Clara Epps, Special Education Teacher July 29, 2020 By wpengine Since working here I’ve been meeting great people, and that’s important to me. It is important for me to be in an environment where I can continue to grow. I feel very comfortable here and I absolutely love working here. I teach special education and I’ve been teaching at Friendship Tech Prep High for over five years. However, teaching is my second career. I originally started out as a retail store manager. For 18 years, I worked as a manager with a variety of companies, ranging from Safeway and Nordstrom to MAC cosmetics. Remembering I held a master’s degree in education management, I decided one day that I’d rather be teaching. My friend Natiia Johnson, the business manager at Friendship Tech Prep High at the time, said to me, “You should come see the principal.” So, I met with the principal at the time, Ms. Tindle, and the rest is history. I started as a long-term substitute. One day, the principal visited my classroom and said, “Wow, you really get them to listen to you.” That’s how I became a permanent teacher here. I enrolled in Teach for America and completed their two-year teacher training program. TFA was going to place me in another location, but Principal Patrick Pope said, “No, we want to keep her here.” What has been the most meaningful about being a special education teacher is learning how to have patience. All students can learn, they just learn differently. I enjoy examining the data, seeing student growth, and knowing if I am doing the right thing – asking, “Do I need to scale something back? Do I need step it up in a different way? Why are students not understanding a specific skill that was being taught?” It’s all about the students. I enjoy having real conversations, and that’s why I especially love teaching in high school. I ask myself, “What is my students’ plan of action to ensure they will be successful in college and then career?” Regardless of a student’s disability, I ask myself how I can ensure they take responsibility for their learning so they will have success. I support them with processing their emotions and adjusting their thinking so that they can make good decisions. It is also important for me to keep my door open, as I enjoy one-on-one time with my students. If there is a misconception either in class or in a conversation, I believe that it is crucial to talk it out. For someone who might be new to teaching special education, are there any other strategies that you would offer? Know your students. Learn about their background. They won’t share a lot unless they trust you. I ask, “Hey, what did you do this weekend?” They’d reply with something like, “I did this and that.” “Did you do anything else?” I’ll start by sharing my own life with them. If students are struggling with deeper challenges in their lives, I want them to feel comfortable coming to me with anything. Sometimes what they share is very sad. I do as much as I can to encourage students and give them what they need – even if it means buying them a pair of shoes or a sweater. I encourage them to stay strong because “this too shall pass.” Nothing lasts forever, and you have to work hard if you want a better situation in life, which you may not be able to see right now, but there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. I share some of my own struggles with them and talk about things that I think I could have done better and things I did well. This is helpful because students don’t see us as ever having being a high school student. I am very honest with them. We also try to expand our horizons outside of the community so that students can have broader experiences and realize that there is a big world out there. You meet people, taste different types of foods, and hear different music. It makes you a well-rounded person. We go to museums and restaurants. Many of my students need to develop their social skills, I tell them to clearly order their food with the waitress and socialize with different culture of people. Often, my students are used to only interacting with a small circle of friends and family, but rarely new people. We talk about real life skills – finding a job, going to the grocery store, creating a budget, finding an apartment, and even riding the bus. I might ask them: “If you worked in Georgetown and lived here, what bus route would you take?” They might say, “I never thought about that.” What do you like about Friendship? Friendship gave me an opportunity. I did not have a traditional background in teaching when I started. Since working here I’ve been meeting great people, and that’s important to me. It is important for me to be in an environment where I can continue to grow. I feel very comfortable here and I absolutely love working here. What strategies do you use in the classroom? It is important for me to be an advocate for my special education students to ensure they get the support they need. I know what they need and what their reading levels are. If they’re not yet on grade level, I make sure they get the extra help they need, whether it is modified content or an accommodation. I will visit their teachers and say, “May I please see what you’re giving this student in the classroom?” I monitor their grades and we have one-on-one sit downs every two weeks. I’ll ask, “What’s going on? Why do you have this grade in this particular class?” Then I’ll meet with the teacher. Everyone will meet in the middle to ensure every student succeeds. Certain students have difficulty communicating, so I work on teaching these students to speak up for themselves. Is there a fun fact you’d like to share? I’m a licensed makeup artist! I love makeup. Sometimes I do students’ prom makeup and makeup for other school events.
