AAOS Built Ashe a New Playground!

Working hard in the rain to build "The Web"

On Tuesday, March 11, over 200 volunteers worked from 8:30am to 2:30pm to build a brand new, safe and accessible playground, for the students of Arthur Ashe Charter School and the surrounding neighborhood.  The volunteers kept up their spirits and delivered a beautiful playground - all the while working through a very rainy day.  The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons made this amazing new playground a reality!

The rain won't keep this rock wall from
being built!

Volunteers started work in a downpour and continued throughout the day.  This amazing new playground will bring joy to the students at Ashe, as well as to all the children in the neighborhood.  In addition to volunteers from AAOS, and FirstLine Schools, many college students, from local and out-of-state universities, also volunteered on the build.

Volunteers that built "The Web" testing it out

The volunteers were thanked throughout the day by Ashe students in a variety of ways.  Students walked around at lunch, handing out thank you letters.  The fifth grade came out and performed a thank you song, as well as sharing why this playground is so important to them.

Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony

The ribbon-cutting ceremony featured the Ashe band; Dr. Frederick M. Azar, incoming president of AAOS; Brian Egana, Vice-Chair of the FirstLine Schools Board of Directors; Cynthia Hedge Morrell, New Orleans City Councilmember; and Sivi Domango, Co-Director of Arthur Ashe Charter School.

Thank you to all the volunteers for an amazing accessible playground that will serve ALL children.

Ashe Band at the Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony

We Love Volunteers!!

Volunteers hanging new signage

The summer is a very busy time here at FirstLine Schools.  While our teachers are taking a much deserved (and needed) break (though a short one), our operations team is hard at work ensuring all of our buildings are ready for the next school year.  This includes deep cleaning, reorganizing rooms, retasking rooms from one function to another - and in some cases, even building computer labs for our Personalized Learning Project.

We believe that beauty is the art of caring - beautiful buildings really do make a difference.  We couldn't do all of this work over the summer without the help of volunteers.  Over the summer, we have many different volunteers (in groups and individually) help out at our schools.  Last Friday, August 2, we had a group of 37 from Barrasso, Usdin, Kupperman, Freeman and Sarver join us at Clark Prep.  This group split into smaller groups to take on a number of different projects.  They painted rooms, helped reorganize rooms, hung new signage throughout the building, and helped move supplies and books to their new homes.

While we are putting the finishing touches on our buildings, our teachers and administrators have been working hard on professional development - new teachers joined us four weeks prior to the first day of school and returning teachers joined us last week (two weeks prior to the first day of school).

Thank you so much to this group of wonderful volunteers - as well as the myraid others who have joined us this summer to ensure we are well organized and well prepared for our students.  We can't wait to welcome our students this coming Monday, August 12!

FirstLine in the Community: Habitat & Coaches

At Samuel J Green Charter School

Tuesday March 26, 2013, our own coach Dwight Myvett from Samuel J. Green Charter School, was featured on WWNO 89.9 Community Impact Series. The segment highlighted the national nonprofit Up2Us, which expanded to New Orleans in 2012. The organization aims to provide youth with more sports coaches and mentors through a sports program called Coach Across America.

In addition to coaching physical education at Green Charter School, Coach Myvett coaches basketball at New Orleans Charter Science and Math School, along with acting as a coach and mentor for the Up2Us organization. Born and raised in south central Los Angeles, Coach Myvett is helping our students at Green to not only excel as athletes but also to learn how to channel their energy in positive ways.   

At Joseph S. Clark Preparatory High School

On Saturday, March 23 Clark Prep’s National Honor Society (NHS) embarked on its second Habitat for Humanity project in the city. NHS faculty supervisor and English teacher, Caleb Osborn, 11-12 grades Social Worker Melanie Padron and Foreign Language teacher Glenn Evans joined the students early Saturday morning in the Ninth Ward. The group worked to construct siding on a home and assisted Habitat for Humanity staff in various capacities. They also organized the space for projects that will be completed by the large number of incoming Spring Break volunteers over the next couple of weeks.

Altogether there were thirteen students involved in the National Honor Society and friends project this past weekend. The service day was described as a great learning opportunity where Habitat for Humanity staff demonstrated how to use power tools such as electric sheers. One student found the project to be a nice and uplifting experience. Clark Prep is proud to work with community partners like Habitat for Humanity and give back to our community. Trips like these provide students with the chance to not only do meaningful work but continue to learn alongside fellow students, and this time their knowledge expanded to lessons learned outside of the classroom.

