Community Engagement / �ڹϳ��

Partner Spotlight: Start:ME, starting and growing Atlanta’s microbusinesses is good for our neighborhoods

Brandshake Creative — Fri, 01 Mar 2024 16:41:14 +0000

�ڹϳ�� is proud to be a lead delivery partner for Start:ME, an organization that strengthens underserved communities in metro Atlanta by empowering entrepreneurs to start and grow resilient microbusinesses.

“When local businesses thrive – generating income, creating jobs, occupying spaces, providing role models – their neighborhoods do, too,” said Mike Davis, CEO, �ڹϳ��. “Start:ME provides business training, mentorship, and grant investment capital, coupled with ongoing alumni support. We are proud to be a lead delivery partner helping make these microentrepreneurs’ dreams a reality.”

For 10 years, Start:ME has served local microbusinesses and communities, including Atlanta’s Southside. In partnership with Focused Community Strategies and �ڹϳ��, Start:ME Southside supports a diverse collection of in-town neighborhoods. The 90 local businesses Start:ME has served to date tap into the energy of Atlanta’s Southside. These businesses have generated $90 million in annual revenue and created/retained 174 jobs.

In 2024, Start:ME is supporting 56 diverse ventures, including 19 in the Southside cohort, and 5 led by entrepreneurs from our very own �ڹϳ�� family:

A House Called Hue
Art Makes
Atlantic Fine Woods, LLC
Barlow’s Foods
CleanLeeNess LLC
Contrast Beads
Culturally Relevant Science, Inc.
*Essential Treasures Learning Academy LLC (Tandria Stegall)
*G.L.A.M. Squad (Tonya Brown)
H.A.R.M.O.N.I.C. Therapeutic & Healing Services
Immutable Access (AI For Kids)
Nguzo Babies
*Sankofa Coffee Inc.(Teriah White)
Slater Realty LLC
*Sole Renew (Sioux Greaux)
*Styles by Aprillove Salon/Barber Spa LLC (April Payne)
The Creamy Spot and GOAP
There’s Hope (pending)
Yoga Infinitum

*�ڹϳ�� entrepreneur

Supporting local small businesses and encouraging others in your networks can have a macro impact on microbusinesses. Learn more at .

I Love Being a Teacher, But I Can’t Survive on Compassion

Brandshake Creative — Tue, 09 Jan 2024 19:35:10 +0000

In 1998, I began my journey as an elementary teacher under the tutelage of my aunt and revered educator, Marva N. Collins. My mother was also a teacher, so I saw firsthand what it meant to be a passionate educator who is deeply committed to students. Their commitment and passion for teaching were the reasons why I chose this profession. After watching them devote time and energy to their craft, I entered the profession with enthusiasm and excitement, not knowing what the next 25 years would bring.

I wanted to become a teacher with a calming presence and a positive attitude — a teacher who could help all students succeed. Unfortunately, becoming the teacher I wanted to be has taken more energy than I thought it would.

After more than two decades in the classroom, supporting students facing intense challenges in their home lives and trying to keep up with the unrealistic expectations set by administrators, I’ve finally hit my breaking point and all the compassion I have for my students and my dedication to the field may not be enough to help me recover.

How It All Began

When I began my first position as an English language arts teacher on the north side of St. Louis, I remember walking into the building as books and computers were thrown out of the third-floor window. Next door, there was a halfway house filled with young men, some of whom were fathers to the students I would be teaching. I remember wondering, “What in the world am I committing myself to?” My four years in college studying to become an educator did not prepare me for what I encountered. I was coming to teach the masses, full of hope and determination – how quickly I had to change focus.

Once I entered the school building, a young man was being detained for his behavior. I asked the school officer if I could speak with him, and she reluctantly agreed. When I asked him his name and why he was behaving this way, he became immediately defensive, asserting that I would soon be run out of the school like the teachers before me.

I knew from watching my mother that you couldn’t put out a fire with fire, so I decided to take a gentler approach, reminding him that despite his resistance, I was there to provide support and understand his issue better. Eventually, he revealed that the teacher had asked him to read; when I asked if he knew how to read, he dropped his head while a tear rolled down his face. His admission made me emotional, but

I quickly gathered myself and told him if he gave me the opportunity, I would help him learn how to read.