Coy McKinney, Urban Agriculture Teacher June 17, 2020 By wpengine I like that we’ve started this Academy of Urban Ecology, which is geared around urban agriculture. In my own opinion, part of the reasons that we’re having issues with climate change and climate justice is because we feel separated from the environment. We don’t really understand or appreciate our role within the environment. How did you arrive at your current role? I initially came to DC for law school in 2009, and while I was in law school, I had an environmental epiphany when I wondered where my food was coming from. I learned about environmental justice, and previously I hadn’t known what that was. While I was going to law school at UDC, I learned that they have a College of Agriculture, Urban Sustainability and Environmental Science. They also have a research farm in Beltsville, Maryland. And so, while I was in law school, I was also doing a work study with them, learning how to grow food. I started a UDC Garden Club, which was an effort to start gardening on the UDC campus. Then during my final year of law school, I wrote a paper on all the fundamental problems I saw with it, essentially, paving my path away from being a lawyer. I chose to instead do the urban agriculture thing. I implemented a grant at UDC to create a sensory garden with different trees, plants, with different textures and smells. After that grant, I worked with a nonprofit organization called City Blossoms. They’re all about connecting kids with gardening. And then after that I worked with Compost Cab for a bit, learning how to compost people’s food waste and turning it into soil. My mother had been very lenient with my decision to not become a lawyer, since I had paid for three years of law school. I wanted to show her I was making progress with this new path. I found a list of principals in DC and reached out to them all saying, “Hey, I’m interested in being a school garden coordinator.” At the time, they were just opening up the new Tech Prep building with a greenhouse and they needed someone to run it. It was perfect timing. How has your experience been since then, teaching Urban Agriculture at FPCS Tech Prep? I never thought I wanted to be or would be a teacher, but this is definitely the right place for me. Not only is my office technically the greenhouse, which is pretty awesome, but there’s also a lot of space at the school to grow, figuratively and literally. Once I got my bearings, I said, “It’d be pretty great to start a school farm.” Each year, I’m trying to add another piece to that puzzle to eventually get us a school farm, so that we are able to expand our offerings and be a food hub for the surrounding community. Can you talk about what students learn in your class? First, they learn about the food system, how it works, the issues surrounding it, food deserts, food justice, and then they get to grow their own vegetables and plants. They learn how to take care of plants, how to do it sustainably, organically, and how to mitigate any pest issues that come up. We have three worm bins in the greenhouse for composting. So, whenever we have food scraps, we use that. They see how a banana peel can turn into soil. Then, the other component that I think is important is cooking. Students will grow things in the greenhouse, then they’ll come up with recipes for those ingredients and we’ll have cooking demonstrations. We always try to go on at least 2 or 3 field trips per year so they can see how other community gardens or urban farms run, they then bring some new ideas back to Tech Prep. What have your students’ reactions to your class and lessons been? The cooking part gets everybody excited. Last year, two graduating seniors wrote a thesis about food justice and related obesity issues, exploring the food sold near the school. They’re perceptive and recognize what’s going on in their community. They see that there are multiple liquor stores and carry outs, but no real place to get fresh vegetables. Now, they have the vocabulary and a broader sense of what’s going on. That’s one thing that they definitely get out of it. Also, hopefully they’ll gain some cooking skills-one or two recipes that they can make. They’ll know the basics of taking care of plants, how to water them, and how to identify diseases and other issues. What kind of careers would they pursue if they were interested in continuing this kind of work professionally? They can pursue botany if they want to study the science around how plants grow. Culinary arts is another field they may pursue. We took a field trip to the USDA; if they want to work in policy, they can be involved with that. DC is a good place for urban farming; there’s a vibrant scene here. They can start their own community garden, get involved with other community farms, and continue to expand their knowledge. Can you talk more about food justice? Food justice is about everyone-regardless of race, sexual orientation, etc.