EYE ON EDUCATION A Publication of the Paramount Unified School District
15110 CALIFORNIA AVE., PARAMOUNT, CA 90723 • TEL: 562-602-6000 • FAX: 562-634-6029
MARCH 2008
“Be the Change” Leadership Workshop Recently, a group of our dedicated middle school students attended the 2nd annual “Be the Change” leadership workshop. Based on their leadership potential this select group of students was nominated by their teachers as leaders in their grade level. Inspired by a quote from Mahatma Gandhi, “We must be the change we wish to see in the world”, the goal of the leadership workshop was to empower a diverse group of students with the awareness, knowledge and skills they need to promote respect, improve human relations and create a safer school community. Students voluntarily spent part of their winter break engaging in teambuilding exercises and discussions in order to develop a greater understanding and respect for each other’s cultural, ethnic and racial identities. Our students did what most great leaders do and looked to past leaders for inspiration. They examined the ideas and contributions of people such as John F. Kennedy, Eli Wiesel, Nelson Mandela and Oprah Winfrey. As leaders students learned the various communication styles and the different types of bullies. Students also had time to self-reflect and had a discussion on how the choices they make today can determine their life. The basis of the leadership workshop is to help students recognize that they have the power to create positive change in their lives and in the school climate. As a result, our students were trained by the Campaign for College
Opportunity to become Youth Ambassadors. In order to create a college-going culture amongst their peers, our 26 students are now a part of the 40 Youth Ambassadors in Los Angeles County trained to provide their peers with information related to preparing for college. Students also listened to guest speaker Gabriel Guerrero, the CEO of a commercial real estate firm who highlighted the importance of math in daily life and provided them with a mini-lesson on commercial real estate. Mr. Guerrero also shared with students his experience as a first generation college graduate and reminded them that if he did it so can they. The highlight of the week for many students was a tour of UCLA followed by a speaker panel given by the Latino Greek Council and members of its sororities and fraternities. On the last day, students engaged in self-reflection during the Footprints activity. Students were asked to write down on their footprint how they used to be and what kind of footprint they
have left behind. They were then given a blank piece of paper which represented a spot in the earth that will one day bear their footprint. They answered the question, “What do you want your footprint to say about you?” Of the experience one 8th grader stated “I use to be mean and have an attitude problem but now I am going to leave that behind and be more nice to people and leave my aggressiveness behind. I feel like a leader and smart.” Another stated, “Comparing myself to [the first day] I feel more like a leader and more confident. I want my new footprint to be different from the last one...I thought college was just a building with teens that wanted extra school time, but now I know that its completely different and that NOW is the perfect time to start
getting prepared for that. I want to be more responsible when dealing with school. I want to be the type of person who other people can look to and trust.” All students agreed that they would want to participate in another leadership workshop. Our students developed an action plan for positive change on campus. They will be collaborating with administrators and teachers through the remainder of the school year to plan and implement these action plans. Oprah Winfrey once said “if you want your life to be more rewarding, you have to change the way you think.” It looks as though our leadership students have done just that. Caroline Lopez Counselor Tanner School
Tori Harris Attends the 2007 Junior National Young Leaders Conference (JrNLC) The JrNLC is a nationally recognized organization for young people. The conference strives to recognize students of high intelligence with leadership potential. On December 1, 2001 Collins School’s own Tori Harris embarked on a lifelong leadership adventure in Washington D.C. Tori was nominated by her sixth grade math teacher as an excellent student full of leadership potential and talent. Tori spent five days in Washington D.C. exploring our nation’s capitol and developing her leadership skills. Character, goal setting, problem solving, respect and teamwork were the focus of the conference. She met with leaders from all over the Untied States who challenged and inspired her. She visited monuments of great historic leaders. She sat at the feet of current leaders. She befriended our future leaders. Tori was a part of a Leadership Focus Group. The group served a dual purpose as a discus-
If you cannot follow, you cannot lead. Leaders have great team building skills. Leaders are intelligent. Going into this conference I thought I was going to learn “the art of bossing others around”! Instead we learned how to work with other people. I flew to Washington with a limited frame of mind. I flew home with a new perspective. The conference helped me discover my hidden speaking capabilities. I had so much fun. We slept over at the science museum and ate at the Hard Rock Café. The most
sion group and a catalyst for reflection and change. At the conference I learned a lot about leadership. I learned what a true leader is. Leaders are people who try to make a difference. They are productive people. Leaders are great followers.
memorable part of the conference was going to West Virginia and learning about John Brown. He was a leader who fought to free slaves. He is deemed the reason for the civil war. His story impacted me. It made me want to make a difference. Tori It is a great honor to be nominated as a young person who teachers and parents have great vision for. We, at Collins are so proud of Tori for all of her hard work and her example of leadership. The future is full of possibilities.
SCHOOL BOARD MEETING DATES March 11, 2008 Board of Education meetings are held at 6:00 p.m. in the Boardroom at the District Office, 15110 California Avenue, Paramount, and are open to the public