I could only imagine what it felt like for a 13-year-old boy to be in the eighth grade and unable to read. His behavior became an outlet for his anger but all he needed was someone to listen and acknowledge his pain. This ended up being the beginning of a beautiful relationship. For years, Eric had seen people quit and move him along without any care for his needs. I was the change and hope he needed, but I would soon learn there were so many more like him.

Unrealistic Expectations

I remember being so excited about my role as a teacher — the creativity I possessed, the influence I knew I would have, and the sheer joy I gained knowing that one day, I would be a change agent. By the end of my fifth year of teaching, though, that excitement had changed. I became inundated with demanding and unrealistic expectations and realized that one of the key ingredients to supporting my students was supportive leadership, and we didn’t have that at my school.

In fact, most of the administrators I worked with daily did not know the challenges students would come into the classroom with, much less what took place in the classroom. Most administrators were more concerned with meeting academic standards and metrics than offering holistic support to students who couldn’t meet these standards because of their personal challenges.

In my current role as a school and community engagement manager, I work with students and families facing a range of challenges — often very serious situations such as or community violence. It’s not uncommon for the trauma to follow my students into school. This kind of work makes it hard to disconnect, and the weight of my students’ personal hardships regularly follows me home at night.

Even though I knew I would have to endure classroom challenges without the support of administrators, I refused to give up despite the negative . I know I am a capable teacher who can speak out against administrative issues and advocate for students who experience marginalization that impacts their academic performance. After all, I’ve always been a rebel, and I follow in the footsteps of my mother, who retired from teaching because she refused to conform.

I was committed to meeting my students where they were. I chose to stay and fight for them, but compassion has a cost that almost always falls to the teacher.

Staying in the Fight

To sustain in this field, you must possess a level of mental toughness and tenacity to endure. It is hard, and I, along with so many others, question whether our compassion for our students is enough to fix the state of our education system and keep us in the profession.

While I want to save my students, I know that there is only so much I can do before the weight of it all bears down on me. I was and still am in the trenches, fighting for what I believe my students and their families deserve – but this work isn’t for the faint of heart.

This story was originally published chronicling diverse educator experiences.

When Parent Engagement Is Low, Teachers Must Make the Connection Between Schools and Families

Brandshake Creative — Tue, 09 Jan 2024 19:33:51 +0000

One of the greatest challenges schools and districts face is low parent engagement. Often, the assumption is that parents don’t make time to engage with their child’s learning community or do not care about their student’s academic progress — even if that student is performing poorly or below academic expectations. It is the school’s responsibility to ensure that children are learning, but learning extends beyond school walls. We need parent reinforcement.

As a School and Community Engagement Manager, the greatest challenges I see aren’t that parents do not care or don’t have time to support their children. To me, it seems that parents are experiencing a lack of connection — with the school, teachers, and the material their students are learning.

It’s easy to assume that there are quick fixes to this issue, but as we all know, building meaningful relationships takes time, and where the relationships parents have with their student’s learning journey can impact their academic progress, we can’t miss the big picture. As we build relationships with students, we must also focus on building relationships with parents and families.

Learning From My Experience

One year, my son came home from school with some math homework that made my head spin, and he was only in the fifth grade. While I remembered the concepts he was studying from my own schooling experience, trying to emulate the instructions he received was nerve-wracking.

“This should not be this challenging!” I thought as I anxiously began writing down methods and strategies I knew, hoping he would better understand. Unfortunately, my attempt to help turned into him teaching me how to solve his math problems. While I’m grateful he figured it out, I was more confused than when we started.

Now imagine, if I was frustrated, can you imagine how other parents feel? This is the narrative for many of the families we serve. Yes, there are parents who work long hours during the week and can’t always give time to attend to their child’s academic progress, but in many cases, parents don’t show up because they are embarrassed that they can’t understand what their child is learning.

In my role, supporting parents and families in the learning community is extremely important. My conversations with parents often encompass frustrations about their inability to support their children due to their lack of academic knowledge and skills.

These days, students learn via the “I Do, We Do, You Do” Method. In this model, teachers teach concepts by working step by step with students. Students are able to show what they can do with and without teacher support while receiving the information and individual support they need to be successful. At times, that can be challenging for the teacher, especially when students lack the foundational skills that they need to learn grade-level standards. It also becomes a stressor for the student; as a result, those stressors matriculate home where students still need support from their parents and families.

