all the validation I needed - I was doing something right, for this child to say he would miss me.
The long term benefits of serving are great - the education award, the nonprofit experience - AmeriCorps has whole studies on the benefits of service - apparently 86% of AmeriCorps State Alumni are satisfied with their careers. (You can read all about the benefits of service, according to AmeriCorps, here.)
Keeping our eyes on the big picture is great, but often impossible. We have to find the joy in the little moments. In the kid who tells us they will miss us. In the hugs we get in the hallways. In the smile of a child the first time they read a word without help.
Being an AmeriCorps Member isn't easy. It's anything but easy. But we are here, serving our communities, to make their lives a little easier. It's only a year. A year that will affect us (and the people we serve) for the rest of our lives.
Here's a little reminder of our purpose as AmeriCorps Members.
(This is the real, official deal, straight from AmeriCorps.gov):
The AmeriCorps Pledge
I will get things done for America -
to make our people safer,
smarter, and healthier.
I will bring Americans together
to strengthen our communities.
Faced with apathy,
I will take action.
Faced with conflict,
I will seek common ground.
Faced with adversity,
I will persevere.
I will carry this commitment
with me this year and beyond.
I am an AmeriCorps member,
and I will get things done.
We are here to make America a better place. The education award is a nice reward at the end, but when we focus on the money (and it's really not that much money), we lose sight of the real reason we are here.
A question for my readers, AmeriCorps members or no: Have you had a day (or week, or hour) where you thought you had made the completely wrong decision for your life? What did you do about it?
AmeriCorps is not easy. It's not all fun family events and helping the less fortunate and feeling good about yourself. It's being too strapped for cash to go to movies with your friends. It's being too tired to even see your friends. It can be really hard to remember what great things you are doing when you are worrying about how you're going to make your car payment, or your electric bill.
One particular moment from my first year of service sticks out in my mind - I was hating my job, hating the program I was teaching, feeling like the kids hated me and didn't want to be there - and then, as the first graders were walking past my desk to the bus, one of them called out "Bye Miss Rosie! I'll miss you!"
I cried.
That was all the validation I needed - I was doing something right, for this child to say he would miss me.
The long term benefits of serving are great - the education award, the nonprofit experience - AmeriCorps has whole studies on the benefits of service - apparently 86% of AmeriCorps State Alumni are satisfied with their careers. (You can read all about the benefits of service, according to AmeriCorps, here.)
Keeping our eyes on the big picture is great, but often impossible. We have to find the joy in the little moments. In the kid who tells us they will miss us. In the hugs we get in the hallways. In the smile of a child the first time they read a word without help.
Being an AmeriCorps Member isn't easy. It's anything but easy. But we are here, serving our communities, to make their lives a little easier. It's only a year. A year that will affect us (and the people we serve) for the rest of our lives.
Here's a little reminder of our purpose as AmeriCorps Members.
(This is the real, official deal, straight from AmeriCorps.gov):
The AmeriCorps Pledge
I will get things done for America -
to make our people safer,
smarter, and healthier.
I will bring Americans together
to strengthen our communities.
Faced with apathy,
I will take action.
Faced with conflict,
I will seek common ground.
Faced with adversity,
I will persevere.
I will carry this commitment
with me this year and beyond.
I am an AmeriCorps member,
and I will get things done.
We are here to make America a better place. The education award is a nice reward at the end, but when we focus on the money (and it's really not that much money), we lose sight of the real reason we are here.
A question for my readers, AmeriCorps members or no: Have you had a day (or week, or hour) where you thought you had made the completely wrong decision for your life? What did you do about it?
Sunday, September 13, 2009
New Friends
Today we had a "Southern Culture Lesson" at the home of one of my new team members. She has moved here from North Carolina to be a VISTA for the Reading Corps. She wanted to share some of her favorite foods with us, which is something I can happily agree to. I love food. Especially when it's fried.
My new team members, all of whom I have known less than three weeks, all checked ingredients and read labels to make sure there was some wheat-free food I could eat. I missed out on the fried chicken and the biscuits, but ate some delicious cheesy-grits, fried green tomatoes, collard greens, black-eyed-peas, and sweet tea. Delicious.
AmeriCorps may be all about helping others and fighting poverty, but one of the best fringe benefits is the people you meet. I am still friends with several people I served with three years ago, and am sure that I am forging lasting friendships now, with people from across the country. These are people I probably wouldn't meet in my daily life without AmeriCorps - but we are all here, united by a common goal.