-having access to healthy and affordable produce. In our class we talk about the existence of food deserts, where it is difficult for people to access healthy fresh food at affordable prices. Our school is located in a food desert and many of our kids live in this food desert. It is an issue they understand. One project we’ve worked on was when the students had to work in groups and each group was assigned a ward. Then they were tasked with conducting a demographic study on that ward-race, median income, etc. Then they’ll count the number of grocery stores in each ward. They’ll see that in their ward, there is a clear contrast to other parts of the city. When they compare at the median income, they get a better idea of why this is happening. We are not just growing food for the heck of it, but we want to eventually offer affordable and healthy food to more people. We offer our school garden market during the fall and spring. We started a CSA program with teachers and school staff. It’s a short-term CSA and teachers determine how much produce they want – five or ten pounds-then they pay us a fee to deliver it every week for the season. We’re trying to find a way to broaden our offerings; it’s one of our goals for upcoming years. Can you talk about the bees and chicken? We rented the chickens last fall but are trying to bring them back on a permanent basis. The bees, however, are here to stay. We have two beehives. The first year of beekeeping is all about the bees making their own honey for their winter food reserve. After the first year, we can start to collect the honey. We’ve applied for and obtained a grant for an outdoor classroom, which will be an incredible addition to the school campus and will also be another piece in the school farm project. It will come with a rain garden and cooking station to prepare and wash food. What do you like about Friendship Tech Prep? I like that we’ve started this Academy of Urban Ecology, which is geared around urban agriculture. In my own opinion, part of the reasons that we’re having issues with climate change and climate justice is because we feel separated from the environment. We don’t really understand or appreciate our role within the environment. Having an academy geared towards urban ecology will hopefully play a role in resolving this issue. The kids will go on camping trips, go hiking, and grow plants. This will hopefully draw their attention to and inspire a wonder for our environment. This is an important and good thing for the future.
Glendora Franklin, Instructional Specialist June 17, 2020 By wpengine I am a product of D.C. Public Schools and a first-generation college student. Throughout my college years, I always wanted to be a teacher. I entered Johnson C. Smith University with the intention to leave as a teacher. I wanted to save a child’s life. Can you talk about your experience at Friendship? I was at FPCS Collegiate for 12 years and I’m now entering my fourth year at Tech Prep. I’ve taught algebra 1, algebra 2, geometry, and pre-calculus. This is my second year as an instructional specialist. What do you like most about being in STEM? I like that I can teach our scholars about science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. I foster a deep appreciation for mathematics. I teach my students about the history of math that was previously unknown to them, and they get excited about it. The world is changing now and they see people that look like them in promising STEM careers. Our black girls see movies like Hidden Figures, in which they are represented in those careers. Friendship Tech Prep is a premier STEM school. Scholars participate in STEM every single day, in all of their classes-from physics to engineering, and everything else. Students attend NSBE (National Society of Black Engineers) conferences around the country, and they participate in our robotics team. They build electric cars, gliders, and model homes. We have students like Jerrel King, who won the DC Google Science fair with his instant laptop 2.0. Every single day, they’re doing amazing things in STEM. They’re zealously moving into the 21st century; they see the trajectory of this world and want to be a part of it. Can you talk about your journey to becoming a teacher and instructional specialist at Friendship? I am a product of D.C. Public Schools and a first-generation college student. Throughout my college years, I always wanted to be a teacher. I entered Johnson C. Smith University with the intention to leave as a teacher. I wanted to save a child’s life. If I could save one child, then my job would be done, right? Eighteen years later, I’m still saving lives via STEM education. I teach problem solving. I teach students that great things come from Southeast Washington, D.C. and, of course, Friendship Public Charter School. Are there any strategies offered to you that stand out as you transitioned from being a biology major to a Pre-K classroom teacher? Build solid relationships with students and parents. When I first started, the first thing my coach said was, “Get to know your students.” Yes, you have teaching standards to follow, but the way you teach and all of your activities will be based on how your students learn best. Their families will reinforce what you’re teaching at home. Recently, I pursued a certification with the Gurian Institute. They study the brain and learn how boys and girls develop differently. I learned different approaches to ensure I keep my boys engaged-more than I had in previous years. What are some ways to get boys to engage in learning? Movement is critical. I make it my mission to add movement to most of our activities. We’re getting up and doing some sort of moving activity every 10-15 minutes. Even when we’re reading books, I will sometimes ask them to mirror me when I stand up and sit back down as I’m reading. To the observer, it might look really weird. At the end of one story, my principal