Now Living in El Paso, TX

Last day at FLOC

Today is my last day at my placement, For Love of Children.

I have been deeply inspired by the many workshops and sessions I have had with our students. Several of our students are now on the track to successfully graduate high school and work towards a college or post-secondary degree - in fact 100% of our senior class will be moving onto a post-secondary program this fall!

The last few months have been quiet, as a majority of our students have been working summer jobs through the D.C. Summer Youth Employment Program. Though some of our middle school and high school students have been attending summer camp at FLOC's Outdoor Education Center in West Harper, WV. For the past several weeks the high school-middle school program has merged into a condensed after school program now known as the Scholars program.

My community consisting of Lauren, Andrew, Rachel, Laura and I are ending our year with sincere goodbyes and preparing our JVC house for next years JVC community. We have experienced everything together / uniting as acquaintances together at the beginning of the year / adjusting to life in Washington, DC / taking roadtrips to other JVC houses/retreats/gatherings / Mass at St. Augustine's Catholic Church / meeting each others families / amazing dinners / great converstations / extreme weather/ and an eternity of friendships ahead.

So what's next for us?

Lauren will be staying on a second year with the Jesuit Volunteer Corps at her placement, Samaritan Ministries. Rachel is heading back to her ala mater, UNC-Chapel Hill to attend medical school. Laura, also returning to her ala mater, Penn State University, for law school. Andrew will be joining me in Portland in a couple of weeks for a visit, then meeting with his father and uncle for a bike ride through Oregon and California. Andrew will end at home in San Diego. And I am heading back to Portland for a couple of weeks, will be attending my cousin Liz's wedding, then moving to the mid-west to Wausau, Wisconsin where I will be entering my journalism career as a multimedia journalist / reporter at WAOW-TV, an ABC affiliate an hour from Greenbay.

I am very sad to leave JVC, my community, and the greater JVC community. But I am also very excited to take what I learned this year and to put it into my career and in life.

Thank you all for your support to me and the JVC over the past year.

College access at College Summit

Last weekend, five of my students and I attended a College Summit workshop at Trinity College in DC. My placement FLOC is partnered with College Summit. College Summit is a "national nonprofit organization that partners with schools and districts to strengthen college-going culture and increase college enrollment rates, so that all students graduate career and college-ready." Upstairs of my placement is College Summit's national office. Members of the national office staff have been guest speakers in a number of my program's workshops.

The workshop was held Thursday-Sunday and offers inner city students the tools they need to write a personal statement for their college applications, create a college list, and offer sessions for students to express themselves and recognize their personal successes, hardships, and vulnerabilities. Students in my program and in the greater DC area have remarkable stories that they were able to express through this program.

Volunteers, alumni leaders, and staff of this program came from all over the country. Over the course of just four days, I quickly became familiar and comfortable with the chaperones, college coaches, and writing coaches. Students left the weekend with an established college list, a solid personal essay, and many new trusting relationships. I am very grateful that I got to witness and experience the growth I saw in my students. Since experiencing the weekend, I have been recommending the volunteer opportunities with College Summit to many of my friends and family members. I look forward to being involved in another workshop in the future.

Only two more weeks remain at my placement in Washington, DC. In three weeks, I will be returning home to Portland, Ore and my Jesuit Volunteer Corps year will be complete. More soon.

More on College Summit: http://www.collegesummit.org/aboutus

FLOC Students Grow and Inspire

My after school education programs have ended for the 2009-2010 school year.

I instructed a life skills and career-based workshop to our sophomore students. For a majority of the spring semester, our students constructed a personalized Ten Year Plan. The Ten Year Plan reflected what students spent the year researching their plans for their remaining years in high school; their future years in college, dreams for their future careers, and even created budgets that reflect their future salaries. The students made amazing effort and I was inspired by their hard work and excitement for their futures. (Left, a few of my sophomore students and I in workshop)

My co-worker Kristina and I co-taught our junior workshop, which ended with students narrowing down their college lists and prepared to take the SAT and ACT exam.

In addition to instructing workshops, I assisted with our post-secondary scholars program. We also offer need-based award to our high school graduates, The Fred Taylor Scholarship. Seven of our high school graduates were recipients of this scholarship and ten of our participants in the Scholars program graduated college this spring.

Our program space is a lot quieter, but we are keeping busy building curriculum for next year. We are combining forces with our middle school Leaders in Action program with our high school program, Educational Guidance & Advocacy. Combined, we have renamed our program "Scholars." Our program will continue to offer grade-based workshops, while also offering additional theme-based programs for out students.

In a few short months, my year in the Jesuit Volunteer Corps will come to an end - I cannot believe how fast this year has gone by, and how much I have learned in such a little amount of time. Most of all, I am most proud of the students I served and I cannot wait to see what they do with all of their potential.

DC Students Speak Out Against Graduation Rates

Last Wednesday, I took a few of my program's students to participate in a march and rally organized by S.T.E.P. (Success Through Educational Progress) Up DC. The rally was formed to speak out against the devastating high school graduation rates in the nations capital.

In 2006, the DC public school graduation rate from high school was 49%. The good news, however, is that the number of students graduating high school in the District is rising. The DC Public School system reports that the class of 2010 will have a graduation rate of over 70%, same as the national average. Thought presently, only 9% of DC public school students will receive a four-year degree in six years or less.

It was inspiring to see my students participate in speaking out at such an important cause with many DC students and teachers. We gathered in front of Cardozo High School in Northwest Washington for a rally; then we marched to to the campus of Howard University, which is a prominent historically black college not far from where my JVC community and I live. At my placement, 100% of our students graduate high school on time and 100% of the students have been accepted to a post-secondary institution.

Special West Wing Tour

My housemates Lauren, Laura, Andrew, and I were fortunate enough to get a tour of the West Wing of the White House last night. Our neighbor, Patrick, worked for the Obama campaign and has been working for the Administration since inauguration. We were able to see the Situation Room, the Oval Office, the Roosevelt Room, and the Press Room.

One highlight of the visit was the sighting of the first family's dog, Bo (quick photo taken with my housemate Andrew below). A very memorable tour on a beautiful night in DC.


This weekend my community and I will be joining other JVC East Communities on the Ignatian Silent Retreat in Morristown, NJ.

Supporting Non-Profits

Last Wednesday, my placement held its annual breakfast fundraiser. A few months back, I signed up on a committee to help assist the planning. Given my background in the media and film production, I was assigned to help a film crew put together a documentary-style video to help tell the story of For Love of Children that we would share at the fundraiser. The film included current students, members of our staff, and volunteers who are committed to serving FLOC. The staff and I arrived at the AED building on Connecticuit Avenue early Wednesday morning to begin setting up for the event. I helped greet guests, all who entered came in with a smile and graciously listened about our programs that support high risk youth in the DC area. Within the hour, our executive director, program participants and members of the board shared stories of what we do at FLOC and outcomes of our students. While some days can be challenging, the fundraiser breakfast reminded me of the mission of our program and why I am spending my year serving DC's youth.