Power Ties Career Day at Junior League Headquarters

Throughout the school year, all FirstLine 8th grades participate in Power Ties, a six-week grade level experience career awareness program. The culmination of the program is the Power Ties Career Day!

Students gathered at the Junior League Headquarters to participate in mock interviews with multitude of local professionals.

Power Ties is a program of REACH, which is a program of FirstLine Schools - Reading, Entrepreneurship, Arts, Cooking, and Health. REACH provides our students a broad menu of extracurricular activities including - Power Ties!

For an extra special treat, Samuel J. Green Charter School's very own 2022ers performed a cover of Lorde's "Royals."

To listen to the impressive talents of our students click here. 

Attention, Edible Schoolyard New Orleans has a very important Shout Out!

Deborah Underwood leading an activity on Watermelon Day for Green

We would like to give a SHOUT OUT to all our interns and volunteers, for instilling environmental stewardship in our children; 

a SHOUT OUT to our interns and volunteers, for increasing our students’ academic success and upping the chances they'll go to college; 

a SHOUT OUT to our interns and volunteers, for maintaining safe, playful, and productive school gardens that show our city’s children the respect and beauty they deserve; 

and a SHOUT OUT to our interns and volunteers, for fighting the racial, economic, and social injustice in New Orleans one student, one seed, and one hour at a time.

Allow us to contextualize.

Zuri Obi shoveling compost at Ashe

This past calendar year, ESYNOLA offered 3,000 garden and kitchen classes for K-12 graders and hosted over 70 special events. Those are really high numbers, and it’s almost unfathomable considering that all of our classes involve experiential learning, which means small groups, hands-on activities, and lots of personal attention. This kind of intimate approach to education is how we teach kids and families about the ecology of Louisiana, where food comes from and how to prepare it, and how to live healthy lives.

Liz Mervosh participating in Iron Chef at Green

But our staff is not huge, and the communities we serve are expanding. As FirstLine Schools has soared in academic achievement, it’s grown from two to five schools (700 to 2,800 students) in the past five years. The support of our 500+ volunteers and interns in classes, on Open Garden Days, and at special events is the reason ESYNOLA has been able to keep up with this growth while maintaining the high level of personalized attention we give our students and our five school gardens.

So we are not exaggerating when we say that ESYNOLA could not do what we do without the passion, expertise, and generosity of our interns and volunteers.

The Saints and Pelicans Visit Arthur Ashe

Players from the New Orleans Saints and the Pelicans, teamed up to teach students at Arthur Ashe Charter School about the harms of tobacco.

Did you know that Louisiana is ranked 4th in the nation for states most addicted to smoking?

Players from both teams not only spoke about the importance of being tobacco-free, but also showed students how to throw a football and dribble the basketball.

For more on the story click here.

Poetry at Clark Prep: The Freedom Writers

The Freedom Writers poetry club, started in 2012 by current sophomore Kia Rowell, has been hard at work this semester recruiting new members and putting pen to paper. The group conducts open writing workshops after school twice a week in hopes of encouraging other Clark students to find their voices through writing. In each session, the Freedom Writers engage in a period of free writing to work through any issues they may have encountered during the school day. Afterward, they dive into a more in-depth writing prompt and are encouraged to write in any style - poetry, short story, non-fiction, etc.. After writing, any member of the group that wants to share what they've written reads aloud. Each member listens with an open mind and gives specific, positive feedback to each writer. Any piece written during a Freedom Writers session can be submitted for publication to this blog! 

Please check back for future posts featuring students' writing!

The Freedom Writers poetry club is open to all Clark students.

President: Kia Rowel (10th grade)

Faculty Sponsors: Sunny Summers (English II Teacher)

                            Kaycee Filson (College Counselor)

                            Ellenie Cruz (City Year Corps Member)

Farmer Russel visits John Dibert Community School!

Farmer Russell, from Red Barn Farm Tours, visited John Dibert Community School last week. Farmer Russell brought a miniature horse, bunnies, puppies, goats, baby chicks, a variety of different species of chickens, and even calf to visit our Dibert scholars.

The Red Barn Farm spent two full days at the Dibert campus, to ensure each student had a chance to spend time with all of the animals. Farmer Russell teaches our scholars about the animals and also does an amazing chicken embryo display for all middle school scholars. The experience can often be therapeutic for our scholars. Farmer Russell extends the invitation to all special need and counseling students to spend as much time as they can with the animals while he is at the school. Watching the students interact with the animals is priceless!



Additionally, Dibert features an entire Kindergarten unit that revolves around farms; animals, food, and plants. Red Barn Farm Tours' visit to Dibert is integral to the students learning experience and has opened the door for teachers to expand lesson plans and build on the interactions between animal and scholar.

Clark Prep Students Attended 'Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom' Screening

Clark Prep students were invited to attend the 'Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom' screening here in New Orleans. The film debuted back in October, at the New Orleans' Film Festival. The movie was screened, for free, for local college students.

The event was one of several similar events being held for college and high school students across the country, sponsored by The Coca-Cola Co.

Clark Prep students who attended include Cassie, Marshante, Jude, Alonso, Jerome, and teacher Mr. Schwindt.

For more on the movie click here. 

Dibert's Debate Team Takes 4th Place!

The Dibert Middle School Debate Team spent last Saturday at Tulane University competing in a debate tournament. During a tournament, teams of 3 are given a topic and time to prep before debating. After 4 rounds of debating, scores are tallied and points are awarded to both individuals and teams based on performance.

Dibert had 3 debaters place in the top 20, with top overall scores for all four rounds. Additionally, a team of three Dibert scholars, Kayla Short, Karrie Short, and Kennadi Robinson, went undefeated for the day. A total of eight Dibert scholars participated in the tournament, and collectively place 4th out of all competing schools.

The debate team formed in the fall of 2012. Led by teacher advisors, Ms. Specht and Mr. Carter, and a team of Tulane undergraduate students, 5th through 8th grade meet twice a week to prepare for tournaments.

A big congrats to Dibert and Kayla short who placed 1st overall!