This is where my role serves as a bridge between parents and school merge, highlighting the significance of the at-home learning experience for students. While this is my primary job, schools and districts cannot forget that our roles are to support our families in this teaching and learning process, and we cannot do this work without our parents.

Building a Bridge to Better Connection and Engagement

When students have and school, there is a higher success rate. As a school, once we noticed the impact of low parent engagement, we made it a priority to identify the disconnects between our school and the families we serve.

We started by sending surveys and conducting one-on-one conversations with parents. As a , this helped us identify the gaps between what we knew, what our parents wanted from us and where we needed to incorporate additional wrap-around supports. By identifying this disconnect for parents at Luther J. Price Middle School (LJPMS), we initiated opportunities for parents to attend workshops with instructional coaches and teachers to share strategies they could use to help their child with schoolwork at home. These workshops were provided in-person and virtually for parents who could not physically attend.

In addition to learning what parents needed to help their students at home, the survey also revealed that parents were reluctant to engage because they did not have a positive relationship with the teachers or the school. This made me realize how much relationships truly matter, and I had to think of creative ways and opportunities for parents to engage in the community that were less threatening and more welcoming.

One of the ways I accomplished this was by orchestrating activities that encouraged parents to volunteer and connect with teachers. One of those activities included “King’s Breakfast” where our fathers were invited to eat breakfast with their students. Most recently, we organized a “Giving Thanks Lunch” where families were invited to come and fellowship with our community as a family. Teachers, administrators, and district personnel took this opportunity to engage with our families. It truly was a remarkable experience for our families, and even more so for our students. If teaching the ‘whole’ child is important, involving their parents is equally important.

It Takes a Village

As a parent, I cannot think of a greater connection than the one I have with my child. As a kid, I grew up in an environment where both my parents were educated and active participants in my education. Modeling that experience is not a challenge for me. As a parent and single mother, I want to ensure that my child has the greatest learning experience possible. Therefore, I choose to be present.

Yes, I form relationships with the teachers who support my student’s learning, but that is my expectation — there is no alternative. I also want his teachers to know that I have great expectations of my son, however, if I can support their efforts in his educational journey, I will. Though my experience is different from those I serve, I believe the end goal remains the same.

No parent that I have encountered wants to see their child fail. Though it seems the responsibility always falls on the school, parents are in the greatest position to help our children. As the would say, “It is not a crime not to know. It is a crime not to want to know.”

For schools and teachers, we must help our parents and families fill in the gaps. What they may lack, we can support so that our student community has greater opportunity for success. If that means that parents, teachers and schools must work together to become foot soldiers in the journey to student success and academic achievement, then that is what we must do.

There is an African proverb that states, “The child who is not embraced by the village will burn it down to feel its warmth.” This community has been that impact the progress and success of our children. It truly takes a village to raise a child, and this partnership is necessary to achieve the results we seek for this community, and more importantly, our children. By working and functioning together, we accomplish more.

This story was originally published chronicling diverse educator experiences.

How My School Turned Tragedy Into an Opportunity for Student and Family Engagement

Brandshake Creative — Tue, 17 Oct 2023 12:35:40 +0000

Imagine not only waking up to a pandemic, forced into an isolated space without the physical and emotional support you need for learning, but also discovering that the place you call home has been deemed unlivable. This was the reality for many of the students and their families at Luther J. Price Middle School (Price) families after the city of Atlanta condemned property in the Forest Cove neighborhood in 2021.

Price is part of �ڹϳ�� (PBSA), a cluster of neighborhood schools in South Atlanta that partners with Atlanta Public Schools to bridge the opportunity gap between students and schools in low-income zip codes and high-income zip codes. PBSA does this through a proven model of project-based instruction; whole child development; positive climate and culture; and student and family support. That model would prove instrumental to our approach to the situation in Forest Cove.

There were over 300 families that resided in Forest Cove, and many of the children from these households attended Price . Even worse, we were still in the midst of a pandemic; not only did we have to create innovative ways to teach and reach our children virtually, but we also had to ensure that our children and families were physically safe, nourished and mentally and emotionally sound to cope with the trauma they just experienced.