And by food. Especially those fried green tomatoes. Yum.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Patriot's Day
"Everybody can be great... because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love."
--Martin Luther King, Jr
By signing the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act in April, President Obama declared today, September 11, a National Day of Service. (The Serve America Act also triples the size of AmeriCorps and raised my stipend, among other things.) A day to remember, to mourn, and to improve our county. September 11, eight years ago: a tragedy, a horrible attack, a shock.
I was a senior in high school, and got to school for zero period at 6:15, PST. The first plane hit the first tower right at about the time I was eating my breakfast. Before first period, I heard people talking about planes hitting buildings, and thought they were talking about a movie. Even when my first period teacher said "I'm sure you've all heard about the horrible accident in New York..." I wasn't sure what to believe. Our school principal told the teachers they were not to turn on the news, but my government teacher believed that we were living through one of the most significant events that we would ever see, and turned it on.
The images are still burned in my head.
I'm sure we all have stories like this, just as my mother remembers where she was when JFK was shot, we will all remember where we were when the towers fell.
But what about the people who were too young to understand what was happening? What about my children, will they understand what 9/11 means? Or will it be to them what Veterans Day is to me and many people I know - a day off from school and work? Making 9/11 into a day of service and remembrance, asking people to give back to their community and their country, ensures that we will not forget. Even Fox News thinks that the day of service is a good idea, and we usually don't agree on anything. (I do, however, know what the iron curtain was.)
Today, the Northwest Washington Reading Corps team went to the Citipoint Food Bank's new location and helped them unpack and organize. We folded and sorted clothes, built shelves, sorted food, repackaged food, organized dry goods, and basically tried to make sense of a warehouse shoved full of food, household items, furniture, and everything else under the sun. (For example, we found a framed sketch of the Pope.)
After three hours of work, it was declared that we were "done." They have a long way to go, but things certainly looked better than they did when we walked in.
Before we left, the ladies in charge asked us to please take any perishable food items that we wanted. The food bank will still not be open for a few days and the produce and baked goods were already well on their way to rotten.
So, in addition to the good feelings I got for participating in the first ever Patriot Day and National Day of Service, I now have a kitchen full of fresh vegetables and fruit. Which is very nice when a girl is living off of $6 a day for food!
Did you do anything to commemorate today? Did you participate in one of the many service projects across the country? Even if you missed the opportunity to serve today, you can do it tomorrow!
--Martin Luther King, Jr
By signing the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act in April, President Obama declared today, September 11, a National Day of Service. (The Serve America Act also triples the size of AmeriCorps and raised my stipend, among other things.) A day to remember, to mourn, and to improve our county. September 11, eight years ago: a tragedy, a horrible attack, a shock.
I was a senior in high school, and got to school for zero period at 6:15, PST. The first plane hit the first tower right at about the time I was eating my breakfast. Before first period, I heard people talking about planes hitting buildings, and thought they were talking about a movie. Even when my first period teacher said "I'm sure you've all heard about the horrible accident in New York..." I wasn't sure what to believe. Our school principal told the teachers they were not to turn on the news, but my government teacher believed that we were living through one of the most significant events that we would ever see, and turned it on.
The images are still burned in my head.
I'm sure we all have stories like this, just as my mother remembers where she was when JFK was shot, we will all remember where we were when the towers fell.
But what about the people who were too young to understand what was happening? What about my children, will they understand what 9/11 means? Or will it be to them what Veterans Day is to me and many people I know - a day off from school and work? Making 9/11 into a day of service and remembrance, asking people to give back to their community and their country, ensures that we will not forget. Even Fox News thinks that the day of service is a good idea, and we usually don't agree on anything. (I do, however, know what the iron curtain was.)
Today, the Northwest Washington Reading Corps team went to the Citipoint Food Bank's new location and helped them unpack and organize. We folded and sorted clothes, built shelves, sorted food, repackaged food, organized dry goods, and basically tried to make sense of a warehouse shoved full of food, household items, furniture, and everything else under the sun. (For example, we found a framed sketch of the Pope.)
After three hours of work, it was declared that we were "done." They have a long way to go, but things certainly looked better than they did when we walked in.
Before we left, the ladies in charge asked us to please take any perishable food items that we wanted. The food bank will still not be open for a few days and the produce and baked goods were already well on their way to rotten.
