Week 9: Choosing a GYSD Project

Yes, we are still working on choosing a GYSD project! This is a tough process because the students have many great ideas and equally strong personalities! :) It's a good thing, because we a learning the art of listening and formulating ideas. Yesterday, the students thought critically about the project ideas, trying to figure out what the project would mean to them, their peers, and the community, how many volunteers they would like to involve, and how they would like to involve the community. Noah McGee led the students in a debate over the issues and then I assisted them in re-organizing their ideas. They have narrowed the project down to two choices and unfortunately, we did not have a clear winner. First thing when we come back from break, the students will make their final decision, create a checklist and timeline and we still start to move forward! Whew! A lot of tough work!

Students did come to a clear consensus that they would like Hunter Peatman to design our t-shirt. Congratulations, Hunter! As soon as he submits the final design, I will start checking prices and collecting money/sizes. Unfortunately, the guy who did the t-shirts for us last year and for the school is serving overseas--anyone know of a custom t-shirt maker in the area who will give us a good deal?

Have a wonderful break!

Peace,

Laura

Week 8: Choosing a GYSD Project

We had a lot of fun on Monday with different mind games to illustrate how easy it is to get into a rut with our thinking. We also had fun with some teambuilding games. The students were champs with the hula hoop game, and did a great job connecting with their parents (while blindfolded!) during the barnyard game. It was also really funny to watch the students walking around with their eyes closed making pig and bird noises!

The main focus of the day was brainstorming in groups different project ideas for Global Youth Service Day that directly address a root cause to homeless animals. It was difficult because it is much easier to thinking of "band-aid" projects like fundraising and drives and harder to address why we homeless animals is a problem in our society and how to eradicate it. Students have narrowed down their choices and through a series of questions and discussions, they will decide on their project next week--just in time for winter break!

This week, we also have Robby from Trees Atlanta coming to introduce the Enviro Club that will be led by Everyday Leaders. Certain Mondays (1-2 / month) will be dedicated to working on environmental issues affecting ACMS directly. We will invite other students to the Enviro Club. On the Mondays that there is no Enviro Club, Everyday Leaders will focus on their Global Youth Service Day Projects.

Have a great day!

Peace,

Laura

Week 7: Examining the Issue - Becoming the Experts

Whew! We worked hard last night! The students spent the two hours really starting to dive into their issue: homeless animals. The more they learn about the issue, the more creative they will be able to be with their projects, and the more impact they will have on the issue. Student watched videos and read articles to learn more about the causes, effects, and resources available. Student dove into topics on spraying and neutering programs, feral cats, dog fighting, lost pets, cockfighting, causes of homelessness for pets, and puppy mills. We learned a ton, and next week students will start to brainstorm ideas for projects to address one or more of these issues.

Also, I wanted to note that this week was the first week that all 11 students in the club were present. I really hope that we have many more weeks of everyone in attendance. Each week the students make big decisions for Global Youth Service Day and it is important to have everyone's input so that all students are on board with group decisions. Plus, it adds more ideas and makes team building easier.

Have a great week--I'll see you next Monday!

Peace,

Laura

Week 6: Community Mapping - Examining the Issue

This week, the students worked together to finalize the Mission Statement that they created:

We, Everyday Leaders, are uniting together to be a positive influence to the world. We take action while setting education in motion. We influence each other to make good choices in our communities.

I am very excited about this mission statement and how much of a collaborative effort it was. Students also completed a very difficult team building challenge called The Maze Game. Students had to work together (without talking!) to find the safe path along a grid on the floor. Everyone on the team had to get across safely and on the same path. It was definitely a challenge, but the students worked together to make sure no one was left behind.

The students continued with their Community Assets & Needs assessment by debating and deciding which issue they wanted to address for Global Youth Service Day. The students collectively decided that they would like to work to allieviate the problem animal homelessness. Over the next couple of weeks, the students will become experts in this arena, not only by looking at the issue itself, but the causes of animal homelessness, the effects or problems that this issue grows into for our community, different community resources that are already working to address this issue, and finally, we will discuss solutions which will help drive our projects.

Have a great Thanksgiving!