The irony here was not poor property management that condemned the properties in this community – the homes had been unlivable for many years prior. If anything, the issue shed light on the lack of investment in the local communities where our students live and exposed the gap in mental health resources for students and their families.

As a school, we knew that if our students and families didn’t have the support they needed, student learning and engagement would be severely impacted. Over the last two years, I worked with fellow educators and administrators at Price to strategize ways to put social-emotional learning at the forefront of our curriculum and student and family engagement plan. What started as a daunting task became a mission to reignite the passion and engagement of our students while strengthening our local community.

Developing a Framework for Student Engagement

As the School and Community Engagement Manager and Parent Liaison, I worked with a team of Price teachers and administrators to adopt a framework to re-engage students and families and restore a sense of love and belonging within the surrounding community. We decided that implementing a framework incorporating would help our students and families cope and heal from the inside out. SEL is defined as the process of developing self-awareness, self-control, and interpersonal skills that are vital for school, work, and life success. When individuals are equipped with these skills, they can better cope with everyday challenges and positively improve all aspects of their lives, and given the situation that we were in, there was no better time than the present.

Once our school identified the need for SEL, we were able to re-channel our energy and focus on the inputs that would get our students back on track. Our educational spaces transformed into sessions and platforms where students and their leaders could authentically be themselves and thrive in safe and supportive spaces. Specifically, every classroom included spaces where students could decompress, take a break, or meditate to be productive in the classroom setting. Those spaces included things such as therapeutic herbal diffusers, earphones to listen to calming sounds, books and journals to write their thoughts. Students appreciated these spaces and were able to utilize them to self-regulate their emotions, find healthy ways to process trauma and become more productive and present learners in the classroom setting.

After we reached the pandemic’s peak and students could return to the classroom, we also knew it would be important to help them identify the significance of their place in the community. We wanted them to identify positive attributes about themselves and then leverage these attributes to build personal, social and academic goals. Teachers began building lessons centered on identity formation, and soon after, students began to embrace their identity and individuality which transformed our classroom and community culture.

One of the most impactful ways our students exhibited their newfound confidence was by advocating for a new nutrition program in the school. Over the span of a few months, students captured pictures, videos and feedback from fellow students to build their case. When students presented their findings to our district leaders, the data revealed that over 70 percent of the students within the school were not eating breakfast and lunch. Students made the connection between and identified choices district leaders and teachers could make to build a better nutrition program for students.

This presentation resulted in the district adopting a new food program for our district that was culturally appropriate, appealing, and good for students. When students saw the results of the work they had done, this affirmed how identity, advocacy and doing the work yields positive results.

For me, it was heartwarming to see students find their confidence after such a tragic event and I’m glad I took advantage of the opportunity to make connections and build trust with students so that we could grow into the community we sought.

Family Engagement and Support

Just as we knew we could not instruct from a one-size-fits-all mentality, we also had to apply that same philosophy to student families. Our parents yearned to build upon their knowledge to support their children’s learning journey. Witnessing firsthand the stressors many of our families experienced allowed our teachers and leaders in the learning community to understand how we could better support our children and the families we serve.

This was the beginning of my transition from the classroom to a role as a family engagement liaison. I asked to be a conduit to engage with our families to re-establish trust, ensure families feel welcomed and build a stronger connection between our school community and families in the Forest Cove neighborhood.

First, I started by establishing Parent University, a place where parents could come and access resources to create better conditions for themselves and their children. Parents can access resources such as GED coursework, resume writing, financial literacy and individual and family therapy. During this time, I also leveraged our in-house partnership relationship with who provided a team of liaisons in Price that could work with students and families one-on-one to understand basic needs and help them secure housing, medical assistance and meals.

We also made it a point to improve our relationship with our external community partners including , a non-profit organization that I worked with to provide programming and support to trauma-impacted students and families who are marginalized by poverty and race-based educational inequities. has been a viable resource to our families displaced by the demolition of Forest Cove, in addition to families who are dealing with landlord/legal issues, or those who are survivors of intimate partner violence. Last but not least, – one of the premier mental health, child welfare and family organizations in the Southeast – has been readily available on-site to meet the mental and emotional needs of our students and staff.