So, in addition to the good feelings I got for participating in the first ever Patriot Day and National Day of Service, I now have a kitchen full of fresh vegetables and fruit. Which is very nice when a girl is living off of $6 a day for food!
Did you do anything to commemorate today? Did you participate in one of the many service projects across the country? Even if you missed the opportunity to serve today, you can do it tomorrow!
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
First Day of School
The title says it all: Today was the First Day of School. First day for students, first day for teachers, first day for us Washington Reading Corps members.
Unfortunately, the fact that is was the First Day is pretty much the most exciting thing about the day.
We met our site supervisor, the principal, and the other teachers we will be working with. We got a brief tour of the school - I was surprised at how much room there is in the school. With 362 students, they still have spare rooms for reading specialists, Title 1, and other specialists. The largest class is 32 students, which is very large, but not unheard of.
We will be working with our site supervisor and other staff members over the coming few weeks to figure out where our role should be, as we are the first AmeriCorps/WRC members to be at our school. We will plan our tutoring times as well as other programs, hopefully including a breakfast reading club and an after-school group.
We will be spending the rest of the week getting settled, and Friday our whole NWWRC team is participating in a day of service for Patriot's Day. I wasn't even aware that "Patriot's Day" was an official holiday, but there it is, written in my calendar. As a National Service organization, it makes sense that AmeriCorps would participate in a day of remembrance and service. Are you doing anything to commemorate 9/11?
Unfortunately, the fact that is was the First Day is pretty much the most exciting thing about the day.
We met our site supervisor, the principal, and the other teachers we will be working with. We got a brief tour of the school - I was surprised at how much room there is in the school. With 362 students, they still have spare rooms for reading specialists, Title 1, and other specialists. The largest class is 32 students, which is very large, but not unheard of.
We will be working with our site supervisor and other staff members over the coming few weeks to figure out where our role should be, as we are the first AmeriCorps/WRC members to be at our school. We will plan our tutoring times as well as other programs, hopefully including a breakfast reading club and an after-school group.
We will be spending the rest of the week getting settled, and Friday our whole NWWRC team is participating in a day of service for Patriot's Day. I wasn't even aware that "Patriot's Day" was an official holiday, but there it is, written in my calendar. As a National Service organization, it makes sense that AmeriCorps would participate in a day of remembrance and service. Are you doing anything to commemorate 9/11?
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Day 2
Yesterday was much of the same stuff as Monday, and I was exhausted, so I didn't post anything. Did you miss me?
Today began with our community scavenger hunt. Our program managers came up with a list of things for us to find in the communities we are serving. Since I am lucky enough this year to be working in the same city I live in, I got to explore my town.
I discovered that I live only a few blocks from many of my team members, so we all met at the college campus to carpool. Five of us crowded into one car, and we were off, discovering exciting things about our community.
Funny thing was, all of us have lived here for a while.
But, while we may not have discovered anything truly "new" about this awesome town, we did get to drive around like mad and take pictures while we did it.
Some of my favorite things on the scavenger hunt list were:
-"Take photos of two of your favorite outdoor sculptures downtown." (Our town has recently spent quite a bit of money on public art. Most locals hate it. I love it because of it's ridiculousness. )
-"Take a picture with a rocket. Any rocket. Even a REAL rocket."
Now, here's where I did learn something new:
-In 2005, the Wall Street Journal's Market Watch ranked our town 4th in the United States for the most coffee shops per capita - 2.1 shops per person! ...Take a picture of your group at a coffee shop.
So, when people ask if Pacific Northwesterners really do drink a lot of coffee, I guess the answer is a definite yes. I don't even know how 2.1 shops per person is possible - but it is a college town, so I guess it makes sense.
This afternoon some of the group leaders got to get together and discuss what we would like to do in small groups the rest of the year. I think we came up with some good ideas, one of them being "how to actually live off your AmeriCorps stipend." $1050 a month doesn't really sound that bad at first, especially when you are right out of college and haven't really had to do things like pay rent, utilities, etc, on your own. I am scared to death I will miss a credit card payment or forget to pay my electric bill one of these months, and I've been doing this for a while.
There are also a lot of resources available to low-income people in this state and in this country. I had no idea how to take advantage of many of them my first year, and I am still learning now. For example, the local Community Action Agency/Opportunity Council provides assistance in paying heating bills. You have to provide proof of income and expenses, as well as a bill for your primary source of heat. I have not had my gas turned on yet, but when I do I will see if I qualify for this program.