Peace,

Laura

Week 5: Community Mapping

This week, students worked hard on creating a mission statement for our group to help give us direction. Students also had the chance to revisit a team building challenge that they did not conquer in the first week of club: the Human Knot. The students this time used a lot of patience, turn taking and listening skills to complete the task in about 7 minutes. I was very proud to see what even in such a short time, the students are learning how to work better as a team.

Students also started a process called Community Mapping. Students started to look at the assets in their own community (like the firedepartment, the PTCA, etc) and also started to look at the Deficits, or Needs. From this list, the students will choose one to focus on for their Global Youth Service Day Project. Here is the list:

1. Lack of community service involvement in their community

2. Vandalism

3. Lack of outlets for artistic expression for youth

4. Car pollution

5. Litter

6. Homeless animals

7. Negative school climate

8. Crime

9. Drug use

Students will be voting and debating about which one they thing they can chance in a positive way over the course of the year.

Also -- very exciting news! Trees Atlanta will be teaming up with Everyday Leaders to help lead environmental service-learning labs, sessions, and projects two times per month. The other times we will be working on our youth-led project (something that addresses one of the issues above) for Global Youth Service Day. Students will be expects in this areas so that they can create a more lasting and effective project.

Have a great week!

Peace,

Laura

Week 4: Diversity

Today was definitely a heavy day. We tackled the theme of Diversity so that we can continue to recognize what makes different and unique and how that helps us all to work together is a space of compassion and trust.

To start it off, we did an activity called Diversity Island where students had to think about Diversity, what is obvious when we meet someone and what is not so obvious. Students we able to see that it is harder to "sum up" someone at first glance than we think.

We watched the school version of The Teen Files: The Truth About Hate*, which challenged groups of teens around the US--even one from Georgia--to confront their prejudices around race, religion,ethnicity, and sexuality. Following the movie, we held an opendiscussion where students were able to talk about and define diversity, tolerance, and compassion. All students were very respectful of one another and many profound observations where made. Thank you for the great discussion!!

Peace,

Laura


*AIMS Multimedia: An Arnold Shapiro Production, 1999

Week 3: Team Building

We took some time out this week to work on some team building skills. We also discussed leadership and talked about some leadership myths (like, Leaders are born, not made).

We played the game Land Mine, to see if we could navigate through a field of land mines (pieces of paper of things that stand in the way of us being a cohesive and productive team) while blindfolded! It was a fun activity, and we were able to discuss and figure out was to get past our own roadblocks.

We also took a closer look at the other youth-led service projects to see what other young minds are accomplishing all over the world for Global Youth Service Day. They were able to put the day into a context. We started to work on developing our own mission statement drawing from ideas from our own personal goals.

Finally, in groups, students worked to define TEAM. Here were their responses:

T - Teaching

E - Each Other

A - About

M - Membership

T - Together

E - Earning

A

M - Meaning

T - Teaching

E - Equally

A - Acceptance

M - Motivating

Great job!! Have a wonderful week!

Peace,

Laura

Week 2: Personal Asset Mapping & Goal Setting

Today was a day for all of us to look inside ourselves and see what skills and assets we each brought to the group. We completed a Personal Asset Inventory and examined our strengths and weaknesses. We then developed person goals to help us to develop those weaknesses into strengths. We followed a specific goal setting formula and discussed the importance of making goals measurable.

We also attempted to complete a team building challenge called The Human Knot. Students had to join in a circle and hold hands with different people across them, creating a knot. They then had to work as a team untangle. Unfortunately, we hit many road blocks (which we will discuss next week) and will have to complete this challenge at a later date.

Students also completed a colorful personalities worksheet to see where their personality tendencies come out of each person (the organizer, the spontaneous action taker, the pensive planner, the data collector, etc.) Knowing more about who we are as individuals will help us to form a strong bond as a team.

It was a tough day of a lot information, but I am excited to see how we grow as a group throughout the year!

Peace,

Laura

Week 1: Introduction

The kick off to Everyday Leaders was a great one! We have grown in size, and I am very excited to see all of the wonderful leaders who have turned out the for the club this year. We spent the day getting to know each other with name games and get-to-know you games. We also talked more about the expectations of the club as well as discussed key vocabulary like service-learning, civic engagement, leadership, and youth empowerment.

