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VOLUME 5 ISSUE 7
APRIL 2017
Equity Alliance MN l 6063 Hudson Road, Suite 218 l Woodbury, MN 55125 l (651) 379-2678 l equityalliancemn.org
Equity Alliance MN is formerly DBA as East Metro Integration (EMID)
EQUITY
CONNECTOR Visit us at:
equityalliancemn.org
SUMMER 2017
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
FIND
MORE
LEARNING
equityalliancemn.org/
ongoing-learning
June 12 and 13, 2017 Culturally Responsive Leadership with Almanzan and EOS (Inver Grove Heights, South St. Paul, Stillwater) June 15 and 16, 2017 Restorative Circles—Mary Leadem Ticiu and Taylor Saver. Register at this link. June 15 and 16, 2017 AVID Bridge Training. For more information, click here. June 19-23, 2017 Restorative Practices in Schools, sponsored by MDE. For more information and to register, follow this link. July 11, 12, 13, 18, 19, 20 American History through an African American Lens with Dr. Keith Mayes. Register
at this link. July 25 – 27, 2017 AVID Summer Institute. Visit avid.org for more information. August 1 and 2, 2017 Culturally Responsive Leadership with Almanzan and EOS (Inver Grove Heights, South St. Paul, Stillwater) August 7 and 8, 2017 AVID Path Training. For more information, click here. August 9 and 10, 2017 Math and Social Justice with South High School Math Teachers Morgan Fierst and
Stephanie Woldum. Register with this link. August 10, 2017 Science and Race with Roseville Area High School and Roseville Area Middle School
teachers Ann Hite, Lisa Lindquist and Ed Murray. Register with this link. August 14 and 15, 2017 History of African American Music with the incredibly talented jazz singer,
composer, and band leader Bruce Henry. Register with this link. August 16 and 17, 2017 Cognitively Guided Instruction with Dr. James Brickwedde. Register with this link. August 18, 2017 My Culture, Your Culture and Success in the Classroom. Register with this link. Coming, Fall 2017 American History through a Latino/Latina Lens with University of Minnesota
Assistant Professor Dr. Jimmy Patino
Executive Director: Dr. Jean Lubke l [email protected] (651) 379-2675 l Visit equityalliancemn.org for our staff contacts. Equity Alliance MN NEWS is published monthly. Information to be added can be submitted by the 20th of each month to:
Cathryn Nakhornsak l [email protected] (651) 379-2657
STUDENT PROGRAMS
T he handwritten notes were displayed on brightly colored paper cut into heart shapes. “You are beautiful just the way you are,” “You are loved and you are important,” “Never forget how special you are,” “Welcome to the
fam!” and “Always love the skin you’re in” were just a few of the messages that adorned the notes. These messages were part of the heartfelt sentiments written by the 5th grade girls in the Lovin’ The Skin I’m In program at Lake Elmo Elementary to a group of girls over 5,000 miles away. During one her regular visits to Lake Elmo Elementary, Robin Hickman, the founder of the Lovin’ program, told the girls of an upcoming trip she was
taking to Ghana, Africa to visit a village of young girls. Ms. Hickman asked the Lovin’ girls if they would be interested in writing “Lovin’ notes” to welcome the newest group of girls to join the Lovin’ Sisterhood. The girls were so excited and couldn’t wait to start making their cards.
“Just like Ms. Robin says, every girl has a voice that needs to be heard,” said one of the 5th grade girls from Lake Elmo Elementary, which is in the Stillwater Area School district. “I hope the girls in Africa know how important and beautiful they are, too.” Each of the 27 girls created a special handwritten card with words of support, encouragement, hope, and most of all, love. One student drew a picture of the Ghana national flag next to an American flag to represent friendship and unity. Accompanied with each card was a picture of each girl and her name, so that the girls in Ghana could see the girl who made each card.
