Blog: No bio box

Less Than Two Months Away: Youth Justice Awareness Month

By David Backes, July 24 2013

During the month of October, allies throughout the country come together to engage their communities on youth justice issues, particularly the harmful impact of prosecuting children in the adult criminal justice system.
Youth Justice Awareness Month (YJAM) is an opportunity for families, youth, and allies to host community-led actions and events that expose the real-life consequences of children being processed in adult court and placed in adult jails and prisons. With events happening throughout the country, YJAM is not only a time to raise awareness but it is also a time to build collective action, to strengthen relationships with other advocates, and to join local advocacy campaigns working to create policy changes.
Every year in the U.S. an estimated 250,000 youth are tried, sentenced, or incarcerated as adults. These young people are our friends, siblings, sons and daughters. Each year, we build momentum to end the criminalization of our youth and the devastating long-term consequences they must face every day. Are you interested in taking a stand for youth justice?

In past years, YJAM events have included:

  • 5K Run/Walk
  • Film Screenings
  • Art Exhibits
  • Poetry Slams
  • Community Service Days
  • Social Media campaigns
  • Teach-In Days

Topics: Events, Juvenile Justice Reform, No bio box, yjam

Opportunity Board Roundup: Juvenile Justice Grants, Jobs, Webinars and Events

By David Backes, July 23 2013

Below you'll find a selection of the latest grants, jobs, webinars and events posted to our Opportunity Board. Please share the Reclaiming Futures Opportunity Board with your colleagues in the juvenile justice, adolescent substance abuse and teen mental health areas. It's free to browse and post!
Grants

  • OJJDP FY 13 National Resource Mentoring Center
    The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) supports a wide range of mentoring initiatives aimed at preventing and reducing juvenile delinquency. Under this solicitation, the successful applicant will develop the OJJDP National Mentoring Resource Center (NMRC), which will provide comprehensive mentoring resource, reference, and training materials and advance the implementation of evidence- and research-based mentoring practices.
  • Youth Service Improvement (New York)
    The YSIG program is open to community-based organizations in the five boroughs of New York City that want to improve the quality of the services they offer to young people ages 8 to 25. Awards are $25,000.

Topics: Events, Grants, Jobs, No bio box, Opportunity Board, Webinars

Expulsion Rates in Kern County, California Raise Concerns about “Throwaway Kids”

By Avery Klein, July 22 2013

The Center for Public Integrity recently posted a story about throwaway kids--kids that have been expelled by their schools and placed in alternative forms of education--examining the complex balance between discipline and education.
The piece focuses on independent study students, many of whom are required to meet with teachers once a week for four and a half hours and are assigned work to complete, at home, until their next meeting. For many critics, independent study seems like taking a step back.
“You take a kid who has already demonstrated that he’s not being successful in conventional school, and then you impose on him the duty that he’s going to self-study, to me that just seems insane,” said Tim McKinley, an attorney for California Rural Legal Assistance (CRLA), a legal aid group.
Another concern is the rate at which minorities are expelled from Kern County, which is eerily similar to disproportionate minority contact in the juvenile justice system. In the 2009-2010 school year, Kern’s Bakersfield High School expelled:

  • 29 percent of black students (15 percent of the high school’s population)
  • 43 percent of Latino students (29 percent of the high school’s population)

Topics: Disproportionate Minority Contact, education, No bio box, School-to-Prison Pipeline

Locking up Juveniles may Plant Seeds of More Crime; News Roundup

By David Backes, July 19 2013

Juvenile Justice Reform

  • Seven Officers at Georgia RYDC Removed after “Egregious Policy Violations” (JJIE.org)
    Georgia’s Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) announced that seven employees at the DeKalb County Regional Youth Detention Center have been removed, following findings from a three-week investigation. According to Jim Shuler, an official DJJ spokesman, three of the officers, among them the facility’s night shift sergeant, resigned while the review was still being conducted.
  • Locking up Juveniles may Plant Seeds of More Crime (The Chicago Tribune)
    Joe Doyle was still a grad student at the University of Chicago in the late 1990s when he went to watch the proceedings in Cook County's juvenile court. He sat there while inexperienced lawyers argued over the fate of young offenders, mostly young black men. He witnessed judges who had to instruct those inexperienced lawyers on procedure at the same time that they, the judges, had to render life-altering decisions.
  • OP-ED: Breaking the Cycle of Hyper-Recidivism (JJIE.org)
    "Is reform a means to cut the budget or is cutting the budget a means to reform? It’s like which came first–the chicken or the egg? For Georgia, I think money is part of the equation, and ultimately becomes part of the outcome, but it’s definitely not the primary objective despite it’s appearance."
  • Charlottesville Forum Focuses on Racial Disparities in Juvenile Justice (The Daily Progress)
    Gloria Newman remembered a son’s troubles as a teen and the message she received. “I was looking for help,” Newman said Tuesday at a Charlottesville Commission of Children and Families task force forum. “I was told, he’s not in the system, he can’t get help. There needs to be a preventative measure to get help before they get in the system.”