We also started to learn more about Global Youth Service Day (check it out this video to learn more: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTIVKluZV0o).

Students will need to provide a special notebook/journal that they can dedicate to the club for freewrites and reflection. They are used as a way of communicating with the facilitator as well. As a group, students established the rules for the club. Please remember to bring them next week - look forward to seeing you all again!

Peace,

Laura

Everyday Leaders FAQs

What is Everyday Leaders?
An after-school club at Atlanta Charter Middle School for youth who want to make a difference in their school, their community, and the world.

When does Everyday Leaders meet?
Mondays starting October 19th from 4 - 6 pm in the library.

What is Service-Learning?
Senator John Glenn said, “Service-learning is education in action.” Service-learning allows students to take classroom concepts and apply them to real life community needs. It creates socially responsible students who, through preparation, action, and reflection, demonstrate leadership in their own communities.

What will we do?
Throughout the year, students will learn about civic engagement and community service by taking action. Students will participant in service projects throughout the year and learn the skills necessary to lead their own projects. As a team, students will create, plan, and do their own community service project for Global Youth Service Day in April. They will not only be a part of this youth movement, they will be in charge of it. Students will be able to go above and beyond their required community service hours as well as take on leadership roles.

Who is facilitating the club?
Laura Byard - 8th grade Spanish teacher and 6th grade Associate Humanities teacher here are ACMS.

Why the blog?
This is a way for parents, students, and others in the ACMS community can check in and see what we are up to! Everyone is welcome to make comments. Happy reading!

Week Twenty-One: In Closing

To close out the year, the students of Everyday Leaders participated in one final service project at Genesis. They were able to hand delver what they were able to collect for Global Youth Service Day as well as the $55 dollars they raise. The students worked with children at the shelter during play group. Play group gives parents a chance to attend Empowerment Classes. Everyday Leaders divided into two groups, one conducting art projects inside and the other playing with the children outside on the playground. They had a fun time and Russell was proud to celebrate his birthday with service!

On our final night, students and parents met at Six Feet Under on Memorial Drive to relax and celebrate the work that their Everyday Leaders have done. It was nice to take a step back and honor our great youth leaders who serve their community with sure a natural ability. I am so proud of the Everyday Leaders and am excited to continue on next year. Good luck to our graduating 8th graders and see you 6th graders next year!

Week Twenty: Reflection & What Next?

With the final week of club wrapping up, there was still much to do. First, we had to complete thank you letters, inform our sponsors of the impact, and complete our letter writing campaign to Representative John Lewis. Students then spent the rest of the time reflection upon their GYSD project, their experience in the club, and evaluating the club and their facilitator. Students also took these closing days this reflect upon how they have changed because of the time spent with their fellow Everyday Leaders and how they have emerged as a leader. The students were very insightful and seem excited about using their skills next year -- especially those heading off to high school.

Note from the faciliator: Thank you so much, Everyday Leaders, for such a great year! I had a blast and learned so much about my new community. It gives me great hope that the world has such wonderful youth leaders like you -- our future is in good hands!

Global Youth Service Day!

Great work, everyone! It was a success! First of all, thank you parent and community volunteers who came out to help referee the games. We had a great time, played a TON of dodgeball and even found a winner for our tournament. Definitely a highlight for the afternoon was when Principal Mr. Underwood joined in a game!

Everyday Leaders will now be sending 25 letters to Representative John Lewis about funding for transitional housing for those with mental illness so that they do not end up homeless. Students also collect donations for Genesis: diapers, baby formula, food, baby clothes, and $55 cash for the organization!

Great work students! Way to do something good and have a great time while doing it!

Week Nineteen: Gearing up for GYSD!

Right after spring break, we have come back with much to do and lots of energy to do it! With only a few days to go until the Fight To End Homelessness Dodgeball Tournament, we have been working hard to put all of the pieces together. The students have really worked hard on advertising their project, even make temporary chalk posters on the sidewalks of the school. Students also took the lead to identify and assign student leadership roles, create a day of timeline and checklist, and make a resource list. The Everyday Leaders are well organized and are very excited for next Friday!

