December172009

photo

my first picture! pilfered but here, nonetheless. The MTA is down $400 million and then on top of that the state is in a total mess so part of their solution is to end free student metro cards ! (click picture for the story). My advisory period today turned into a full blown discussion about this topic and how unjust it is, how its going to make more students drop out than the already low graduation rate we have now, how they need to tax the rich more or make someone not earn as much money, how families don’t have any extra income to give for this, how the city needs to provide “cheese buses” for every student, etc. As we started winding towards the end of the period, one of my students, K, says, “But what’s the point in talking about all of this if we’re not going to DO something.”  I told students potential organizing options and they settled on the first step of the petition (before, you know walking out of school and storming the MTA building, another suggestion) that they will create and circulate around our school and tell their friends from other schools to do the same. In the midst of this conversation, my students asked me if they could take this up in Albany.  Most of the students in my advisory were also in my 8th grade class last year, where we took two trips to Albany to lobby with Domestic Workers United during the state legislative lobby days.  We talked to politicians, rallied, and marched, and they still sing the songs from that day. It warmed my heart to the nth degree today to see them talking about what those women did to organize their efforts and how they could do something similar here. That, as one small example, is my dream of being a teacher fulfilled.

my first picture! pilfered but here, nonetheless.

The MTA is down $400 million and then on top of that the state is in a total mess so part of their solution is to end free student metro cards ! (click picture for the story).

My advisory period today turned into a full blown discussion about this topic and how unjust it is, how its going to make more students drop out than the already low graduation rate we have now, how they need to tax the rich more or make someone not earn as much money, how families don’t have any extra income to give for this, how the city needs to provide “cheese buses” for every student, etc.

As we started winding towards the end of the period, one of my students, K, says, “But what’s the point in talking about all of this if we’re not going to DO something.”  I told students potential organizing options and they settled on the first step of the petition (before, you know walking out of school and storming the MTA building, another suggestion) that they will create and circulate around our school and tell their friends from other schools to do the same.

In the midst of this conversation, my students asked me if they could take this up in Albany.  Most of the students in my advisory were also in my 8th grade class last year, where we took two trips to Albany to lobby with Domestic Workers United during the state legislative lobby days.  We talked to politicians, rallied, and marched, and they still sing the songs from that day. It warmed my heart to the nth degree today to see them talking about what those women did to organize their efforts and how they could do something similar here.

That, as one small example, is my dream of being a teacher fulfilled.