Topics: Adolescent Mental Health, Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment, Juvenile Justice Reform, News, No bio box

Shout Out From Robert Listenbee, Jr.

By Susan Richardson, July 18 2013

Greetings from the road! I've just headed out of National Harbor, Md., where I have spent most of this week with over 4,000 treatment court professionals at the National Association of Drug Court Professionals 19th annual training. 
I've been busy hearing about the most promising practices in our fields of juvenile justice reform, mental health and adolescent substance abuse treatment, and teaching the Reclaiming Futures model to break the cycle of drugs, alcohol and crime.
For me, some of the highlights of the world’s largest conference on substance abuse, mental health and the criminal justice system, included:

  • Hearing the Reclaiming Futures "shout out" from OJJDP Administrator, Robert Listenbee, Jr.
  • Meeting the dedicated staff and leaders who are making a difference in the lives of young people every day.
  • Learning how drug courts can help address health disparities, alongside Reclaiming Futures staff and fellows.

Topics: Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment, nadcp, No bio box, Reclaiming Futures

Addressing the Suffering of Children

By Cathy M. Weiss, July 17 2013

I was recently sent a link to The Mistakes Kids Make website. While taking the quiz, I was reminded of the difference between the negligible costs of my mistakes, from the potentially life-changing payment my black, 22 year old son might face for making the same mistakes. Though it is a difference that Stoneleigh strives to erase, it is a reality that was repeatedly mentioned at the Stoneleigh Symposium, From Risk to Resilience: What Youth Need to Thrive.
On May 8, representatives from all segments of the Philadelphia community came to discuss what it means to be resilient and how as individuals and a community, we can help youth thrive by making them so. Attendees came to hear from an adolescent pediatrician who has spent his career building on the strengths of teenagers by fostering their resilience, a young man from Boston who benefited from an ecosystem of youth development programs, one of his mentors who has spent 40 years serving youth and their families in Boston’s poorest and most violent community, the Deputy Commissioner of Philadelphia’s DHS who oversees the Division of Juvenile Justice Services and is a passionate advocate for fairness and equity in that system, and a Stoneleigh Fellow who developed and directs an alternative approach to dealing with violent crime.
Each of our speakers provided unique perspectives on what it means and what it takes to develop resilience in youth. Each of them addressed the reality that young black and brown boys and men are treated differently for the common mistakes they make in childhood and adolescence. However, all of the speakers agreed that it is never too late to transition youth from risk to resilience and that first and foremost all youth need to feel loved.
When we developed the symposium, this was not the core message I expected to hear from a scientist, a bureaucrat, or our friends from Boston. Though resilience is a basic human capacity, nascent in all children, and something that can be developed even in the most hurt children, it doesn’t just happen. In fact, for children who have faced a lifetime of social, racial and economic injustice, it demands intentional practice change that starts with caring adults.

Topics: No bio box, Positive Youth Development, youth delinquency

Opportunity Board Roundup: Juvenile Justice Grants, Jobs, Webinars and Events

By David Backes, July 16 2013

Below you'll find a selection of the latest grants, jobs, webinars and events posted to our Opportunity Board. Please share the Reclaiming Futures Opportunity Board with your colleagues in the juvenile justice, adolescent substance abuse and teen mental health areas. It's free to browse and post!
Grants

  • Youth Intervention Planning Grants
    These 2-year planning grants are expected to build the capacity of child welfare systems to prevent long-term homelessness among the most at-risk youth/young adults with child welfare involvement. 18 grants will be awarded to non-profit organizations, state/local governments, small business, higher education institutions, etc.
  • Grants for Underserved Populations (Illinois)
    The Carl R. Hendrickson Family Foundation was established in 1991 to support and promote quality educational, human services, and health care programming for underserved populations. Grants of up to $35,000 will be awarded to select applicants. Nonprofit and charitable organizations are eligible to apply.
  • Community Benefit Grant (Louisiana)
    The purpose of this funding is to support an organization in the Greater New Orleans area that is focused on improving the health and well being of the community in the areas of childhood health, inter-generational health and active lifestyles. One grant of $100,000 will be awarded. Nonprofit organizations in Jefferson, Orleans, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. James, St. John the Baptist, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa and Washington parishes are eligible to apply.