I applied online for my Food Assistance on Monday and have not yet heard from DSHS. I will be calling them tomorrow to find out what the hold up is - their website says your application should be processed in the next business day. I gave them three days, I think that's fair. Hopefully by this weekend I will have my EBT card and can eat something besides tuna and beans.
Today began with our community scavenger hunt. Our program managers came up with a list of things for us to find in the communities we are serving. Since I am lucky enough this year to be working in the same city I live in, I got to explore my town.
I discovered that I live only a few blocks from many of my team members, so we all met at the college campus to carpool. Five of us crowded into one car, and we were off, discovering exciting things about our community.
Funny thing was, all of us have lived here for a while.
But, while we may not have discovered anything truly "new" about this awesome town, we did get to drive around like mad and take pictures while we did it.
Some of my favorite things on the scavenger hunt list were:
-"Take photos of two of your favorite outdoor sculptures downtown." (Our town has recently spent quite a bit of money on public art. Most locals hate it. I love it because of it's ridiculousness. )
-"Take a picture with a rocket. Any rocket. Even a REAL rocket."
Now, here's where I did learn something new:
-In 2005, the Wall Street Journal's Market Watch ranked our town 4th in the United States for the most coffee shops per capita - 2.1 shops per person! ...Take a picture of your group at a coffee shop.
So, when people ask if Pacific Northwesterners really do drink a lot of coffee, I guess the answer is a definite yes. I don't even know how 2.1 shops per person is possible - but it is a college town, so I guess it makes sense.
This afternoon some of the group leaders got to get together and discuss what we would like to do in small groups the rest of the year. I think we came up with some good ideas, one of them being "how to actually live off your AmeriCorps stipend." $1050 a month doesn't really sound that bad at first, especially when you are right out of college and haven't really had to do things like pay rent, utilities, etc, on your own. I am scared to death I will miss a credit card payment or forget to pay my electric bill one of these months, and I've been doing this for a while.
There are also a lot of resources available to low-income people in this state and in this country. I had no idea how to take advantage of many of them my first year, and I am still learning now. For example, the local Community Action Agency/Opportunity Council provides assistance in paying heating bills. You have to provide proof of income and expenses, as well as a bill for your primary source of heat. I have not had my gas turned on yet, but when I do I will see if I qualify for this program.
I applied online for my Food Assistance on Monday and have not yet heard from DSHS. I will be calling them tomorrow to find out what the hold up is - their website says your application should be processed in the next business day. I gave them three days, I think that's fair. Hopefully by this weekend I will have my EBT card and can eat something besides tuna and beans.
Monday, August 31, 2009
First Day (version 1.0)
Today was my first day back in AmeriCorps. I'm calling it "version 1.0" because tomorrow is the official first day. Today was a "group leader" orientation, for those of us who have been in the Northwest Washington Reading Corps before. Most everyone else was on the team last year, so they all know each other, and then there's me. I did this three years ago. Wow.
We did a brief review of what we will be doing during the remainder of the week, because as small group leaders we will be facilitating some of the training. There are something like 80 members on our team, which is crazy and awesome at the same time. So small groups are pretty necessary.
We discussed the "Pillars" of the Washington Reading Corps. These 5 pillars describe what we as WRC members do. It's easy to say "I'm a reading tutor," but tutoring is only one of the five pillars.
We briefly went over the other four pillars, and we will be going over them in more detail with our small groups tomorrow.
The Five Pillars of the Reading Corps are:
Tutoring
Sustainability
Community Partnerships
Volunteering
Family Involvement
Although we can easily describe our jobs as "reading tutor," the other four carry just as much importance as the actual tutoring.
-Sustainability: We are trying to create programs in the schools that will last much longer than our year (or two) of service. Ideally, we want to create a system of volunteers so the program can continue without AmeriCorps support.
-Community Partnerships: Our goal is to create a strong connection between our schools and the local community. This includes training volunteers, creating community partnerships such as sponsoring events, and having events such as literacy nights at our schools. This is a big part of being in the WRC. My first year I spent a lot of time talking to community organizations and businesses, getting them to take part in one event or another. I hope to have even more success this year.