We also used our $50 Target gift card to purchase diapers and baby formula for Genesis to add to our donation box. Thank you Target - Edgewood!

Another exciting note: our Everyday Leaders tshirts are in! Thank you to student David Carlock for creating the Everyday Leaders logo for our shirts and a BIG thank you to Frank Kocsisszucs with Crash and Burn who made the tshirts for a very nice discount! We will be wearing our kelly green shirts for Global Youth Service Day - yea!

Great work, Everyday Leaders!

Week Eighteen: Reflection and Moving Forward

It's hard to wind down from such an exciting weekend! We have received much praise from the mural project. Still, after some reflection and discussion, we realized that there is much work to be done for our last project -- Global Youth Service Day and the work we will do with Genesis. The students hung up their posters, completed the entry forms, and went over logistics. They are starting to recruit parent and teacher volunteers to assist in the dodgeball tournament.

Here are the details on fundraiser:

The Fight to End Homelessness Dodgeball Tournament

Fight Homelessness, Play Dodgeball

Friday, April 24th
4 pm – 6 pm
Benefits Genesis, a local transitional family shelter
Only those who enter by Monday, April 20th can participate!!!

+Parent Signature Required!
+Entry forms will be passed out after Spring Break
+Turn items / forms into Ms. Larson
+Due on Monday, April 20th!!!
+Entry fee:
$5 -or-
3 Items of non-perishable food
See the form for more ideas!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

On Friday, we presented the project to the school in two groups as well as showed the school pictures of the mural project. Reggie & Noah did a great job presenting as a team to the sixth grade and the eighth grade group Russell, Camille, Regan, Ronald, and David even got applause for their mural project picture!

Fight Homelessness, Play Dodgeball!

Mural Project for Youth Art Month

I will let the pictures speak for themselves, please check out this album of our hardwork. I do want to say that I am extremely proud to be a part of such an energized community and to work with such passionate students. Everyone worked so hard, despite the cold and the wind, to finish the project. It looks beautiful! Great job, Everyday Leaders!

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/sredir?uname=laura.cleare&target=ALBUM&id=5319067017216915457&authkey=Gv1sRgCKP53YaP5f34dQ&feat=email

Week Seventeen: Field Trip to WonderRoot

This is such an exciting week! As Youth Art Month comes to a close, we are getting ready to complete our big project. On Tuesday, students continued to work on flyers and logistics for their Global Youth Service Day Project. Thursday, we took a field trip to WonderRoot to learn more about their organization. Volunteer Rebekah showed the students around the building. Students saw the community space, art gallery, recording studio, library, media lab, and even got to go inside the darkroom. Membership is $10 per month or $60; membership for students is absolutely free! To learn more about this artist space and their classes (free with membership!), please check out: http://www.wonderroot.org/


Students also has the chance to meet the muralist working on their project, artist Valerie Lake. She is very excited to be working with such a great group of students. She loved their ideas and did her best to create a mural with only their vision in mind. Due to the thunderstorm, the mural project will take place this Sunday, March 29th from 9 am - 5 pm. Please come by and check out their work!

Week Sixteen: Expression Beyond Journaling

As the students know, we journal a lot. It serves three purposes: 1) it gives students a space to express themselves freely, 2) it gives me a space to dialogue with the students and receive constant feedback, and 3) is a reflection space, allowing for lessons learned and service experienced to sink in. For this week, instead of journaling, I brought in canvases, paint, markets, and paper and allowed the students time for self-reflection and expression. We had a lot of fun and the students produced some very intriguing and beautiful work.

To continue the work on our projects, students also followed up on in-kind donation letters, voted on their topic for student letters, and discussed how they will engage the children at Genesis, the transitional shelter they are fundraising for. The day to facilitator group play with the young children will be on Tuesday, May 2.

Students received two in-kind donations this week: ice-cream sundae coupons from Morelli's Ice Cream shop on Moreland for prizes for the dodgeball tournament and primer for our mural project from Lowes at Edgewood - thank you Morelli's and Lowes!