Topics: Events, Grants, Jobs, No bio box, Opportunity Board, Webinars

RECLAIM Ohio: A Promising Alternative to Teen Incarceration

By Avery Klein, July 12 2013

PEW recently published a report revealing the effectiveness of the RECLAIM (Reasoned and Equitable Community and Local Alternatives to Incarceration of Minors) funding initiative in Ohio. The report found RECLAIM to be highly successful in lowering recidivism rates and saving the state millions of dollars:

RECLAIM is an initiative funding program that allows county courts to implement community based programs in order to provide alternatives to juvenile incarceration for juvenile offenders or youth at risk of offending. The increased funding for counties is based on an equation that refunds counties for the time juvenile offenders would have spent if they had been committed to the Ohio Department of Youth Services (DYS) state facility.
Like many states in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s, Ohio saw an increase in the incarcerated youth population. By 1992, the state reached an all-time high of 180 percent of capacity with many of the youth being first-time nonviolent offenders. The idea was that by better serving low to medium risk offenders through locally tailored community programs, admissions would decrease as well as recidivism rates.

Topics: Evidence-Based Practices, Juvenile Justice Reform, No bio box, Ohio, RECLAIM

[Photos] Changing Confinement Culture in Olathe, Kansas; News Roundup

By David Backes, July 12 2013

Juvenile Justice Reform

  • [Photos] Changing Confinement Culture in Olathe, Kansas (JJIE.org)
    Last month, Richard Ross, the creator of Juvenile In Justice, visited and photographed two juvenile detention facilities in Olathe, Kan., a suburb of Kansas City. This week the photos are featured on Bokeh, JJIE’s multimedia site.
  • Trial Run for Revised Juvenile Justice System (The New York Times)
    In Travis County, juvenile justice officials have decided that they can do a better job than the state in dealing with the most troubled local offenders, considering Texas’ history of scandal and violence in youth lockups.
  • Summer Jobs May Reduce Teen Violence, Study Says (JJIE.org)
    Summer jobs may help reduce violence, according to a recent study that found that low-income Boston teens who held down summer jobs were less likely to engage in violence than teens without jobs. The study, conducted by researchers at Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University, surveyed more than 400 young people who obtained employment last summer through a State Street Foundation youth violence prevention program.
  • JUVENILE JUSTICE: Families Want Changes (WhoTV.com)
    Some Iowa families say the state`s juvenile justice system is broken and they`re suffering because of it. They`re sharing their stories as the state Supreme Court considers making changes. Members of the group Iowa Family Rights met at the Capitol Tuesday claiming parents and grandparents are being denied fair treatment.

Topics: Adolescent Mental Health, Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment, Juvenile Justice Reform, News, No bio box

In Case You Missed It: A Young Artist in Recovery Tells His Story

By David Backes, July 11 2013

Back in April we shared Guy, a young artist in recovery's story. Today we're featuring it again, because it's such a powerful message. In this three-minute video, Guy, a well-known graffiti artist in Snohomish County, Washington, describes his transformation as a Promising Artists in Recovery (PAIR) participant.

Through Reclaiming Futures Snohomish County, Henri Wilson and other generous adults are mentoring young artists in the county's juvenile justice system who have substance abuse issues. By engaging in calligraphy, painting and photography classes, teens are viewing life through a different lens.

Topics: Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment, everett, graffiti, Juvenile Justice Reform, No bio box, Reclaiming Futures

Reclaiming Futures Forsyth County Lifts Teens

By Susan Richardson, July 10 2013

Kudos to the Reclaiming Futures team in Forsyth County, N.C. and Dave Moore, for reaching out to the community and lifting up young people: 

For several years now, Moore — the founder of Southside Rides Foundation — has opened his shop up to those in need of a second chance. Young men and women pass through his garage throughout the year as he works with the court system to get them community service hours and auto-body repair training or access to other career training opportunities. He even offers customized training at the shop through a Forsyth Technical Community College program.
Six teens are participating in the summer program at Southside Rides. Moore said the program has been a success so far, but now he is encouraging the community to get involved.
Moore is asking community members to bring their cars by the shop to let the teens wash them. A $5 or $10 donation will go toward a stipend Moore will disburse at the end of each week for the students to spend on items such as clothes or school supplies in preparation for the fall.
But Moore also sees it as a way to engage his students with the community. As they wash people’s cars, Moore hopes they can chat with folks and make positive connections. He is also encouraging police officers to stop by and meet the teens to “bridge the gap.”

