Tag Archives: Boston Renaissance

Our Starfish Have Talent!!

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This past Monday,  the corps members serving at the Boston Renaissance Charter Public School held our monthly community meeting. We wanted the children to be able to showcase the talents they have that don’t always come up in the day-to-day routine of the school. The show had been postponed several times due to numerous snow days, but finally the show was ready to go on.

The students had practiced their acts for weeks and were ready to show off. The auditorium was set up and the parents were pouring in. Popcorn was handed out and the lights were dimmed. It was time to start!!

The show started with the corps members doing their rendition of “City Year State of Mind.” It was then student’s turn to show off their skills. They performed in acts such as “The Pretty Girl Rock“, “Teach me how to Dougie“and “Sweet Dreams” among many others. Parents were thrilled and many students expressed a desire to hold an encore performance later in the year. When all was said and done, it was one of the best events we’ve had at the Boston Renaissance School this year.

City Year members strut their stuff at the Starfish Talent show!!

The Boston Renaissance and Waffles!!!

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Everyone left with a smile and a full belly, the hallmark of an event done well.

Last Tuesday at the Boston Renaissance Renaissance Charter Public School, we held an attendance breakfast for students who’d greatly improved their attendance over the past month. Our attendance coordinator, Jeff Parks, spearheaded this event. As you may have guessed from the post title, we offered them the incentive of homemade waffles. In addition to the delicious waffles we also offered three varieties of fruit juice, apples and real syrup from Vermont.

Children started arriving at around 7:30.  They were thrilled at what we had prepared for them. The tables were covered with paper that was, in turn, covered with messages and inspirational sayings from corps members.  These children had the chance to sit and talk with corps members candidly one-on-one that they may not normally see on a constant day-to-day basis.  This was a wonderfully enjoyable experience for both corps members and students alike.

The breakfast wrapped up at around 7:55, leaving students time to get to their classrooms before class started. Everyone left with a smile and a full belly, the hallmark of an event done well.

Jeff Parks, who headed the attendance breakfast, showing off for the students.

Starfish Community Meeting at the Boston Renaissance

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Last Tuesday was my team’s last day at the Boston Renaissance Charter Public School before the Thanksgiving break. While the day was filled with fun activities for the students such as potlucks and movies, my teammates and I were slightly wary of Starfish. Normally, Starfish consists of one hour of homework time and one hour of a themed activity focused on learning in a new way. However, since we were on the cusp of a major vacation, almost none of the students had any homework. So my team was a little concerned about how to keep the students engaged for around an hour with no officially scheduled activity. We needn’t have worried, the children were great!

Then it came time for the main activity, the Starfish Community Meeting. This is a Starfish-wide meeting we have at the end of the month to give the children a chance to reflect on what they’ve learned over the course of the month. They also get a chance to give feedback so that we can make changes to the program to better suit their needs.

It really was awesome. The kids loved being able to offer feedback, knowing that it would have some effect, which made them really enthusiastic to do so. Overall, the community meeting was a rousing success. I can’t wait for the next one!!

Several Corps members and a member of Starfish at the community meeting.

“Empire State of Mind”… try “City Year State of Mind!”

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By Michael Kahan, serving at the Boston Renaissance Charter Public School

One of the big traditions here at City Year is the community meeting. What is that you ask? It’s an event that takes place about once a month when one team gets to put on a performance, entertain the rest of the corps, and share a little bit about their service; obviously, creativity is encouraged. They get to tell the rest of the Corps about what they do in their own unique fashion. My team, the Boston Renaissance Charter Public School had our turn this past Friday. We did it in the form of a musical, in the spirit of the TV show “Glee”. We opened with a rap that was met with wild approval, so I thought it only fair to share it with the rest of you. It’s done to the tune of “Empire State of Mind” by Jay-Z and Alicia Keys. We call it “City Year State of Mind” by Nora Ryan.