A Community That Heals Together Stays Together

Through this process, we learned to relinquish what power we thought we had in this space and become vulnerable. We depended on one another, loved on one another, and supported each other at a time when so much was uncertain for us all.

This community exemplified resilience at a time when most would have given up. We tapped into our creativity and learned to work outside of the box. We became foot soldiers and fought for the social-emotional learning of our students and the well-being of our families. If they would not come to us, then we came to them. While we celebrate the impact of the work we have done, we know we must continue to heal and build our community to keep our students and families engaged.

Of course, things will never be what they once were, but we are building a better school and community – more importantly, we are building leaders. Shifting from a role as an instructional leader to a school and community engagement leader was a blessing. In this role, I am able to do work that creates a bridge from the classroom to students’ homes and communities. While the displacement of our students and families tested our resolve, I am grateful to work with colleagues and peers who care about improving our students’ circumstances just as much as I do.

Trust for Public Land Brings Community Schoolyards Program to Price Middle School

Brandshake Creative — Wed, 27 Jul 2022 21:09:26 +0000

This is a series of installments on the progress of a new partnership with Trust for Public Land.

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Makeover to reimagine Price Middle green space gets underway

By: Luqman Abdur-Rahman

Price Middle School’s schoolyard is packed with potential–and not just for students.

Parks are essential for healthy communities. They are where we exercise and relax, connect with our families, and gather with neighbors to form meaningful relationships. Yet in our nation’s biggest cities, communities of color have access to 44% less park space than majority white communities.

That’s why national nonprofit developed the–and Price Middle School is one of the newest sites to be selected for improvements that will make our outdoor spaces better suited to students and the entire community. Price Middle is one of 10 schools in The Trust for Public Land’s initial phase of Community Schoolyards projects in Atlanta, implemented in partnership with Atlanta Public Schools, Urban Land Institute Atlanta and Park Pride. Nationally, the program has helped improve outdoor spaces for hundreds of schools in cities from New York and Philadelphia to Los Angeles and Tacoma.

“�ڹϳ�� 100 million people who don’t live within walking distance of a park in the United States,” says Jay Wozniak, director of urban parks for The Trust for Public Land in Georgia and expert community space designer. “But almost 20 million of them live within a 10-minute walk of a public school, which already serve as natural gathering places for communities. If every public schoolyard were open to the public, we’d be a fifth of the way to solving the problem of outdoor access. That’s what this program is doing in Atlanta.” The schools in the Atlanta pilot were chosen because of their potential to increase park access and equity.

�ڹϳ�� 20 Price Middle students kicked off the effort on December 2, 2021. Wozniak and partners from the City of Atlanta Department of Watershed Management guided participants through a design workshop to evaluate the current site, envision what changes would make it more accessible and appealing, and consider the budget and logistics of improvements.

Community and stakeholder feedback helped refine the plans to improve the Price Middle schoolyard. They provided input on how they wanted the park to look. Additions included shade trees, benches, picnic tables, signs and landscaping upgrades.

On July 9, 2022, Price Middle School hosted 102 Delta Air Lines volunteers installed sections of the split rail fence around the community farm, applied mulch between crops, removed invasive plants along the treeline in the back, picked up trash and removed planters and benches to prepare for future schoolyard improvements.

The renovated schoolyard will serve as vital green space for the entire community. Studies show swapping out blacktop for trees, gardens, and up-to-date play equipment deliver a multitude of benefits to students, from emotional to academic. Teachers and school administrators report that attendance, behavior, and test scores improve following schoolyard renovations. The spaces will be reimagined to also meet the needs of neighbors for use when school is not in session.

The Trust for Public Land expects to spend $2 million renovating the 10 schoolyards, with donations coming from the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation, Delta Air Lines and other supporters. And looking ahead, lessons learned here in Atlanta will inform efforts by The Trust for Public Land to expand the Community Schoolyards program in Georgia so that utilizing schoolyards as a hub for community empowerment, improved health and education, and climate resiliency becomes standard practice.

Faith Engagement Initiative Connects Schools with Local Faith Leaders

Brandshake Creative — Tue, 07 Dec 2021 18:44:17 +0000

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Gathering of faith-based leaders from seven organizations throughout South Atlanta.