At Reclaiming Futures, we believe young people must be connected with community resources and “natural helping” relationships in the community based on their unique strengths and interests.
Please call 503-725-8914 if you’d like to learn more about bringing Reclaiming Futures to your community.

Topics: Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment, Juvenile Justice Reform, No bio box, North Carolina, Reclaiming Futures Forsyth County

Opportunity Board Roundup: Juvenile Justice Grants, Jobs, Webinars and Events

By David Backes, July 09 2013

Below you'll find a selection of the latest grants, jobs, webinars and events posted to our Opportunity Board. Please share the Reclaiming Futures Opportunity Board with your colleagues in the juvenile justice, adolescent substance abuse and teen mental health areas. It's free to browse and post!
Grants
 

  • Grief Reach
    Grief Reach is a partnership between the National Alliance for Grieving Children and the New York Life Foundation. The goal of this partnership is to provide funds to Children's Bereavement Programs to expand the reach of their programs to include underserved youth populations, ages 18 years and younger.
  • John R. Justice FY 2013 Program
    The JRJ Grant Program (also referred to as the John R. Justice Student Loan Repayment Program ("JRJSLR") provides loan repayment assistance for local, state, and federal public defenders and local and state prosecutors who commit to continued employment as public defenders and prosecutors for at least three years.
  • OJJDP Announces New Funding Opportunities
    The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) has announced several fiscal year 2013 funding opportunities, including National Juvenile Justice Information Sharing Training and Technical Assistance Program. OJJDP seeks applications for its national program to deliver training, technical assistance, and implementation support for information sharing among juvenile justice, child welfare, mental health, education, and other youth-serving agencies.
  • Alcohol Education Funds (Statesville, NC)
    Each year, as required by North Carolina law, the ABC Board in Statesville distributes 7% of its remaining gross receipts (after other designated distributions) for the treatment of alcoholism or substance abuse, or for research or education on alcohol or substance abuse. The exact amount of the funds to be distributed will not be determined until the annual audit is completed.

Topics: Events, Grants, Jobs, No bio box, Opportunity Board, Webinars

Youth Courts Offer a Refreshing Approach to Juvenile Justice

By Avery Klein, July 08 2013

Florida’s juvenile arrest rate is down from 76 delinquency arrests per 1,000 juveniles in 2008 to 52 arrests per 1,000 juveniles in 2012. Some experts attribute it to the implementation of Youth Court, also known as Teen Court, programs throughout the state.
“The goal of youth/teen courts is preventing penetration into the system by young people who can better be served without formal prosecution and detention,” said Jack Levine, who volunteers as program director for the National Association of Youth Courts.
Youth Courts have been in practice since the early 1970’s in America and allow for great benefits:

  • Lower cost to the courts- an average of $480 per participant compared to an average of $21, 000-$84,000 per case in a formal court system [via YouthCourt.net]
  • Lower recidivism- fewer than 10 percent find their way back into the system compared to 30-70 percent with a case through the formal court system [via Urban.org]
  • Positive peer pressure through youth juries
  • Conducted during the evening to allow parental involvement

“Diverting them into teen court or youth court where they are handled outside the formal court process is good because it keeps them from having a formal record,” said Irene Sullivan, a retired circuit judge in Pinellas County who has experience handling juvenile delinquency cases. “It’s a more therapeutic and rehabilitative way of treating juveniles.”