said, “They actually sat down, got up, sat down, got up, and sat down again. If you did some other type of movement, they copied that too. By the end of the story, everyone was focused, everyone understood, and everyone answered questions.” I also make sure I have books that interest both girls and boys. I make sure we have plenty of boy-friendly books about motorcycles, rocks, and other things typically based on their interests. I also lead many lessons about empathy and understanding feelings. Boys learn to recognize how they feel, as well as the people around them. What is the best way to inspire a passion for STEM in students? It is helpful for them to see black teachers who are passionate about math. Also, success is not always about being smart-it’s about perseverance. I teach students how to stick with difficult challenges and struggle through their problems. I offer differentiated instruction, engaging lessons, and real-world applicability. Students may enter with apathy toward math, but they all leave my classroom as mathematicians. What advice would you offer new teachers? There’s a quote I really like by John C. Maxwell: “Students don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” The first thing you need to do is develop a relationship with your students. Once you do that, they’ll pretty much do anything you tell them to. Also, some good advice for new teachers is to connect your content to the real world. The biggest question that our students have is: “Why are you teaching this to us?” They have to see the relevance of what you’re teaching. Anytime we are dissecting a math problem, I always bring it back to their lives and what they already know. I can talk all day long about parabolic equations, but it won’t sink in until I show how it’s related to the rollercoasters at Kings Dominion. If the lesson is not culturally relevant, there can be no student investment. Is there anything else you’d like to share? I’d like to share a Malcolm X quote that I’ve lived by during my 20 years in education: “Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.” I encourage all my students to be life-long learners. We’ve built a strong college-going culture at Tech Prep and across the Friendship network. So many of our graduates are first-generation college students, who didn’t initially believe they would ever make it to college. We help them believe in themselves and offer them the guidance they need. We teach them, “Hey, you can and WILL do this.” I’m still in contact with so many of my former students from over the years. I have even attended their college graduations. I’m proud to say that I’m still a part of their lives. We don’t drop students off and say “goodbye” when they graduate from Friendship. Their commencement is where it really begins, and our relationship deepens. Students reach out to me from college to let me know how they’re doing. Sometimes they say, “Hey Frankie, can you help me with this math problem?” Friendship spans beyond the four walls of our schools. We are not only teachers, but mentors, mothers, Uber drivers… everything students need us to be. I attend baby showers and birthday parties. We are a part of our students’ lives and they know they can count on us. That’s what makes the difference. Fun fact? Fact #1: I never miss a Monday to work out!!! To be honest, I hardly miss any day to lift weights. Fact #2: The harder my day is, the harder I take it out on the dance floor. There is always a song and dance in my head.
Brittney Lott, 10th Grade Geometry Teacher June 17, 2020 By wpengine You have to be able to teach to students’ potential; they don’t always show us the best side of themselves. You have to be the kind of teacher that shows it to them, that reminds them, ‘You can be successful. You can do this.’ Can you talk a bit about your journey to your current position? I’m originally from Georgia. I graduated from Georgia State University and I joined AmeriCorps, which is like the Peace Corps but in the United States. I worked at high school, and fell in love with the teaching profession after that. Then I moved to DC in 2013 and I got into a teaching program. I’ve been at Friendship since. I started as an 8th grade resident teacher at Tech Prep. Then I taught 6th grade. Now I teach 10th grade geometry at Tech Prep High School. I have seen many changes and a lot of growth here. You fall in love with the kids. You really do. Without the students, my passion runs low. I love teaching students something new and making them look at education in a different way. You have to teach them to love education and to love learning new things, even when they don’t see the direct benefits of it. This is why it is crucial to build a relationship with them, so you can inspire them to see the benefits of learning. I work to make learning relatable. There are many different ways mathematics can relate to them, but it’s also important to make them understand that the more they know, the further they’re going to go (I know that’s corny, but true). I try to assist them to see that they shouldn’t just be learning because they have to go to high school. They should be excited to learn because it is something they want to know to add value to themselves. That’s why it’s not at all helpful to tell students, “You have to do this because it is mandatory” without helping them see the benefit of learning it. When they come into class, I ask them to write down their dreams. I ask them, “What goals do you have for yourself? What do you want to do when you leave?” Then, when they