After the video, you can see some of the returning members from last year’s Renaissance team, helping my team leader through a tough time. Enjoy!!

“Yeah, I’m up in Somerville
Now I’m down in Hyde Park
Cruisin before dawn yo
But, yeah, I still got swagga
I’m the new Dua
And since I made it here
I can make it anywhere
Yeah, Kids see us everywhere
I hop on the 32
Ride down on the 32
I’m still on the 32
Brought me back to that McDonalds
Desperate times call for
Desperate measures
Catch me in first circle with my Timbaland swag on
Flying up three floors
swept out to the pod
We pledge daily
To do what Barney does so well
Monitor the screen for
Lexia reading
Math just do it- score
Outside recess structured chaos
Inside recess we’ve got mayhem
Nothin but fun for lunch
those transitions
what a ball when in the hall
Quite an end to the day
We mold starfish like clay
…tell by my exuberance that I’m most definitely from

B-ren
old mill building where dreams are made of
there’s nothing they can’t do
the students of B-Ren
City Year will make you feel brand new
Loved and Inspired too
Let’s hear it for B-Ren, B-Ren, B-Ren”

Corps Member Casey and a student displaying a City Year state of mind.

Opening Day at the Renaissance

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Last year, the Boston Renaissance Charter Public School (BRCPS) was in a 16-story high-rise originally used as an office building in downtown Boston. The space wasn’t exactly conducive to a normal elementary school experience; students had to take the elevator to class, there was no recess, and the bus drop-off and pick-up was an exercise in patience most days. When considering the unique environment that the students experienced in the old building over the years,  there was a strong, close school community that was undeniably present. There was never a concern about losing that positive atmosphere when transitioning to a new building and neighborhood.

This year, that move to the new Boston Renaissance in Hyde Park is complete. The school is now housed in a beautiful, three-story building that has been renovated for this purpose. The building is spacious and full of light. But it wasn’t properly inaugurated until October 18th 2010 – Opening Day for the new building.

Over the weekend, the final finishing touches were put on the building. Bright and early Monday morning the festivities began. The City Year team was performing a Power Greeting for important guests, including Mayor Thomas Menino, BRCPS Superintendent Dr. Roger F. Harris, Massachusetts Secretary of Education Paul Reville and Massachusetts Commissioner of Education Mitchell Chester. Several City Year staff members were also there, including our very own Dean of City Year, Charlie Rose.

The assembled crowd gathered in the beautiful new library for speeches and refreshments. After a few stirring words from the invited friends of the Renaissance, the guests were divided into groups and given tours of the school. Finally there was an assembly, where Voices of Renaissance choir sang, the newly formed Renaissance dance group performed and the City Year corps members demonstrated physical  training. It was a wonderful morning that left all involved knowing that this was the beginning of a bright new future for the Boston Renaissance Charter Public School.

The Boston Renaissance with Mayor Thomas Menino

Moving Forward With the Boston Renaissance

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By Kevin Dua, team leader, Boston Renaissance Charter Public School Team

“If we are to go forward, we must go back and rediscover those precious values…”

- Martin Luther King, Jr.

At the end of my first year with City Year Boston in June, I clearly understood two things: I would be returning for a second year and I would be a senior corps team leader assigned to a Boston Public School.  However, the one uncertainty I had was if I would be back at the Boston Renaissance Charter Public School, where I  served my first year as a corps member.

I decorated my bedroom this summer with the many colorful “Thank You” and “We’ll Miss You” cards that my fourth grade students gave me on my last day at the school.  For me, it was a bittersweet closure I had with those students after 10 months working with them.  Plastering my walls with their cards was a reminder of what I why I chose to come back; it was also a way for me to remember them if I found out I wasn’t going to be returning to the school.

An example of the notes that the students at BRCPS often gave us.

Fast forward to September, and now, I am serving as the team leader for 15 corps members back at the Renaissance School, recently relocated to a new building in Hyde Park.