Jason: Arthur Ashe Community Day

The rebirth of Arthur Ashe Charter School in its new building in Gentilly has been profound. Their success was made clear at Ashe’s first Community Day this past Saturday.

The Community Day event drew in a crowd of volunteers (families, students, staff and community members), who were divided into two jobs. Half shelved nearly 3,000 books in Ashe’s gorgeous new library. Another contingent transformed the garden area from a pile of soil into a grassy lawn streaked with prepared vegetable beds and spaces for aquatic gardens. Young scholars joined the effort happily, digging with shovels and building sandcastles in their spare time.

In another part of the school, families were painting a mural – no artistic experience necessary. Christine Richtofen, Ashe’s art teacher, provided small slabs of wood and paints, and assigned each painter a swatch of the mural to complete. Soon, the squares of wood will be hung on a wall to reveal a collaboratively created portrait of Arthur Ashe. For those who wanted to be painted on, Ashe teachers decorated the faces of passing youth with whiskers and spirals and little pictures of all kinds.

When much of the work was done, the community gathered in the cafeteria for a hamburger lunch with a side of cookies. Looking through the full-length windows, we could see a determined set of landscapers finishing the garden project.

Of course, Community Day was only the beginning. The Ashe family has a lot to look forward to this year. Chef April Neujean, our Health & Wellness Manager, is busy promoting various Wellness initiatives happening at Ashe and across the FirstLine network. Make sure to attend one of the free cooking or exercise classes, or even join the Wellness Committee at your school (or network)!

Finally, every parent at Arthur Ashe Charter School should consider involvement in our parent organization, the Ashe Aces. Last night’s first meeting was a huge success with standing room only. Sivi Domango, Ashe’s co-director, gave a rousing presentation on the power of parents to impact student success. Parents, we depend on you! The Aces will meet on the third Wednesday of every month, so we look forward to seeing you all.

Jason Lacoste is the AmeriCorps VISTA K-8 Outreach Coordinator for FirstLine Schools.  

Jason: A Star-studded Day at FirstLine Schools

In the ESY NOLA Garden at Green

“Dan still has a good arm!” James “JB” Brown – host of The NFL Today on CBS – announced with a laugh. “You need that to work in the garden.” He was talking about Dan Marino, once quarterback for the Miami Dolphins, now analyst for The NFL Today.

Mr. Brown and Mr. Marino are touring the city with a bus full of volunteers, making Samuel J. Green Charter school their last of 16 stops. The volunteers come from all over the country, here for AARP’s Life@50+ National Event. This year, for the first time, the Washington, D.C. organizers decided to make community service an integral part of their convention.

Hands were shaken, weeds were pulled, and, according to Denise Richter, “The volunteers got worm castings, saved flower seeds, and helped prep production rows.”

But Green wasn’t the only FirstLine school with a visiting sports star today. Langston Hughes Academy attracted a gym full of media attention when Hornets shooting guard Eric Gordon walked in with a message of love for New Orleans.

After speaking, #10 refereed a quick 1-on-1 between one of the third graders and an eight grader. Gordon finally jumped in and set up a screen when the younger competitor found himself overwhelmed. When it was over and prizes dispensed, the scholars chanted from the stands: “Shoot! Shoot! Shoot! Shoot!” Gordon obliged with a lesson in perseverance, sinking a three pointer on his third attempt.

Enjoying the Bookmobile

And because no story is complete without a good book, the Hornets player led a line of 3rd grade scholars out of the gym and into the Bookmobile parked outside. Scholars climbed into the little painted bus in groups to receive a free paperback from the star.

While Eric Gordon didn’t help in the Dreamkeeper Garden, LHA did get an assist from Dillard University. The new partnership between Dillard and LHA, called “From Seed to Table,” kicked off today. Funded by the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana Impact Grant, it creates the opportunity for Dillard University students and LHA scholars to utilize the Greenhouse located on Dillard’s campus as an educational facility twice a week. 

In Dillard's Greenhouse

As part of the project, vegetable seeds will be started in the greenhouse and then transplanted to the LHA Dreamkeeper Garden. This allows ESY NOLA at Langston Hughes Academy to move forward with its new Family Supported Agriculture (FSA) program, bringing fresh school-grown food to students and their families.

It’s been a star-studded day at FirstLine Schools, but in the end our focus remains on the health and success of the scholars who depend on us. Thanks to everyone for your support, and don’t forget to visit the new Arthur Ashe campus – at 1456 Gardena Drive – for Community Day this Saturday from 10am to 2pm! 

