Government Conspiracy

"If you were to drive on to Delta State's campus right now, you would think there is some kind of government conspiracy going on. People are just frantically copying and printing and everyone is dripping in sweat. And this school is doing little things to slowly drive us crazy. Like not turning on lights or randomly changing their hours. All I wanted today was a cup of coffee but the dinning hall had no mugs and no milk. Then, the coffee shop didn't open until 6 because it was open from 6-10 at night on Sundays." -my roommate on the phone with her boyfriend.

She's right. Everything this school and TFA is doing is designed to try and drive us nuts and test our mental toughness. And she just told me about how halfway through the day her co-labs realized that they were teaching active and passive voice in the opposite way of the Mississippi state standards. We died laughing for almost 10 minutes. it's not really funny. It's actually very tragic but we're so delirious that its hysterical.

We meet our kids tomorrow....

Bug Spray and Blackouts

Two days down in the Delta. We've got our teaching assignments for the summer...I'm teaching a class called Delta Writing Project, which is an elective creative writing class that students are electing to take. So I'm not teaching a remedial class. I think its going to be a lot of fun, but also a lot of work. We already have lesson plans due on Thursday and our students show up on Monday. Talk about hitting the ground running.
Yesterday was an 18 hour day that began at 5:15, when some girl knocked my cup of coffee all over my white shirt and ended with a 3 hour long tour of the Delta State University campus and its resources. Halfway through the tour, the entire campus lost power....for two hours. Well, that was my breaking point for the day. My parents called and I took all my frustration out on my dad, which I felt bad about 20 minutes later. I think, instead of trying to summarize my thought on the first day of Institute, it would be better for me to copy and paste the email that I sent to my dad to apologize for freaking out at him and explain that I wasn't really on the ledge after day one. In my opinion, I wouldn't be able to better summarize my thoughts on the day and my impressions of the Delta. So I won't try to. Instead, I'll leave you with this email that was sent after we got our power back around 9:45 (after it had been out for almost 2 hours).

Hey,

We got our power back about 45 minutes ago and I just finished doing my work that I have due at 7:15 tomorrow. I was really hot and sweaty when I talked to you a while ago and we'd been walking around on a "tour of campus" in the pitch black for 2 hours. And that started after I had 15 minutes to scarf down some dinner because it took us an hour to get back from school, which we'd left for at 5:50. I'd reached my limit for the day.

In the grand scheme of things, today wasn't so bad. The whole day ran pretty smoothly and I got to meet the people who are going to be in my advisory group, which has about 10 corps members in it. There are a couple people from Charlotte, two from the Mississippi Delta and one from, I think, Eastern North Carolina. I also found out what I'm going to be teaching for the summer. I'm teaching a class called the "Delta Writing Project," which is an elective enrichment class on creative writing for high school students. I definitely lucked out with that because they don't guarantee you a place teaching your actual subject since the summer is about learning to teach and not learning content. So there are some high school English teachers who are teaching middle school reading and math or science. Plus, my class isn't going to be a remedial class with students who have failed the course already. It's solely an enrichment class, which I think could be fun. And everyone is assigned to teach with at least one collaborative teacher for the summer, another corps member from one of the regions here. My co-lab is from the Charlotte region, by chance, and I think we'll get along pretty well. Tomorrow night we have our official opening ceremony and Wendy Kopp, the founder and ceo of TFA, is coming to speak to us. That's going to be pretty awesome to see! We're all kind of hoping she'll sign copies of her book that we have. 

Overall the Delta isn't so bad. Yes, its hot and unimaginably humid. And the mosquitoes are the biggest things I've ever seen. They're really more the size of small hummingbirds than they are insects. But it's not all bad. I'm not saying I'd want to live here (I could never handle that) but spending five weeks here won't be horrible. The community and the entire state of Mississippi is so invested in this Institute and in the corps members that are going to be moving here. It's really remarkable. Yesterday, the entire city of Cleveland came to campus to help out with registration and move in and tomorrow night the State Secretary of Education is coming to our welcoming ceremony. The Delta is the lowest performing region in the state, and Mississippi ranks 50th, nationally, in terms of education on a whole. So, to them, we're the best, if not the only, chance their kids have at a good education. It's kind of cool and incredibly humbling at the same time. 

And, in terms of history, the Delta is fairly indescribable. One of the history professors on campus is a specialist in Delta history and moved down here to study it 10 years ago after teaching at George Mason for over 20 years. He's one of the country's leading experts on the region. He's offering to give a tour of the area to corps members on Saturday, where we'll spend the entire day driving around the region going to different historical sites and eventually have lunch at a restaurant owned by one of the senators from MS, who is going to be there to meet us. The tour is going to start at 9 and go until about 4, which is really long, but I definitely think its worth it. The history major in me is very excited about the whole thing. I know of a couple people who are going to do it and Liz said she was going to go too. And BB King is coming to campus next week and we can see him for $25. I'm not a huge fan of his (honestly, I don't think I've ever heard much of his music) but the opportunity to see him perform is definitely something I'm going to take advantage of. I mean, he's BB King and when else am I ever again going to have the chance to see him perform, especially in such a small venue? It's like passing up the chance to see Elvis.