The girls were very excited to show Ms. Hickman the cards they had made. Hickman said "The Lake Elmo Lovin' the Skin I'm In and their Lovin' leader Paula (she plants amazing seeds in the girls) always make my heart sing, but when I picked up the beautiful and affirming cards they made welcoming girls in Ghana to the Lovin’ Sisterhood, I was overjoyed and extremely proud! I had an opportunity to bask in their excitement about their important role in spreading Lovin' to Africa!” Paula O’Loughlin, the site’s advisor, was incredibly proud and inspired by the thoughtfulness and amount of care each girl poured into the cards. “We had a rich discussion about many of the joys and challenges that we as human beings experience and ultimately the girls predicted that they have much in common with the girls in Ghana. The girls talked about how every person wants to feel important, to feel loved, and to feel like they belong. This opportunity deepened their understanding of the interconnectedness we have with one another.”
Ms. Hickman visited the Lake Elmo Lovin’ girls upon her return from Ghana to share the details of her visit. “The entire experience with
the brave, brilliant, and beautiful Ghana Lovin' Sisters was priceless; watching the girls so joyously accept the cards from their Lake Elmo Lovin' Sisters touched my heart and soul deeply. The Lovin' bond, between girls from different parts of the world,
is a vision of possibilities and precious reality of hope.” To see more pictures from Ms. Robin’s Ghana trip, visit our website here.
The Lovin’ Message Travels to Ghana
FIND MORE
HERE equityalliancemn.
org/news
Classroom Partnerships Explores the Arts March 21-24, 2017 Second graders from Columbia Heights, Forest Lake, St. Anthony and Spring Lake Park were very eager to spend their day at the Minnesota Institute of Arts. Students were able to explore, hands-on, various multi-cultural trunks for the first part of the morning before being led all over the museum by Docents to learn about art pieces that exhibited several different cultures. They look forward to their last exchange in April at Dunning Recreational Center.
First grade students, teachers and families from Forest Lake and Spring Lake Park enjoyed their second partnership by exploring at their partner's school. The exchanges were at Lino Lakes Elementary, Northpoint Elementary and Park Terrace Elementary. Students were able to tour their school and rotate through three other learning stations where they talked in depth about their families and how families can be very different from one another. To view more pictures from these exchanges, click here.
Advocating for Teachers of Color
Monday, March 6, 2017 Kamal Suleiman from Woodbury High School on behalf of Equity Alliance MN Youth Executive Board (YEB) testified in front of a Minnesota Senate Committee concerning to the bill SF 1555. The bill seeks to increase funding to advocate for more teachers of color and teachers who are American Indian.
Kamal shared his personal testimony of what it’s like to connect with a teacher who shares the Muslim faith. He made a point that there is a disconnect that students of color cannot connect with their teachers, and how it is important for students of color who have teachers that look like them. Kamal is also featured in South Washington’s school district news, to learn more about it, click here.
Executive Director: Dr. Jean Lubke l [email protected] (651) 379-2675 l Visit equityalliancemn.org for our staff contacts. Equity Alliance MN NEWS is published monthly. Information to be added can be submitted by the 20th of each month to:
Cathryn Nakhornsak l [email protected] (651) 379-2657
Outdoor Career & Exploration
Thursday, February 16, 2017 Students from White Bear Lake Culture Club, Forest Lake Synergy, Woodbury Be the Dream, and Equity Alliance MN Youth Executive Board attended a career exploration at Three Rivers Park District. The goal was to have Three Rivers Park District employees share their career path and the daily tasks of their job. Students got to hear from Marketing and Communications, Community Engagement, Planning and Design, Civil Engineering, Natural Resource Management, Park Service Ambassadors, and Outdoor Recreation. Some of the responds from students were, “I learned there is more to marketing than working in a boring office,” and “I didn't know that you got to burn prairies. In school we learned a lot about invasive species, so getting to fight them sounded really amazing. I just think that the world is such a beautiful place with its environment and having people like you guys who advocate and protect them is really wonderful.” While students got to learn about these different careers, they also got to explore the park through geocaching. This opportunity exposes students to practical use of higher education degrees and potential career pathways.
