Earlier this month, a group of 30 “at risk” teenagers from New York’s underserved Bushwick neighborhood traveled to South Africa as part of a part of a program called Journey For Change. The goal of the trip, which was organized by Malaak Compton-Rock (wife of comedian Chris Rock), was to inspire these kids, many of whom have never left their neighborhood, to become global leaders who engage in creating positive change.
Each of the students was paired with a college-aged mentor who traveled with them, and will continue to work with them now that they have returned, as they uphold their one- year commitment to continue to be “Global Ambassadors” in their own neighborhoods and around the U.S.
In an effort to rebuild relationships in some of Portland’s formerly tight-knit blocks, photojournalist Julie Keefe recently led a group of young people in a project called Hello Neighbor. Armed with notepads and cameras (funded by grant money), students from 10 Portland-area middle schools went out into their communities and interviewed their neighbors; asking questions like “How old are you?” “Do you feel safe on your street?” and “What are you most proud of?”
After completing the interviews and developing the photos, several shots were blown up into huge banners that were then posted around the various participating neighborhoods. Not only have the banners helped people learn more about those that live around them, but they have also brought many people together to view them and talk about the various thoughts and questions they pose.
San Quentin State Prison has a reputation for holding some of California’s toughest inmates, but the folks at the Prison University Project are changing that reputation to the “smartest”. PUP is a non-profit that provides an opportunity for inmates to earn a college degree free of charge while serving their time. Through a partnership with Patten University and several volunteer professors, the program provides 12 courses per semester ranging from college prep in math and English to humanities and social sciences.
To date nearly 70 students have completed their Associates Degree in the prison and dozens of others who received parole were able to use the credits they earned in the program to help them finish after they got out. PUP would like to duplicate their program in other prisons as well, so, in order to help raise money, they are selling two books that include pictures, essays, poems, and short stories by the inmates. Pick up a copy todayand help support this great program.
According to the latest edition of the Princeton Review’s Best 368 Colleges, the happiest students in the U.S. are at Clemson University. The results were based on an 80 question survey asking students about their school’s academics, administration, campus lives, student body, and themselves. Clemson students gushed over the tradition of school spirit, academic excellence, and the small-town atmosphere that makes the school feel so welcoming. Rounding out the top three were Brown University, and Princeton.
Tomorrow is the first night of a new CNN documentary called Black In America. The special report focuses on the time from the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. until now; addressing such questions as: How far have we come? How can we make it better? What are some of the biggest issues, challenges, and misconceptions black men, women and families face?
I haven’t seen the piece, so I can’t offer any feedback yet, but I think this is something important for everyone to watch so we can continue to work toward gaining understanding for each other. In addition to airing the show, CNN has put together all kinds of resources and discussion materials on their website to inspire more conversations and learning about this important topic.
Don’t forget to tune in Wednesday and Thursday at 6pm Pacific and we can discuss it here later in the week.
For the past three years, Harvard’s most popular class has been Psych 1504: Positive Psychology taught by Professor Tal Ben-Shahar. Just like any others, this course requires research, paper-writing, and exams, but what draws students is their ability to immediately apply what they’ve learned by becoming happier in their own lives and contributing to the happiness of others.
The idea behind the concept of Positive Psychology is based on the idea of prevention rather than treatment. Its about learning the tools you must use to positively work through challenges as they come rather than just repairing the damage after they crush you. In addition to the Positive Psych class Ben-Shahar also teaches Positive Leadership and has published several books including his latest, Happier, in which he outlines six important keys to happiness.
Hopefully just reading MajorityMag has made you happier, but as Prof. Ben-Shahar would want us to remember there are no quick fixes, our happiness is determined by the choices we make everyday, so keep up the good work.
Today is Juneteenth, a celebration of the emancipation of African American slaves in the U.S. It was June 19th, 1865 when General Gordon Granger brought word of Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation to Texas. Although it had gone into effect January 1st, 1863 word had not yet spread to many parts of the South; and since the war was still on it was not well enforced even in areas that did know about it.
Today, Juneteenth is officially recognized by 28 states (hopefully the rest will catch on soon) and celebrations are taking place all across the country. Click here to find Juneteenth festivities in your area and join in on this celebration of freedom for all.
Earlier this week, 90 year old John Lawrence Locherwas honored with a High School Diploma from Detroit Southwestern High School. During the Great Depression, when Locher was a sophomore, his dad came down with tuberculosis and couldn’t work. Locher left school for the factories so he could provide for his family. After serving in World War II, he ended up working for GM for nearly 40 years where he worked his way up to a successful engineer position.
When his old school, Southwestern, heard the story they invited Locher, who now lives in Florida, to attend their graduation ceremony and give him an honorary diploma for “life credits”. Several of his family members, including 5 of his 8 children, were able to attend and celebrate with him.
As I mentioned below, I had the chance to spend some time in New York this past weekend. Unfortunately I didn’t get out to any of the museums, but I heard about some students who actually spend a lot of time there. At least two times a week, students of The New York City Museum School travel to some of the city’s best institutions for some hands on learning experience . No matter what subject they are studying, there are exhibits to reinforce what they are reading in their textbooks. Through partnerships with several museums, the school has created a curricullum that uses the museums’ resources to meet city and state standards and emphasize critical thinking. The process seems to be working. The NYC Museum school is recognized as one of the best in the city and boasts a nearly 100% passing rate on the Regents Exam.
This is an outstanding model for the type of creativity needed to help improve student achievement, and while not every city has as many museums as New York, the school hopes to inspire others to use the resources of their communities to help their students reach new heights.
You’ve most likely never heard of Abilene Christian University before, but this week they put themselves on the map by becoming the first school in the U.S. to offer iPhones for incoming students. Offering the new technology is not just some kind of gimmick to get more studetns at the school, its actually an attempt to make the campus more connected and take advantage of mobile education opportunities.
According to ACU’s website, all the iPhones are preprogrammed with several applications desinged specifically for its students, such as course schedules and syllabi, eBooks, and campus maps. Professors have also been trained how to incorporate the devices into learning opportunities by using them to do real-time class surveys, podcast their lectures, and create content aggregators (wikis) for individual classes.
Creating a “connected” infrastructure like this is an innovative, hands-on method for preparing students to be successful in the ever changing world of technology, and I’m sure more schools will be following ACU’s lead in the near future.
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