Week Fifteen: Article Writing and Mural Preparations

With two big projects in the works, the weeks are going by fast! The students finished their articles for the Courier and the Porch Press. The majority of the time was spent planning out the mural. The students held an intense session brainstorming, creating images, and debating the importance of symbols and monuments in the city of Atlanta. Russell had a create idea and came up with the central theme of our mural: a phoenix. I would love to tell you more about what will be on the mural, but this is something I think we should wait until you can actually see it. Thanks again, Alicia, for coming out to help us!

We started off the week with great news: Earthshaking Music in the East Atlanta Village has responded to our in-kind donation request and are giving Everyday Leaders prizes for the winners of our dodgeball tournament. They were more than excited to support their local community. Thank you Earthshaking Music!!

Here is the article David, Noah, and Camille wrote for the Courier and the Porch Press:

Everyday Leaders Update
The Fight to End Homelessness Dodgeball Tournament
Fight Homelessness, Play Dodgeball

The youth volunteer group, Everyday Leaders, is holding a dodgeball tournament on April 24th (Global Youth Service Day). The tournament will be held in order to help and gather donations for an organization called Genesis. Genesis is a non-profit volunteer organization that is an emergency transitional community for homeless newborns and their families. Until the tournament, we will be fundraising to help gather donations for Genesis. Here is their wish list:

+ Non-perishable food + Baby wipes
+ Office supplies + Diapers
+ Cleaning supplies + Pillows
+ First aid supplies + Clothing
+ Towels and washcloths + Bed linens
+ Blankets and quilts + Bath soap

You can bring these items to us by way of the container in the office or on the day of the tournament. If you don’t think you can donate an item, you can donate $5, but we would really like you to bring an item. Now this is our big project for Global Youth Service Day, and is one of our main focuses but we do have other projects. One of them is for Youth Art Month.
The project is a youth-based volunteer project that will hopefully brighten up one street corner. The Everyday Leaders will be working with WonderRoot (a non-profit arts organization committed to uniting artists and community to inspire positive social change) to do a mural at the corner of Glenwood and Moreland, the big building with graffiti on it right next to Buffalo China. You know, the old payless shoe store. WonderRoot artists will be helping us draw out our mural design and help us complete the project. We are looking for volunteers, mainly youth. And we hope that the parents or guardians of the youth can stick around and also help out. Sign up with a representative from Everyday Leaders and sign up soon!

- This has been a message from Everyday Leaders

Week Fourteen: Media Relations & New Partnerships

What an exciting week! Students wrote more letters (and are learning all of the paperwork that goes into project planning!) to Georgia Public Broadcasting, 11 Alive, and some local neighborhood newspapers telling them about their Global Youth Service Day Project. While seeking some media attention, students also began the article writing process to keep the local public informed (The Courier and the Porch Press) of what we are up to at Everyday Leaders. Students started working on some of the logistics of the dodgeball tournament by creating rules to keep everything organized.

Thursday was very excited as we started our four week engagement with guest organization: WonderRoot! Alicia Coleman, art education major from University Georgia, artist, and WonderRoot volunteer, came to lead the class in a discussion about public art. She helped the students understand the scope of their project, decide who it is for and why. Through a democratic process, students decided on a mural project to help clean and brighten up a building on Moreland and Glenwood. We have already received permission from the building owner to cover the graffiti with the students' art (with the help of WonderRoot artists) and are working on more details. WonderRoot will continue to work with us each Thursday through March and also on our Youth Art Month Day of Service on March 28th. If you are interested in participating (open to the public!), please email me, Laura Cleare, at lcleare@handsonatlanta.org.

Week Thirteen: Public Speaking

Students spent most of their time the first day utilizing their new letter writing skills to request in-kind donations from local businesses for the GYSD project. Students also wrote letters to their elected officials from city council members up to President Barack Obama telling them about their project and inviting them to come. This was an exercise in civics so students could learn who represents them and how easy it is to contact them.