-Volunteering: We are, essentially, volunteers in the schools. We are lucky enough to participate in a program where the government supports us while we do this, but we are still volunteers. No one is getting rich in AmeriCorps. In addition to working in our schools, we do a lot of other service projects in our community. We also recruit volunteers to come into our schools as tutors and mentors.
-Family Involvement: According to The National PTA, when parents are involved, students achieve more and have a more positive attitude towards school, regardless of socio-economic status, ethnic/racial background, or the parents’ education level. Often, low-income and non-English speaking parents are unsure of how to become involved in their child's school. As WRC members, we organize family events, provide reading materials for children to take home (often in their native language), and many other things to include families in the education of their children.
During my first year, my team was very successful in the Family Involvement Pillar. We organized some of the best family events our school had ever seen, and had a great time doing it. I hope to have similar, and better, events at my school this year.
So, tomorrow is the first "official" day of training. I'm looking forward to meeting my team members and learning more about how my year is going to go.
We did a brief review of what we will be doing during the remainder of the week, because as small group leaders we will be facilitating some of the training. There are something like 80 members on our team, which is crazy and awesome at the same time. So small groups are pretty necessary.
We discussed the "Pillars" of the Washington Reading Corps. These 5 pillars describe what we as WRC members do. It's easy to say "I'm a reading tutor," but tutoring is only one of the five pillars.
We briefly went over the other four pillars, and we will be going over them in more detail with our small groups tomorrow.
The Five Pillars of the Reading Corps are:
Tutoring
Sustainability
Community Partnerships
Volunteering
Family Involvement
Although we can easily describe our jobs as "reading tutor," the other four carry just as much importance as the actual tutoring.
-Sustainability: We are trying to create programs in the schools that will last much longer than our year (or two) of service. Ideally, we want to create a system of volunteers so the program can continue without AmeriCorps support.
-Community Partnerships: Our goal is to create a strong connection between our schools and the local community. This includes training volunteers, creating community partnerships such as sponsoring events, and having events such as literacy nights at our schools. This is a big part of being in the WRC. My first year I spent a lot of time talking to community organizations and businesses, getting them to take part in one event or another. I hope to have even more success this year.
-Volunteering: We are, essentially, volunteers in the schools. We are lucky enough to participate in a program where the government supports us while we do this, but we are still volunteers. No one is getting rich in AmeriCorps. In addition to working in our schools, we do a lot of other service projects in our community. We also recruit volunteers to come into our schools as tutors and mentors.
-Family Involvement: According to The National PTA, when parents are involved, students achieve more and have a more positive attitude towards school, regardless of socio-economic status, ethnic/racial background, or the parents’ education level. Often, low-income and non-English speaking parents are unsure of how to become involved in their child's school. As WRC members, we organize family events, provide reading materials for children to take home (often in their native language), and many other things to include families in the education of their children.
During my first year, my team was very successful in the Family Involvement Pillar. We organized some of the best family events our school had ever seen, and had a great time doing it. I hope to have similar, and better, events at my school this year.
So, tomorrow is the first "official" day of training. I'm looking forward to meeting my team members and learning more about how my year is going to go.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Welcome!
So it begins.
In four days I start my second year of service with AmeriCorps. I am looking forward to it, but it will be a challenge. One of the most challenging parts will be living off of my AmeriCorps stipend - $1050 a month.
I will be writing about my experience as a member of the Washington Reading Corps, what I learn about the education system and myself as an educator, as well as how I survive off of $1050 a month.
Making $12,600 annually will put me slightly above the federal poverty line, which is $10,830 per year, but not by much. That extra $148 a month will mostly be going to my car payment, which is something I'm not willing to give up at this time (well, getting rid of the payment would be great, but I'm keeping the car), and which is an expense I doubt many people living below the poverty line have. Luckily in my new position it looks like I will be able to bus to work every day, but living in my town without a car could be very difficult. Who knows, maybe I'll try it eventually.
Luckily, the AmeriCorps stipend does not count as income to qualify for food stamps from DSHS. I will be getting $200 a month in food benefits, which I can use for anything but hot food and alcohol.
Also, I am cheating just a little bit - my parents pay my car insurance and my cell phone. Without them, I would not be able to afford my awesome apartment (which will be difficult anyway, but I will manage!)
So, my basic budget looks like this:
Income: $1050
Rent: $575
Car Payment: $132
Money Left for expenses: $343/month
It's going to be interesting! Thanks for your support.
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