Jason Lacoste is the AmeriCorps VISTA K-8 Outreach Coordinator for FirstLine Schools.  

ESY NOLA and Arthur Ashe Charter School

The new Arthur Ashe Charter School

Over 200 Lutheran teen volunteers from across the country gathered at the new Arthur Ashe Charter School site, 1456 Gardena Drive, on July 18 to help transform the facade with a colorful array of florals, sunflowers and cypress trees, in anticipation of the first day of school, August 6.  Ashe officially moved  over the summer, from its temporary Uptown location, to its permanent, newly constructed building on the Bienville Elementary site in the Lake Park neighborhood of Gentilly. The new site includes a garden-science classroom, a teaching kitchen, a fully-equipped cafeteria kitchen, and plans for several themed gardens, arches and pathways,  and a one-acre production garden. 

Volunteers on July 18, 2012

ESY NOLA will continue to provide school-wide tastings, Food ABC's with the Kindergarten classes, as well as these new programs:

• Daytime parent cooking classes
• Student kitchen classes 
• Student garden classes
• Open garden days
• Junior kitchen and garden apprentice classes
• Junior service learners 
• Family Food Nights

Keep checking back here for more information on these great new programs at Ashe!

Spring Break and We're Still Buzzing!

This week is spring break here at FirstLine Schools - which means our students and teachers are taking a well deserved break.  Our network employees are working away this week, keeping some things moving and taking the opportunity to do some work in the schools.  Additionally, we have some other things going on this week:

1. LHA was hopping on Monday when Annette Sisco of the Times-Picayune stopped by.  We had students preparing a play for performance at Jazz Fest, teachers & leadership preparing for the yearly Jazz Fest parking fundraiser, and a whole committee of people working on LHA's annual Jazz Night fundraiser on May 2.
2. Tuesday morning found some of our Green students on WGNO ABC-26 performing a dance routine while their Dance Team teacher spoke about the new "Inspire" campaign going on throughout the city.  Check out the interview here and the dance performance here.
3. Today (Thursday, April 26), Langston Hughes Academy hosted an official visit from the US Department of Education, a Town Hall on Community Engagement in Education.  The panel discussion included Mike Jayes, our AmeriCorps VISTA at Clark Prep who works exclusively on community partnership building at Clark Prep.  Together for Tomorrow is the program that was discussed, its purpose is to spotlight and foster partnerships among schools, families, national service programs, and community-based organizations in order to propel improvement of our lowest-performing schools.  This year we are fortunate to have two AmeriCorps VISTA working on community partnerships.  In addition to Mike, Paul Kramer is at Green this year.

Panel (L to R): Michael Robbins, USDOE (moderator); Erich Caulfield, New Orleans Federal Lead for Strong Cities, Stong Communities; Michael Pizzoltao, Sr Program Mgr, Tulane Center for Public Service; Mike Jayes, AmeriCorps VISTA Member at Clark Prep; and Cheryllyn Branche, Principal, Banneker Elementary & Middle School.

Thank you Verint & KaBOOM! - New Playground at LHA!

Monday was a pretty incredible day over at Langston Hughes Academy (LHA).  Over 200 volunteers worked for six hours and the end result was a brand new playground, sandbox, puppet theater, mini basketball court, picnic tables, benches, gameboard table tops and a brand new beautiful mural.  The back of the school has been transformed!

Check out the amazing change!!

The build site, afternoon of Feb 6, 2012

The build site, morning of Feb 6, 2012

Verint Representatives with some LHA scholars
at the ribbon-cutting ceremony

This build was made possible through the amazing KaBOOM! organization and the generosity of Verint Systems.  Not only did Verint donate funds, but 75 of the volunteers at the build day were Verint employees - some came all the way from India!  Verint started their sales meeting the next day, here in New Orleans, but those that volunteered on the LHA KaBOOM! build flew in a day early to be able to take part.  It was wonderful to get to know some of the Verint employees and to share this amazing day with them.

Dow Edwards, Co-Chair of the
NOLA180 Board of Directors, thanking
the volunteers

LHA scholars also took part in this project.  Scholars were a part of the playground design day, they created thank you cards for all of the volunteers, the LHA Marching Eagles performed at the check presentation/ribbon-cutting ceremony, and some scholars were a part of the ribbon-cutting ceremony.  The playground will open for the students tomorrow (Thursday, February 9, 2012) and we can't wait to see what they think of their new playground!

Volunteers at the end of the build day