On Thursday, we talked about some of the skills that make a strong public speaker. We also talked about tips to overcome the fear of public speaking. Student practiced by giving impromptu speeches on topic drawn out of a hat on random topics. Students had 2 minutes to prepare a 2 minute speech that was thoughtful, organized, and had a thesis. At the end of the speeches, the students gave peer feedback and learned from one another about how to become more effective speakers. Some of the topics were kind of crazy and the speeches were pretty entertaining! Nevertheless, the students learned a lot and are excited to practice more in the future!

Week Twelve: Midterm Review

We have made it past the half way mark! That can be a good or a bad thing depending on how you look at it. This past week we tied up some lose ends and also prepared for the the busy weeks that lie ahead.

On Tuesday, students learned how to right a proper Thank You Letter and created letters for two of our sponsors: Target and Caribou Coffee (both at Edgewood). Students also learned how to write a project proposal. They put their skills into action by writing their proposal for Global Youth Service Day! The students organized a meeting with Principal Underwood for Thursday to present their project idea. Students we nervous the day of the proposal, but they did very well answering Mr. Underwood's questions--he even provided very helpful feedback and suggestions. In the end, their project was approved! I will reveal the details by retyping their proposal:

"Everyday Leaders is creating a project for Global Youth Service Day. The reason for this project is to help Genesis; a small community based family homeless shelter. We as a group decided on this project. Our project is a dodge ball tournament and a fundraiser for Genesis. Kids will have a fun time, at the same time contribute to the community, and learn about homelessness and how it affects the city.

The day of the dodge ball tournament will be April 24 after school, in the gym, from 4-6 pm. We as Everyday Leaders will be working with Genesis to inform students and do letter writing to congress about homelessness. We will also be asking parents to help us with the tournament.

For this event, we will be asking in-kind donations for the winning prizes. Although the tournament will not need any funding, there will be a small entry fee that will go to Genesis either a small amount of money or an item that Genesis has request."

For more information on Genesis, check out: http://www.genesisshelter.com/

As this week's blog title suggests, we did complete a midterm review. Students had a chance to provide me with incredible and insightful feedback through an anonymous survey as well as a journal entry. Thank you, Everyday Leaders.

Note: I have only collected T-shirt money from one student. Until we receive forms from all of the students, I will order the t-shirts. The cost is $12; however, pay what you can. We want everyone to have a t-shirt so we only need the forms in to start the process.

Finally, students also connected with Chris Appleton, Co-Executive Director at WonderRoot, a non-profit arts organization committed to uniting artists and community to inspire positive social change (http://www.wonderroot.org/). Russell did a great job calling and setting an appointment with Chris. The students are going to organize with WonderRoot for their project for Youth Art Month during the four Thursdays in March that we will meet. This is really a chance for the students to not only make decisions, but really take the reigns in project planning. I am very excited to see what they come up with!

Whew! That's a lot of stuff! Keep up the great work!

Week Eleven: Random Acts of Kindness Week

Due to the early release day, we were only able to hold one session of Everyday Leaders -- though it was a busy day! On Thursday, students made over 100 cards for the Alzheimer's patients at the Wesley Woods Nursing Home. They were so happy to receive such bright, colorful, and warm valentines! Students used great teamwork and took on the big task, not wanting anyone to go without a card. Shout Out to David's mom for helping us by cutting out hearts!

Later that evening, DeJanique, David, and Camille all volunteered to bake a cake for their teachers for the following morning. On Friday, we received a large donation of fresh coffee from Caribou and students brought their cakes into the teacher's lounge with their big thank you banner. Camille came in with cup cakes that morning because her dog ate her cake! Poor thing! Shout Out to Camille's mom for taking her to Kroger!

The students did a great job with such little time. For the upcoming week, the students will start on their proposal to the Principal for Global Youth Service Day as well as thinking ahead to March for their project for Youth Art Month.

Week Ten: GYSD Timeline / Prepare for February Project

What a great and productive week at Everyday Leaders! As a group, the students have finalized their GYSD project. In the weeks to come, the students will be preparing a proposal for their Principal Underwood. Details of the project will be revealed as soon as their proposal is approved!