It has been a strange adjusting period for me so far. Gone are the 16-foot story high building with four elevators, my old teammates and fourth grade classroom. Now, a three-floor school building equipped with a playground, bigger classrooms and more resources is here. Now, a new team of enthusiastic, artistic and dedicated corps members are placed in every 4 – 6th grade classroom.  Now, my former fourth grade students are fifth graders.

But being back at the Renaissance has been a homecoming for me. Though I may not be assigned to a classroom, being able to help a new team change their own and these students’ lives is such a rewarding feeling.

A few weeks ago, a former student approached me and jokingly called me a “traitor” for not being in his classroom this year.

Then he smiled, hugged me and said, “Welcome back, Kevin…or is it Mr. Kevin now?”

Running a Work-Life Balance as City Year Boston Corps Member

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By Kevin Dua, team leader, Boston Renaissance Charter Public School Team

“So a marathon is 26.2 miles? That’s a lot! That’s like running from here to Canada, right?”

- 4th grade student

As a City Year Boston corps member who has already served one year within a fourth grade classroom it was challenging, yet feasible, teaching new concepts such as multiplication or the solar system to a student. However, trying to explain to a ten year old why I like to run far distances for a long amount of time each day, is harder than it seems.

“I always see you running from the bus stop to the school each morning so you won’t be late!” It is something I hear often from the students at the Boston Renaissance Charter Public School this year who remember me from last year when the building was located in downtown Boston.  Since starting City Year last August, aside from the change of a newly placed southerner adjusting to the north, I knew I wanted to change my lifestyle to a healthier route.

From registering at a local gym, to early-morning runs before commuting to the school or signing up for 5ks and half marathons with other teammates, running has become a “kick” for me. When managing that work-life balance, I realized I needed to enjoy and focus on what I was doing whenever I became “City Year” when donning on a red vest.

On Sunday, October 17 in Lowell, Massachusetts, I, along with Elliot Haney, former teammate of mine at the Renaissance and currently City Year Boston Communications Project Leader, will be running in our first ever marathon in the 2010 Baystate Marathon.  It was an ambitious, spur-of-the-moment challenge we decided to accomplish this summer; with the race a few days away, butterflies are definitely present inside.

But, there’s something you realize working within such a close community as City Year Boston–we support each other in every endeavor that we do. Regardless if you are a corps member, senior corps member or staff, it is comforting to have that deep encouragement from others.  The fact that after we cross the finish line many of our fellow senior corps friends will be there to congratulate us (wearing customized shirts and signs) is such a motivating incentive to give it my all.

Actually, I am really looking forward to the day after the marathon. I have been updating my students about the training and told them I will give them all the details afterwards.

“I mean if you can get up and run for fun, how hard could it be? I want to run for fun, too!”

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I will be bib #869, and Elliot will be #1112 if you find yourself in Lowell on Sunday!

A First-Year Oreo Experience for Kristen

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by Kevin Dua, Team Leader, Boston Renaissance Charter Public School

“I could actually learn from these kids…they are amazing!”

Kevin Dua, Team Leader at the Renaissance, interviewing Kristen for this fantastic interview.

These enthusiastic words come from Kristen Meade, a 22-year old music major graduate from Vassar College who is serving as a corps member in a sixth grade classroom at the Boston Renaissance Charter Public School, a K-6 charter school in Hyde Park.

As a member of a 17-person City Year team at the largest charter school in Massachusetts, Kristen seems optimistic about what this year will offer. However, this outlook was not so predominant for her a few months ago.

“It wasn’t until my senior year when I took an education class that changed my whole take on everything…it was my first chance to see how public schools were struggling in this nation,” she said. “I was able to volunteer at an arts center that was designed to help young teenage girls discover their identities via discussions about race, religion, sexuality and family.”

When a Career Development Office worker mentioned City Year to her, Kristen felt compelled to research the program and apply.  “It [City Year] had similar aspects of energy, community and teamwork that I had experienced as a camp counselor that made me want to join.”