tell me, “I don’t understand why I have to do this,” I always ask them to revisit their goals. I remind them that they need to have a high school diploma to become a police officer or a teacher—whatever they’re trying to become, they need to have a diploma to do it. Referring back to their goals helps my students. I also try to limit offering external rewards like candy. I want them to have intrinsic motivation. What do you like about teaching geometry? I feel like I was, in a way, given geometry. At first, I was not at all excited about teaching it. I was like, “Oh no, no, no, no…” You hear about all of the horror stories, you know, and I feel like this is the one subject teachers shy away from. I looked at it as a challenge and thought, “Okay, if nobody else wants to teach it, I know I’m going to be very valuable if I know how to teach it well.” So that was the challenge I set for myself. Then I fell in love with it because it is so relatable—it’s shapes, volume, it’s something that we actually use and it’s something you can see every single day. You don’t have to stretch so much. With algebra and pre-calculus you have to stretch really hard to make it relatable for them. Even if you used math to build a roller coaster, students still struggle to relate to such an abstract concept. But with geometry, I can actually show you the shapes I’m talking about. If a student comes to me at the beginning of the year with previously bad experiences in math, I tell them, “This is your time to shine. You may have struggled with algebra, but geometry is your opportunity to have a different experience in math.” Many students who previously struggled with math do very well in geometry and are surprised by it. It teaches them that math doesn’t just look one way. I love hearing, “Oh, my gosh, I got an ‘A’ in math! I never got an ‘A’ in math before.” They really start to build confidence and realize, “Wait, I am good at math.” When this happens, it’s a life-changing experience for me as well. It sounds like you really set them up for success at the beginning of the year. That’s wonderful. Are there any hands-on projects that particularly excite students? Yes, there are a few. Constructions are something we work on that they’ve never seen before. They design a portfolio of constructions, which really builds their confidence. They say, “Okay, cool. I can build a project and it turns out really nice.” They use color pencils and get really creative with it. They build a positive relationship with math—one where it’s about practice and getting better. Since I’ve been here for awhile, a lot of students know me. They have no problem with telling me, “I don’t understand” or “I’m not good at math.” I try to change the language at the beginning. I tell them, “Don’t say that or you really won’t be good at math.” During one class, a student who previously struggled with math was trying to hide his smile in class. He was so excited that he understood what we were doing, and he was the only one who understood at the time. He was able to come up to the board for the first time and teach the topic to the class. He then walked around helping the whole class. I’d never seen him that excited before. To this day, he will say, “Ms. Lott, remember that one day I understood the assignment and nobody else did?” And, I reply, “Of course I remember. When you sit down and really focus on something, you will understand it.” There are so many more stories like that. I could talk about student growth forever. Some come with certain feelings about math, and when they’re negative, we work to get past that in my class. Is there anything I haven’t asked you that you want to include in your spotlight? I want to reiterate that you have to be able to teach to students’ potential; they don’t always show us the best side of themselves. You have to be the kind of teacher that shows it to them, that reminds them, “You can be successful. You can do this.” You do this in a way that holds them accountable and builds them up to where they see themselves being successful in math. We recently had the second highest growth in geometry on PARCC, the second in the district, and that’s because of hard work of course, but also the belief that they could have success on PARCC. If other schools were doing it, we could as well. In DC, there’s been a stigma of, “on the other side of the Anacostia, they’re different…” I wanted our scholars to see for themselves and to show others that even though it’s not always about taking tests, they can be successful on a test as well. Students need to see themselves as capable, but also teachers need to see them in that light, too. Teachers need to know when it’s time to push them. We have some incredible students and they don’t always get portrayed in the best light. I always try to make sure they’re spotlighted in a major way when they’re doing well. They made history here and that’s what I wanted; now everybody is aiming to do that, which is really good. You have to be passionate about it. It’s hard work, but you have to build relationships and stay as positive as humanly possible. Recently, I had one of my roughest years personally. I thought I was awful at everything. I had just had a child and was a new mom. At the same time I was teaching a new subject. It was hard, but I pushed through it. I tell my scholars that story because they don’t always see teachers as real people. I remind them, “We all have personal things we’re going through, but you have to continue to push yourself to be the best you can and do well.”