Topics: Juvenile Justice Reform, No bio box, youth court

Paws for a Cause; News Roundup

By David Backes, July 05 2013

Juvenile Justice Reform

  • Mentoring Program for At-Risk Youth to Begin in Scott County, Missouri (seMissourian.com)
    A new program will pair mentors with at-risk children in four area counties. Building Understanding; Developing Success, or BUDS for short, is a recently developed mentoring program funded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. The program will place volunteers 21 years old or older with at-risk children and teenagers ages 9 to 17.
  • Paws for a Cause (Rankinledger.com)
    Rehabilitation is two-fold at Rankin County Mississippi Juvenile Justice Center where both dogs and juveniles leave the center ready for the world. The Rankin County Sheriff Department’s Paws for a Cause is a partnership between the county’s animal shelter and juvenile justice center. It’s a way to rehabilitate both the juveniles and the dogs. Since it began about a year ago, Sergeant Ken Sullivan said pet lovers have adopted about 22 dogs from the program.
  • Local Television Piece Features Innovative Baby Elmo Program for Young Fathers at an Ohio Juvenile Correctional Facility (VERA.org)
    A recent piece on ABC News Channel 5 in Cleveland, Ohio, highlighted the Baby Elmo Program for young fathers at the Cuyahoga Hills Juvenile Correctional Facility. The program, which was designed by researchers at Georgetown University, develops the relationships between incarcerated teen fathers and their babies through intensive experiential learning.

Topics: Adolescent Mental Health, Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment, Juvenile Justice Reform, No bio box

Opportunity Board Roundup: Juvenile Justice Grants, Jobs, Webinars and Events

By David Backes, July 02 2013

Below you'll find a selection of the latest grants, jobs, webinars and events posted to our Opportunity Board. Please share the Reclaiming Futures Opportunity Board with your colleagues in the juvenile justice, adolescent substance abuse and teen mental health areas. It's free to browse and post!
Grants

  • John R. Justice FY 2013 Program
    The JRJ Grant Program (also referred to as the John R. Justice Student Loan Repayment Program ("JRJSLR") provides loan repayment assistance for local, state, and federal public defenders and local and state prosecutors who commit to continued employment as public defenders and prosecutors for at least three years.
  • OJJDP Announces New Funding Opportunities
    The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) has announced several fiscal year 2013 funding opportunities, including National Juvenile Justice Information Sharing Training and Technical Assistance Program. OJJDP seeks applications for its national program to deliver training, technical assistance, and implementation support for information sharing among juvenile justice, child welfare, mental health, education, and other youth-serving agencies.
  • Alcohol Education Funds (Statesville, NC)
    Each year, as required by North Carolina law, the ABC Board in Statesville distributes 7% of its remaining gross receipts (after other designated distributions) for the treatment of alcoholism or substance abuse, or for research or education on alcohol or substance abuse. The exact amount of the funds to be distributed will not be determined until the annual audit is completed.
     

Topics: Events, Grants, Jobs, No bio box, Opportunity Board, Webinars

Education Portal Offers Fresh Start for Incarcerated Youth in Oregon

By Avery Klein, July 01 2013

Oregon Youth Authority (OYA) offers incarcerated youth the opportunity to receive high school and college education while they serve time through Education Portal, a Mountain View, California based company.
Oregon is the first state in the nation to offer such services to teens involved with the juvenile justice system.
"When at-risk youth arrive at OYA, they are often years behind in high school, have learning disabilities, and have suffered from abuse and neglect,” states OYA Director Fariborz Pakseresht. “We are deeply grateful to Education Portal for this partnership that offers kids a chance to make up for lost time and educational opportunities." Education Portal offers free high school and college courses to everyone. Services include:

  • Over 4,000 lessons ranging from college business, history and science courses as well as high school AP biology, math and physics
  • 53 trained and experienced instructors
  • 33 College Level Examination Program (CLEP) exams
  • Transferrable credits to almost 3,000 colleges and universities
  • Career help videos on resumes, interviewing and networking

Sarah Inman, Director of PR and Outreach explains that for incarcerated teens, “The three main barriers are a lack of basic college readiness skills, inability to afford college, and they don’t have access to college courses while incarcerated.”