Faith-based institutions are part of the fabric of every community. We recognize the challenges faced by our students, families, and communities can be wide and deep, and so we purposefully partner with the faith leaders who support our students, families and neighborhoods.

“The �ڹϳ�� Built Schools Faith Engagement Initiative connects education and the faith-based community for the betterment of our scholars,” says Dr. Nikkita Warfield, Chief Academic Officer of �ڹϳ�� Built Schools. “This innovative initiative combines local resources to create opportunities, experiences and benefits that will propel our scholars to achieve their maximum potential.”

Mr. Luqman Abdur-Rahman

Luqman Abdur-Rahman, principal of Price Middle School, recently gave the keynote speech at a gathering of faith-based leaders from seven organizations throughout South Atlanta. During his remarks, he discussed the importance of neighborhood and the shared mission of faith leaders and educators to bring forth the best in people. Educators and faith-based leaders find common ground in their work toward creating peace for future generations. According to Abdur-Rahman, those in education and religious leadership acknowledge that “we plant seeds and water the soil of trees under which we will never feel the shade.”

Abdur-Rahman discussed the importance of making a conscious choice to speak to people in ways that seek commonality and togetherness instead of choosing to highlight inevitable differences. As he says, “I choose to seek peace in brotherhood, sisterhood, and “neighborhood.”

Educators are fighting for that value and potential called intellect, seeking to awaken it and inspire it…just as faith leaders seek to inspire the awakening of the soul.

According to Abdur-Rahman, “We want justice on behalf of the marginalized. We want the opportunity for our children to reach their full potential.”

He encouraged faith leaders to work in partnership with �ڹϳ�� Built Schools to strengthen the communities of our students, because secure and stable families bear amazing students. And to continue to strive — together — toward peace. For ourselves and our brothers and sisters and our children.

Faith leaders in attendance included

Monte E. Norwood, Bible Way Christian Ministries
Timothy McKibbins, Church of Atlanta Lighthouse
Pastor Lionel, Faith Community Christian Church
Clarence Hampton, First Stewardship Baptist
Aaron Jones III, Mount Nebo Baptist Church
Fulquan Masjid Mu’minum, Masjid Mu’minum – Imam Fulquan
Keith Hammond, New Generation Baptist Church
Ethan Seifried, Refuge Church Atlanta
Bobby Giddens, Silver Leaf Baptist Church
Pastor Jeannine Clark Lester, Faith Temple Saints of God, Inc

�ڹϳ�� Built Schools of Atlanta provides resources for families facing eviction

Brandshake Creative — Fri, 03 Sep 2021 16:22:57 +0000

The Center for Disease Control’s moratorium, which prevented evictions for tenants who cannot pay rent due to the impact of COVID-19, is no longer being enforced due to recent actions by the U.S. Supreme Court. This means tenants can now be evicted by their landlord if they cannot pay rent, regardless of the impact by COVID-19. �ڹϳ�� Built Schools provides resources for families who may be facing eviction under the current circumstances.

Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation (AVLF), as a school partner, provides rental assistance for qualifying families behind on rent and at risk of eviction.

AVLF also provides free legal advice, support, and legal representation for any families that may have a legal defense against eviction (for example, a tenant doesn’t owe rent, the landlord has an inaccurate ledger, the landlord has failed to maintain a habitable home such that the tenant’s back rent should not be a basis for eviction, etc.).

Contact AVLF for more information on how you can receive rent and/or legal assistance if you are at risk of eviction:

Pierce Hand, Staff Attorney / 678-245-0851 / phand@avlf.org

Shamyya Wyatt, Community Advocate / 678-245-9263 / swyatt@avlf.org

Nekesha Whitaker, Community Advocate / 404-859-1535 / mwhitaker@avlf.org

A Year of Silver Linings: What We Learned �ڹϳ�� Education During the Pandemic

Brandshake Creative — Wed, 26 May 2021 16:03:48 +0000

An adage I heard once taught me that there are two types of people. One looks out at a barren, desolate terrain and feels despair and hopelessness. The other looks out at that same landscape and sees endless opportunities and possibilities. The former generally makes excuses about what “could have been,” and how they are cursed by bad luck, while the latter works to create a new reality.