We are also gearing up for Random Acts of Kindness Week, which is next week. Though we will not have EL next Tuesday due to the earlier release, On Thursday, students will make cards for their teachers as well as for the patients at the Wesley Woods Nursing Home. On Friday, students will present their cards to their teachers along with cakes that they will back and coffee provided by Caribou Coffee at Edgewood. On Tuesday, students learned how to write an In-Kind Donation Request and were successful in securing a 25 cup cambro of coffee for the teacher's lounge!

Thanks Caribou and great job, Everyday Leaders!

Finally, students completed their design for their Everyday Leaders tshirt. We hope to wear these for future service project events so that everyone will know who we are!

Week Nine: Choosing a GYSD Project

This week , the members of Everyday Leaders really buckled down and had some serious debates about where the direction that the club is going. For Tuesday, students participated in more team building activities as well as activities to discover if their perceptions of themselves is the same as how others perceive them.

Students also watched the movie created by Nathan Black, a student at Georgia Tech, and Nadia Moreno, a recent graduate from Emory University. These young film directors were panelist at the seminar the students attended at the MLK Service Summit. You can watch the 11 minute video on homelessness at http://overcomingpoverty.com/.

Through a Democratic process, the students started narrowing down project ideas and started debating on the benefits and the impact of the service project on themselves, their school, and their community. Students engaged in a self-led debate for over 30 minutes and enjoyed that their facilitator, Laura, was not allowed to say anything!

In the upcoming weeks, students will begin to define their project, plan logistics, create a budget and a timeline, and present their project to the principal, Mr. Underwood. I will post the proposal as soon as that process is completed.

Good debate, students!

Week Eight: Presentation

We had a short week due to all of the activity last week. On Thursday, students prepared for their presentation at morning meeting in front of the school. Members created a slide show about Everyday Leaders and others made posters on the Service Summit and the MLK Day of Service. Students included these myths and facts about homelessness in their power point presentation:

Myth: Homeless children don’t go to school.
Fact: About 88% of homeless children are enrolled in school.

Myth: The homeless are uneducated and unemployed.
Fact: Many homeless people have completed high school and some have attended college.

Myth: Homeless people are dangerous.
Fact: In general, the homeless are among the least threatening and most vulnerable group in our society.


They did a great job in front of their entire school; great job Everyday Leaders!

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service - Everyday Leaders Service Kick Off!

We kicked off our service by joining 8,000 volunteers working on projects throughout the Atlanta metro area by serving in the King District!

After meeting at John Hope Elementary for muffins, four students (Regan, David, Russell, and Reggie, along with Laura and her fiance Guthrie) walked through the hustle and bustle of the king center to the Wheat Street Senior Towers for hospitality cleaning. There were many volunteers in attendance. Students brought chemical-free cleaners that they made the week before. We had a list of three homes to clean. One resident unfortunately did not answer and another had just cleaned the day before. But, third try's a charm, right? Ms. Moses kindly welcomed us into her home where students cleaned her large windows, dusted ledges and table, and engaged in conversation with her. They did a great job and worked very hard!

After leaving Wheat Street, we joined the rest of the volunteers with the Hands On Atlanta project across the street at the Prince Hall Masonic home. Students cleaned floorboards and window ledges so that others could follow behind painting. The students of Everyday Leaders were very positive and flexible, willing to help with anything. They were even mistaken for high school students!

After lunch provided by Chic-fil-A, we were able to return the MLK visitor center for reflection and to walk through the visitor center before getting picked up.

Thank you, Everyday Leaders, for your hard work on your day off! and thank you parents for driving your students to and from the King District this weekend!

There is no Everyday Leaders today; we will return on Thursday!

King Center's Martin Luther King Service Summit

What a great and busy day! Overall, we had a great day. Six students came as well as two of the students' sisters, and Laura & her fiance. Together, we attended different activities and sessions.

Here are the highlights:

Freedom Rally & Keynote Address / 10:30 – 12:30 / Ebenezer Baptist Church
The Freedom Rally was hosted in partnership with National Park Service, this and featured speeches from the children of late civil rights leaders who are carrying forward the legacies of their parents interwoven with artistic performances from local performers.
Speakers included Jamida Orange, daughter of the late Rev. James Orange and Elder Bernice King, youngest daughter of Dr. King. Performers included the Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church Choir, Pan People Steel Band, Free Agents 2nd Line Band, and a Grady High student performing spoken word. It was lively and fun! Our very own Ronald was even able to ask Elder Bernice King a question about the positive and negative legacy of the Civil Rights movement!