When I talked to Kristen about her first two weeks with City Year Boston, she expressed a rollercoaster of various emotions that she had felt.

“During our Basic Training Retreat, I didn’t realize how moving it was going to be,” she said. “I definitely embraced the culture, and being able to share yourself with new teammates was powerful.”

After the retreat the Renaissance team attended several professional development training days at the school, where the team was able to connect with the faculty and staff they are working with this year.

“The days were long, but when the first day of school came I was excited being around the kids. It was that moment when I knew: Yes, this is where I am supposed to be…this is right.”

These next 10 months will be a challenging, yet worthwhile, journey for all corps members. Kristen expressed how she sees the year will shape up for her:

“This is going to be an Oreo type of experience,” she said. “First, it will start out being crunchy and exciting, the first part of the cookie.  Then, you get to the middle (the crème) which is slower, harder to get through all the stuffing…the stuff.  But, then you reach the end of the cookie and you realize why you began eating it in the first place.”

TALENT! at City Year Boston

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By: Samuel Cohen, Service Leader, Boston Renaissance Charter Public School

“TALENT!”

That’s one of City Year Boston’s team call-backs and, in my opinion, deservedly so.  Recently, public schools in Boston have invited their newly formed City Year teams to participate in professional development training side-by-side with their own faculty and staff.  This means educational institutions now see City Year as a real asset, and as our biggest stakeholder, they are taking the time to invest in growing our talent.

Last week my team, 14 fresh corps members, joined the teachers and paired-professionals of Boston Renaissance Charter Public School to engage in classroom management training and learn the benefits of co-teaching.  It was a fun and interactive presentation.  Through group discussion with fellow educators, my team gained perspective on the daily trials of the classroom.  We learned the importance of setting clear expectations and establishing routines when managing a successful learning environment. The facilitator regarded City Year no differently than the rest of the elementary school community.  He even went so far as to call us “one of them.”

One of them.

That’s why we do what we do.

Viva La Renaissance! (at Basic Training Retreat) - click to view larger


A Welcoming First Impression Goes a Long Way

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A year ago, a recent college graduate from Virginia moved up to Boston to become part of the AmeriCorps program City Year Boston.  After settling into his new home, he came to the City Year Headquarters of Idealism building for out-of-state registration day.

Anxious, worried and not sure what to expect, he walked in and was blown away by the vivid red walls and the sounds of President Kennedy and Dr. King Jr.’s speeches echoing through the lobby.  A soft-spoken woman behind the reception table warmly smiled and said, “Good morning and welcome.”

He proceeded to walk up the stairs and enter a forum filled with tables while people walked about. He approached a table with a person in a red vest seated behind it who enthusiastically greeted him, “Good morning! Welcome to City Year Boston!”

It was a year ago this month that I came to register for this program; a program which inspired me through the kids, team and fellow corps members I had the privilege of working with for 10 months.  Looking back, I vaguely remember all the paperwork I filled out that day, but I clearly remember feeling embraced by the staff and senior corps.

Welcome. It is a word that I often used last year toward the students, teachers and parents whom I worked with.  It is a word that I plan on saying and expressing today on registration day for in-state incoming corps members. Hopefully I am able to evoke the same warmth and sincere courtesy toward others that I received on my first day.

What does welcome mean to you when you say, hear or see it?

A smile is the universal welcome.

- Max Eastman

Self-Reflection Through Poetry at City Year Boston

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A heartwarming and inspiring re-post of a blog entry by our recently returned senior corps member, Elliot Haney, who will be taking over a large portion of the behind-the-scenes Boston Blog administration this year. We look forward to seeing his experiences from his in-school service last year inform insightful communications for the entire Boston site.