LUQMAN ABDUR-RAHMAN Principal, Price Middle School

At Price Middle School and PBSA, it is our job to train our eyes and minds to find opportunities when others lose hope. The past school year, especially, demanded an optimistic approach to our work. We had to create a new reality and make the very best of it.

We entered a pandemic last year in March expecting a “two week virtual break” not knowing that over a year later we would still be searching for the normalcy we took for granted. But we have proven again that if our mindset is one of growth and belief, then as the great Maya Angelou wrote “still, like air, we rise”.

With full acknowledgment that so many people have suffered in the past year, I would like to look back and identify the things that went well, the things we learned, the things that will make us stronger going forward. Here are a few things that came out of the pandemic experience that I am grateful for.

We bridged a piece of the digital divide, providing computers and Internet access to all students and families. We have set the bar higher for what is possible going forward.

We improved our project based instruction and showed that a PBL approach – rooted in what is going on in students’ lives right now – can truly engage students and drive academic growth. Our high quality PBL showcases elevated student voice and creativity.

We learned new ways to engage both caregivers and community stakeholders, with record attendance levels at parent-teacher conferences and in our PBL showcases. We held virtual conferences to access parents that previously have been limited by distance and time constraints. We instituted amazing drive-by and outdoor events. We created pop up shops. We formed street committees. We did countless home visits. We celebrate student achievement and commitment every week. We made a commitment to meet students wherever the need was.

We identified creative ways to meet the needs of our families, especially through a comprehensive grocery distribution program and mental health outreach. Our talented and dedicated school engagement managers led the charge.

We built a stronger organizational culture through improved communication and professional learning communities. We have connected professionally in totally new ways starting with our work teams last summer that included teachers and leaders from all schools working together to solve new problems. We created new cluster wide technology solutions like our learning management system Otus, and we created new standards for what virtual instructional excellence looks like.

We set a new standard for pre-planning, which allowed us to begin a year of instruction fully virtual, in a safe and sustainable manner. Our teachers gained a generation’s worth of knowledge and expertise by using a plethora of interactive instructional tools to engage our students in new ways.

We refined our data strategies, leveraging best practices for student intervention and personalized learning, acknowledging that this analysis is now more important than ever

We committed ourselves to equity with a “bottom-up” coalition within our organization, and we had monthly cluster wide training for all staff and on our cluster leadership team. Instead of avoiding the challenges of the conversations on race and equity, we placed them front and center in a time when our students and staff needed it most.

We supported one another through what seemed like tragedy after tragedy. We lost parents, siblings, friends, and even colleagues. Still, we rose and came to work with heavy hearts and a collective purpose to stem the suffering of our students and give them the structure they need and the education they deserve.

This last year proved that not only can we survive, we can thrive. In any circumstance. In any environment. Our only limitations are in our minds.

There are two types of people in this world, and one type looks at our students, our communities, and our schools and sees only the deficits, only the barriers. But I look at our students and see absolute geniuses, and we must treat them as such. Anything less would be to abandon an unpolished diamond before allowing the world to marvel at its beauty. Our community cannot afford to be wasteful with our prized resources.

New murals inspire students, celebrate Black excellence

Brandshake Creative — Wed, 26 May 2021 14:30:00 +0000

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What do Kamala Harris, Colin Kaepernik, John Lewis, George Washington Carver and Barack and Michelle Obama have in common?

They are titans of Black excellence in their respective fields. But perhaps most relevant to students in the south Atlanta community: they are the latest additions to a series of inspiring murals at Carver STEAM Academy organized by COR.

is cultivating a positive school community by bringing beauty to the once-drab walls of the campus’ historic Archive building. COR is a non-profit organization that partners with Carver STEAM to remove non-academic barriers to student success by supporting them with behavioral health and social-emotional programming.

“We wanted to beautify the space and make the Archive building more student friendly,” says Jennifer Bartl, Chief Operating Officer of COR. “But perhaps most importantly, we wanted it to be culturally relevant and reflect what’s going on in the world with social and racial injustice.”

COR invited Atlanta artist and activist Christina Ward to paint a mural at Carver STEAM that highlights Black excellence and inspires students to achieve their full potential. Christina, a childhood friend of COR’s co-founder Jennifer Greenlee, gifted the mural to the school because she wanted to find a way to give of her time and talents to COR’s cause.