U PCOM ING YOU T H EVENT S
Visit: equityalliancemn.org for our current calendar of events
Classroom Partnerships Grade K, Exchange 2 @ Partnering Schools, April 25-26 Customized Afterschool Programs High School Youth Retreat @ Crosswinds School 4-8:30pm, April 27 Classroom Partnerships Grade 1, Exchange 3 @ Partnering Schools, May 2-4 Classroom Partnerships Grade K, Exchange 3 @ Partnering Schools, May 9-10 Classroom Partnerships Grade 3, Exchange 3 @ Wilderness Inquiry, May 16-17, 23-25
Synergy, Forest Lake Gains Inspiration Saturday March 25, 2017 The Synergy ensemble at Forest Lake High School attended the final round of the TruArtsSpeaks' Be Heard MN slam poetry competition. For the past five years, Be Heard MN Youth Poetry Slam Series has provided a platform for hundreds of youth poets to tell their stories. Every year they host an annual competition that seeks to identify a cohort of six poets residing in Minnesota, to be mentored in writing, performance and arts leadership throughout the year and serve as state representatives in the annual International Brave New Voices Youth Poetry Slam Festival.
The event took place at the Walker Arts Center. The Synergy students watched as 12 young poets underwent two rounds of provocative and impassioned slam poetry. The poems focused on a wide range of social issues, including but not limited to the killings of black men due to police brutality, youth trans identity, the shocking and unreported toll of missing black women across the country, toxic masculinity, gender stereotyping, parental relationships, Donald Trump, the racial politics of higher education, and the stigmas surrounding period blood. The sold-out audience in the Walker's McGuire transformed into a space for social consciousness and the airing of the intimate—the audience snapped, clapped, cried, and laughed as each poet shared their stories on the stage.
The Synergy ensemble at Forest Lake has been using spoken word poetry as their
primary means of performance over the past year. Be Heard MN provided them the
valuable opportunity to witness a wider dimension of spoken word poetry and witness
firsthand how it impacts the community. After the event ended, the students felt
inspired to continue working on their own poems and expressed their desire to audition
next year.
Executive Director: Dr. Jean Lubke l [email protected] (651) 379-2675 l Visit equityalliancemn.org for our staff contacts. Equity Alliance MN NEWS is published monthly. Information to be added can be submitted by the 20th of each month to:
Cathryn Nakhornsak l [email protected] (651) 379-2657
AVID Visit: equityalliancemn.org for
AVID news and images!
AVID Path Training will be held on Aug. 7-8 at Simley High School in Inver Grove Heights from 8:30-3:30. The strands that are being offered are:
Culturally Relevant Teaching: Empowering Students
Culturally Relevant Teaching: Transforming Educators
Critical Reading 1 Student Success Tutorology Math 1 Science 1 Advancing the AVID Elective (AET's only) Academic Language and Literacy Just WICORize it (elementary AVID sites/
staff only) If you have questions about registration please contact your AVID District Director or Karin Swainey at [email protected].
Youth Voice Meets with Legislators at the Capitol Tuesday, March 21, 2017 Equity Alliance MN Youth Executive Board visited the Capitol to meet with their representatives for the annual Youth Day at the Capitol. The group met with 14 different Minnesota Legislators & Senators and delivered over 50 different letters. The letters and meetings addressed students concerns about the status of education in the state of Minnesota. Issues ranged from increasing the number of teachers of color, culturally relevant curriculum, absent narratives, integration funding, student resource officers in schools, and personal experiences in their home school districts. This group of young advocates are learning the basic skills of being civilly engaged to create the change they want to see in the world. To view more pictures of the day, click here.
A group of students meet with Senator
Jerry Newton (DFL) District 37 to discuss
diversity in teachers, and increasing
counselors/mentors in school