Original post by Elliot Haney on February 12, 2010

Throughout the course of my service, I have been in many different roles. In reality, these numerous roles were more than I actually expected to ever take on as I was competing for my position at City Year Boston. I have been a tutor, teacher, disciplinarian, confidant, psychologist, and a friend. One of my most valued roles is that of a mentor for our ‘lunch buddies’ program. In this position I am able to take half an hour each day, one-on-one with a child, and simply talk. I am there for them to ask questions, to bounce ideas off of, and just be someone who is there to listen. We also go through lessons such as manners, positive leadership, and making friends. I feel as though this experience has been invaluable for my three mentees, as well as myself.

There was one child who really struck me though, who made me take a minute and reflect on how much of a positive impact we are truly making. He is a fifth grade student who likes to write poetry, which I did not even know. One day, he gave me a folded piece of paper to one of my co-workers, and asked her to deliver it to me. I curiously opened it up, and this is what I was greeted with.

The positivity and happiness that I see here makes me so happy to go into work everyday, and it has rejuvenated my service and my personality. Has anyone ever had an experience like this, that asks you to look at yourself from a brand new perspective, or a similar story of your service?

Doing Good, Being Better in One Year

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"May the best of your todays be the worst of your tomorrows and yesterdays be reminders of your greatest seconds."

Ten months ago, I stood on a train platform with my life impressively packed in four suitcases, waiting to depart my home of Virginia to commute eleven hours up north to Boston.  I recall my father giving me some pocket money beforehand, telling me to, “Be safe, call once I arrived and to do good with the kids I would be working with.”

Reflecting back to that August day, I remember promptly calling my father to ease his nerves and honoring his words by doing good with the kids I had the pleasure of meeting, tutoring, mentoring and knowing.

“It’s for the kids,” became a shared theme for the 140 corps members who served this year with City Year Boston.  Whether it’s creating a lesson plan, teaching a student about division, building a bench, talking to a child about life or rewriting lyrics to a pop song encouraging kids to exceed on a standardized test—I know that, as hard and long the days became over the months—I did everything and anything for them.

I knew before moving here that this new chapter in my life would first begin its story by dedicating my time and sincerity to improving the lives of the youth living in Boston.  And throughout my service year, I was able to embrace my new life’s story by receiving strength from my remarkable teammates and leaders, renewing my appreciation of people from the diverse corps members and staff at City Year Boston, and the daily smile on my face because of my fourth grade classroom.

Today, this Thursday, June 17th is when I will graduate from this program, having served over 1700 hours.  It’s a testament to a memorable journey that witnessed growth in me, my team and the people I met here.  And although I am eagerly anticipating serving another year as a Senior Corps Team Leader this upcoming fall, an old proverb comes to mind:

“Sequels are threads needed to continue sewing life’s stories, but it is the first that remains your most timeless life story.”

So, as ungrammatical as it may always sound, I did do good this year by becoming an even better person because of City Year.

Starfish Graduate at City Year Headquarters

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One of the first things my teammates and I were told when we arrived at the Renaissance last September was “You’re going to need to be flexible here.” For our graduation celebration, flexibility was the theme of the night.

The Boston Renaissance Charter Public School is moving. Literally, at the end of June, the entire student body, teachers and staff are moving to a newly renovated and expanded building in Hyde Park. Needless to say, there’s a lot going on at the school this time of year. When planning our graduation, we were told that date after date just wouldn’t work, so what could we do? We used one of the largest perks of our school this year: our location close to the City Year Boston office. We were able to invite our Starfish graduates and their parents to a very nice ceremony and potluck dinner at the Lavine Civic Forum in the City Year Headquarters for Idealism.

The ceremony included our graduating sixth-graders speaking about their experiences this year, a ‘Thrilling‘ performance by corps member Kevin Dua’s dance students, and the presentation of certificates and my gift to the Starfish. As my service pledge for this year, I was able to provide each and every graduating Starfish with an 8X10 portrait (examples below) as a thank you to the parents, who supported us all throughout the year.

The students that we watched receive their diplomas last week have changed the lives of the Renaissance. I will not be forgetting the lessons that I have learned from them any time soon.