We have off on Monday July 5th, and I think a bunch of Charlotte corps members are talking about going to New Orleans for the long weekend. It only about 5-6 hours away and we've got the 3 day weekend. So far, I know of three girls that I'm probably going to be specifically going with but we're going to try and finalize it tomorrow or the next day. We would have done it tonight, but there was the whole no power thing.  

So, its going pretty well, all things considered. I'm sure its going to get much more intense in terms of the work load, but our nights also end much earlier after tomorrow. We'll be done around 5 or 6, which will give me time to go to the gym and de-stress and then spend time working on my lesson plans and what not. I definitely think its manageable as long as I stay on top of it, which I want to do because I need to be in bed by 10:30 so I can actually get some sleep. 

I might talk to you guys tomorrow, but I'm only going to have about 40 minutes to get back to my room, change, eat dinner, buy my BB King ticket and get to my opening ceremony. I'm not sure what time it will end and I'll have work to do after. Maybe I'll just talk to you on Wednesday.

...btw, Wendy Kopp was amazing and incredibly inspirational, as was the State Sec. of Education, who gave a great speech.

Delta Bound

Ever since I accepted my position with Teach for America, people have given me sad, pitying looks whenever I mentioned going to the Mississippi Delta for the summer. While I had my own reservations about going to a very rural area when I've never spent much time outside of the city, I was sure I'd be fine. Sure, its hot in the Delta. But I can handle heat. Ok, its humid there. But I went to school in DC, a city that was literally built on top of a swamp. Yes, it is very rural. But hey, there are 14,000 people in Cleveland and they need to live somewhere, right? 

So, I mentally prepared myself for a summer similar to DC in weather and somewhat like a movie in terms of the town dynamics. I had this vision in my head, fueled by 22 years of watching films like Sweet Home Alabama, that Cleveland would be some sort of picturesque archetype of small town America. It would have one main street that would have a couple of restaurants, a bar or two and a local general store. Off of the main street, there would be 10 or 12 blocks of houses and a small school. The people would all know each other and wave as they drove past. The town would be small, but I would find it quaint and charming and by the end of my five weeks, I'd have fallen in love with the area. I could not have been more wrong.

The word rural does not accurately describe the town of Cleveland. The word that should be used is isolated. There's nothing here. I mean nothing. Correction, there is a Walmart. Liz and I went this afternoon to get a few things and she was having some kind of panic attack about the next five weeks and being in the middle of nowhere. She grew up on a farm, in the middle of nowhere and she thinks this is bad. And it is more ungodly hot than I could have ever imagined. DC doesn't hold a candle to this place. Between the work, the strict eating schedule and the heat/constant sweating, we're all going to lose 15 lbs. I don't know how people live here with this heat all year.

All these things aside, I'm trying to stay optimistic about the next five weeks. I've very hesitant about the work load, especially after seeing the enormous manual that they handed us at check in today. B.B. King is going to be here next week and we have the opportunity to see him for only $20. Thats definitely something I would never have the chance to do anywhere else. Plus, its only five weeks. I'm going to take it one day at a time, learn as much as I can and I'm sure it will go by much faster than I ever imagined it would. Hopefully I won't have some kind of nervous breakdown before then, because right now I feel like it is a distinct possibility. 

Yes Prep

Yes Prep is a charter high school in Houston, TX that was founded by a TFA alum. In order to graduate from Yes Prep, a student must have been admitted to at least one college or university. 100% of the students the school serves are low-income students who receive free or reduced lunch. Most are first generation college bound. Yes Prep proves that the achievement gap can be closed and that it is being closed in Houston.

Yes Prep Signing Day

Boot Camp

As my days go on, I'm becoming increasingly convinced that the world is a lot smaller than we think it is. Today, while waiting on line to interview with a principal, I started talking with a guy who went to UNC Greensboro and was assigned to teach middle school science. He noticed my name tag and said that last summer he was in DC and he stayed a Catholic. Apparently, he worked in DC over the summer and lived in Opus, the dorm I lived in all summer while I was working in DC.  This guy and I lived in the same dorm for an entire summer, even though we didn't go to the same school and now we've both ended up in TFA Charlotte. What are the odds?
Switching gears a bit, my name tag also gets me the constant question of "So are you Catholic? Really? Are you practicing?" And, depending on the person, I'm getting very different results. Some people, I can tell are slightly put off by the idea that I'm Catholic. It's strange because I've never met people who are upset or uncomfortable with the fact that I'm Catholic. Never mind that I went to The Catholic University of America. And the thing is, I'm more of the "Catholic a-la-cart" type of religious. On the flip side, some people who ask me about my religion follow their question with "Well, I'm Catholic and its great to find someone else who is too. My parish priest wanted me to look at CUA." ....Typical.
It's only the end of day 2 and we've already logged more working hours than down time hours. Tonight, on the phone, my dad made a good point. He compared my TFA induction and institute to his OCS boot camp. It's something that you need to be mentally tough to be complete and you need to approach from a "one day at a time" point of view. One day at a time as opposed to six weeks or 42 days.