Homelessness, The Lived Experience / 1:00 – 2:30 / The King Center
According to the 2007 Tri-Jurisdictional Homeless Census, on January 25, 2007, there were 6,840 sheltered and unsheltered homeless men, women and children living in the City of Atlanta, Fulton and DeKalb Counties. Panelists on this topic included Vernon Anderson, Veteran’s Assistance Manager, Samaritan House of Atlanta (was also formally a person affected by homelessness), Elisabeth Omilami, daughter of the late civil rights leader Hosea Wililams, and Executive Director of Hosea Feed the Hungry & Homeless and film makers Nathan Black, a student at Georgia Tech, and Nadia Moreno, a recent graduate from Emory University. Check out their 11 minute movie at overcomingpoverty.com This conversation was be moderated by Protip Biswas, Executive Director, Regional Commission on Homelessness, United Way of Metropolitan Atlanta. Again, one of our club members, Regan, was able to dialogue with panelist Vernon Anderson. This panel gave us ideas for planning our project for Global Youth Service Day!

For the final session at John Hope Elementary, we split into two groups. The majority of us attended:
Understanding Dr. King's Philosophy of a Beloved Community
A youth only session, participants expanded their knowledge of Dr. King’s leadership through an interactive workshop that explored the tenets of the Beloved Community as a tool for engaging communities and skills for effectively bringing people together. Participants discussed Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as a transformational with speaker and community activist Kirk Tyler. Everyday Leaders were strong participants in this workshop!

Two of our older male students (Regan & Russell) attended Success, Struggles, & Setbacks An in depth discussion about the importance of boys coming into their own as responsible men, productive citizens, and community servants. Speaker Sir James Buchanon works at Hands On Atlanta, is a motivational speaker, an author, and a relationship therapist. This workshop was for youth males.

We ended our long day with written reflection at John Hope Elementary. Highlights of these reflections will be featured in this week's Courier. I am very proud of the students--their maturity was recognized and appreciated by Hands On Atlanta staff, special guests, and presenters. Way to represent ACMS!

Week Seven: Preparing for MLK

We had a busy week getting ready for our field trips to the Martin Luther King Service Summit and the MLK Day of Service on MLK Day (It's a day ON!)

On Tuesday, Everyday Leaders prepared for the weekend by watching parts of the PBS special, Citizen King. Citizen King is a great documentary not only highlighting Martin Luther King's more notable accomplishments, but it goes beyond the I Have a Dream speech into more of his work with the Poor Peoples' Campaign as well as his opposition the Vietnam War. We a held a group discussion following the film.

On Thursday, students started to prepare for their day of service by making their own chemical-free all purpose cleaners and glass cleaners. Students will take these with them to clean senior's apartments at the Wheat Street Towers in the King District. Students also completed their final day of online research for project ideas for their Global Youth Service Day project.

Looking forward to the weekend!

Week Six: Stating the Problem

Happy New Year! We really started the year off right with a generous $50 gift card from Target at Edgewood for the students' project planning budget. Thank you, Target!

Students really started working on their multi-tasking skills this week as we are starting to gear up for the 16th Annual Hands On Atlanta Martin Luther King Service Summit held at the King Center on Saturday, January 17th. Students will also be participating in their first day of service on Martin Luther King Jr. Day - It's a day ON!

Students used their new knowledge of the subject of homelessness to complete a Community Mapping Tree - root causes, effects, and available resources. Students started the brainstorming process for specific project ideas. They will continue to cultivate this list during the MLK Service Summit. The students also developed a script and called some community-based organizations like Open Door, the Atlanta Community Food Bank, and Task-Force for project ideas.

Finally, students also worked on their presentation that they are going to give the school for morning meeting on Friday, January 23rd. They delegated tasks and created an outline.

***Students - Get in your permission forms for the MLK Service Summit and the Service Kick-off!