Topics: education, Juvenile Justice Reform, No bio box, Oregon

Social Media Could be Teen Suicide Prevention Tool; News Roundup

By David Backes, June 28 2013

Juvenile Justice Reform

  • A Look Inside Juvenile Justice Reforms (FremontTribune.com)
    Report from Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman: "A few weeks ago, I signed into law one of the most important bills of the 2013 legislative session -- Legislative Bill 561 which is aimed at improving the juvenile justice system in our state. It shifts the supervision of all juvenile offenders in the community to the state’s probation system which reduces reliance on detention and focuses on rehabilitation for youth while keeping families involved."
  • When Is a Juvenile No Longer a Juvenile? (BostonMagazine.com)
    When it comes to incarceration, Massachusetts has recognized 17 as the age of adulthood since 1846. Of course, anyone who has a 17-year-old might question that assumption, as have citizens in 38 states across the U.S. Even some states we think of as far more conservative than Massachusetts—Arizona, Alabama, and Mississippi, for example—send lawbreakers younger than 18 to juvenile instead of adult court.
  • Program Might Reduce Minorities in Juvenile Detention (Valparaiso Community News)
    The city of Valpairiso, Indiana's Advisory Human Relations Council is exploring how to help reduce racial bias within the juvenile justice system. Tony McDonald, a Porter County juvenile probation officer and coordinator of the Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative, spoke to City Council members at their regular monthly meeting Tuesday at City Hall.
  • Why Maine is a Leader in Juvenile Justice (BDN Maine)
    The criminal justice system is often thought of as existing on a pendulum. Opinions about how the system should operate swing from one end of the spectrum to the other over time. In its early history, rehabilitation ruled the day in corrections. The prison was initially called a “penitentiary,” representing the idea that offenders would give penance, pray and leave a changed person. However, the pendulum swung the other way in the 1970s, when public sentiment moved toward the idea that offenders cannot be rehabilitated and punitive measures are best for society.

Topics: Adolescent Mental Health, Juvenile Justice Reform, No bio box, suicide prevention

Kudos: Leaders Invest in Boys and Men of Color

By Susan Richardson, June 27 2013

Stepha'N QuickseyDo you believe in investing in the future of young people? In Detroit last week, A Gathering of Leaders (policymakers, philanthropic foundations and others) made me proud by collaborating to improve life opportunities for boys and young men of color.
Please read a recap of the event in the Detroit Free Press guest commentary from Maisha E. Simmons of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Tonya Allen of the Skillman Foundation.

These leaders know what is at stake is no less than our future. We have to make a decision: Will we invest in our youth so they can build and strengthen our communities, or will we allow them to become further disconnected from communities that already lack needed education and employment opportunities?

Simmons and Allen also introduce Stepha'N Quicksy, a young man in Detroit who overcame a culture of drugs, alcohol and crime to graduate high school and set his sights on college. Quicksy gave back by becoming a mentor with the Neighborhood Service Organization’s Youth Initiative Project, one of the successful models that A Gathering of Leaders is working to spread.

The barriers that young men of color face on the path to leading healthy, fulfilling lives are stubbornly high. Too often, they live in communities struggling with violence and instability. Unless we begin to solve these interwoven challenges, the health and well-being of these young men will be undermined throughout their lives.

I hope you'll join me in committing to our young people. As Simmons and Allen call us to action in their commentary, "We have the power to transform the futures of our young men of color, but only if we make the right investments today to let their potential flourish."

Topics: No bio box

The Many Faces of Teacher Activism

By David Chura, June 26 2013

When I was recently asked if I thought teachers today needed to be activists I didn't hesitate in my answer. "Being a teacher, almost by definition, means being an activist."
That might come as a surprise to those teachers who have never wrote a letter to the editor, marched in a rally, retweeted a Diane Ravitch tweet, or "Occupied" anything but their classrooms. But I'm holding to my belief, as firmly as some teachers hold their protests signs declaring things like, "Let Teachers Teach" and "Protect Our Students": being an activist is an essential part of being a teacher.
For most teachers activism is an everyday thing because students and their needs are every day. There's a lot to watch out for in a classroom -- even on good days they are a moil of energy -- aside from whether a lesson is hitting home. A student who can't read the board because her family can't afford glasses. A cough that doesn't go away. A young boy who refuses to go to rec. because he gets picked on. A nasty bruise on the arm of the girl who doesn't meet your eye. The immigrant student struggling with a new culture and a new language. The issues are real -- poverty, neglect, abuse, poor health and nutrition, bullying, depression, low self-esteem -- and they are all a part of an average school day.
Good teachers don't complain, they just act, doing what needs doing to help their students learn. It may be a home visit, a talk with a school counselor, an offer to tutor after school, a walk around the playground at lunchtime, or a spare change collection in the teachers' room for eyeglasses. Some teachers (and it's a growing number) feel the need to address these concerns in a broader context, "taking to the streets" to confront such issues as health care, drugs, physical and sexual abuse, bullying, immigration, the current educational policy itself. But whatever teachers do, they take action, becoming activists for their students.

Topics: bullying, No bio box, schools

Pages