The gorgeous mural features bright colors and inspiring quotes. Amanda Gorman, Lena Waithe, James Baldwin, Stacey Abrams and Jean Michel Basquiat are also featured in the artwork.

“It’s so important for students to see themselves in the art,” says Christina. “I hope that they will look at this wall and see the power of determination and persistence, and what can happen if you don’t give in to the status quo.”

“It was important for COR to let students know that we built this space for them,” says Jennifer. “To give them some pride and ownership in the space.”

Christina is now working on murals at Price Middle School and Thomasville Heights Elementary School to spotlight Black history and excellence, from the time of the Egyptians through the Civil Rights Movement. She plans to work with local artists of color to further amplify the message and hopes that students might get involved as well, believing that school walls are the perfect canvas.

“You don’t always learn about the history of Black excellence and prosperity,” says Christina. “In these murals, students will see where they come from and what they’ve accomplished. We hope it gives them a sense of pride in who they are and their ability to achieve their own dreams. And to tell a different narrative other than that of slavery and escape.”

Summer programs will help close learning gaps following pandemic

Brandshake Creative — Wed, 26 May 2021 14:02:43 +0000

�ڹϳ�� is offering challenging, fun summer programs to approximately 250 elementary school, middle school and special education students to help close the learning gap for students who have fallen behind due to the pandemic and school closures.

The six-week, free, in-person sessions will take place June 7 to July 2 at Price Middle School.

Horizons Atlanta

Through a partnership with Horizons Atlanta, approximately 150 elementary and middle school students will receive ample individual attention (camper to counselor ratios are 5:1) and programming with a blend of high-quality academics – with an emphasis on literacy and STEAM – with arts, fitness, cultural enrichment, field trips, and confidence-building challenges. Every Horizons scholar also learns to swim.

�ڹϳ�� has partnered with Horizons Atlanta since 2017. This year’s summer program will focus more on literacy skills for learners who struggled to master reading during remote instruction.

“The summer programs will be crucial for catching up students who have fallen behind due to the pandemic and school closures, this time will allot for direct and small group instruction,” said Tianna Knight, who oversees summer programs for PBSA. “Our summer program is going to be essential to closing the gaps; this full day summer program will also help transition students to a full school day when returning in the Fall.”

For more than 50 years, Horizons Atlanta has led programming to address the opportunity gap that exists between underserved students and their more fortunate peers. Horizons Atlanta scholars, all of whom are free-or-reduced-lunch qualified, come from public schools and are in need of academic support. By design, roughly 2/3 of their scholars perform below grade level when they first enroll. Outcomes include measurable gains in reading, math, swim skills and water confidence, social skills, self-esteem, school-year attendance, and high-school graduation rates.

Summer Blast
Summer Blast will provide approximately 100 elementary school, middle school and special education students an opportunity to continue and improve upon their learning from the school year throughout the summer months in order to avoid the “summer slide”.

The theme for Summer Blast 2021 is: Community: Who I am? Who Are We? What can we do together? Each day, students will experience small group reading and math instruction that is differentiated to their individual needs. Engaging mentor texts are used to strengthen vocabulary and comprehension skills and multi-sensory activities are utilized to build reading skills such as letter, letter sound, and sight word fluency. Scholars participate in math activities designed to strengthen fact fluency and problem-solving skills.

Additionally, scholars participate in organized play that develops and strengthens social skills, teaches cooperation, and boosts creativity. Scholars choose two daily enrichment activities, including opportunities like basketball, flag football, robotics, science, and yoga. Weekly field trips to Atlanta-area locations help students to connect their learning with the real world and develop an understanding of their place in the Atlanta community.

Thanks to Summer Blast’s partnership with the CREATE teacher residency program, student-to-teacher ratios are low, and students can learn in a classroom with at least three certified teachers for more personalized attention and support to attain learning goals.

“Summer Blast is committed to welcoming our scholars back to our buildings, classrooms, and face-to-face learning by creating curriculum and learning experiences on and off campus that help to strengthen the student’s understanding and appreciation of their unique identity, develop respectful, caring relationships with members of our camp/school community and work together to design a community that values each individual’s identity and voice,” said Tiffany Smith, director of Summer Blast for elementary students.

Community Engagement / �ڹϳ�����