Don't Be Inspired, Be Committed

The one thing I learned today, more than anything else, is that the next two years are going to be the most challenging of my life. The majority of the first day of induction was spent in sessions where the staff explained everything from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District to the objectives of the next six weeks. It was a lot to take in but it was also great to hear about the direct impact TFA has had on the city of Charlotte and to meet so many other people who are passionate about this movement.
From what we've been told today, we as corps members are extremely lucky in Charlotte. The Board of Ed and its superintendent are extremely receptive to the Teach for America program. In many regions around the country, veteran teachers and administrators look at TFA corps members as naive, ambitious and unrealistic in the expectations that they set for students. Here in Charlotte, however, the entire district is aligned with the TFA mission of giving every student the opportunity to attain an excellent education. The number of institutions that are willing to work with corps members here, and the opportunities for success are so high, that it is predicted the achievement gap in Charlotte could potentially be closed within the next 5 years. That is amazing! And when it is coupled with the fact that the corps has only been here for six years, its even more incredible.
Tonight, during out welcoming ceremony, the highest performing principal in the county spoke to us about our commitment to closing the achievement gap. She is the principal at the lowest ranked middle school in the state and has several corps members working for her. Listening to her speech, she brought up a point that I have never heard mentioned when talking about TFA. When you speak with TFA people and other corps members, or you try to explain its mission to friends and family, you find yourself constantly talking about how you're committing two years to working with low income students and bringing them up to level. But tonight, this woman said that there is a very real and distinct difference between being inspired to do something and being committed to doing something. To be inspired, you feel morally obligated to help a situation and do what is asked, when it is asked. To be committed, you are willing to do whatever is necessary to achieve the results you want and you refuse to give in and accept defeat. She challenged us to do some soul searching and make sure that each of us was committed to Teach for America and not inspired by it. It's an interesting theory and definitely something to keep in mind over the next six weeks and the next two years.

Carolina In My Mind

Right now, i'm sitting in my hotel room in Charlotte, trying to figure out how I got here. Figuratively, I mean. Teach for America is something I've talked about abstractly for so long that it's hard for me to realize that it's actually real. It was always something far off in the distance. When I talked about doing Teach for America it was "yea, this summer I have  to go to Charlotte and to Mississippi and then I move there". It was something that was happening later. But now its happening now and not at some later time. And in some ways I feel like the beginning of this, is also the official end of everything in my past. CUA, New Jersey, the person I used to be... its all behind me. I left it at home when I turned off of 5th Street yesterday and I left it in DC when I got on I-395 this morning.

I'm glad i got to spend last night in DC. A few people are still down there so I was able to crash with one of my friends and, even though his a.c. is broken and its 90 degrees (but I'm not complaining haha), we had a good time. Plus we were able to meet up with some other friends of ours. It was strange though be cause we went out and, instead of going to our usual bar and drinking excessively until last call, we went to a different bar, got a table and had 2 or 3 drinks each. We didn't stand around complaining about classes and talking with/about the other people from school. We talked about starting work, and the job market, and loans and car payments. Its amazing how much the last three weeks have started to change us. This morning I drove through CUA because it was on my way to the highway. And even though I was there three weeks ago, I could tell it was different. I came over the Taylor Street bridge and instantly looked up at my bedroom window in Opus. But the lot outside was filled with only a few cars and the street was empty. I drove through campus and no one was around. It wasn't the normal CUA. And it wasn't just the school. I drove up in a new car, filled with the things I needed to go start a new life in North Carolina. I felt like I was having dinner with an old best friend that I'd missed terribly, only to discover we no longer had anything in common. It solidified the reality that I'm no longer a college student. I think it was good that I got to take that drive.

So this morning I got breakfast with two friends and got on the road, with a coffee from the 7-11 by CUA and James Taylor's "Carolina In My Mind" playing on repeat. It took most of the day, but I got to Charlotte with relatively little trouble. I met two girls in the business center who were trying to print copies of their resume and they were both really nice. All three of of were saying the same things. We were convinced we'd show up and everyone would be high speed and that we'd have problems keeping up. Not that I don't think I'm smart. I know I am. But its just that sense of nervousness that you get when you start something so new and unfamiliar. It was reassuring to know that I wasn't the only person who felt that way. And it also reminded me that all of these people are going through the same thing as me. Three weeks ago they were having their own senior weeks and saying goodbye to friends. I think that somewhere in the back of my mind I had convinced myself that I was going to get here and everyone would be completely professional and mature and "adult" all the time and I'd be this strange person that wasn't quite ready for all the changes that were taking place. After talking with these girls though, it seems to me that they have the exact same outlook as me on this whole thing. I like that. Maybe I don't need to meet this with as many mixed emotions as I have been planning on.