This school year, Erie House offered several virtual workshops for KIPP Chicago families, in English and Spanish, on topics including immigration rights and the process of applying for public benefits. They also helped families submit applications for public benefits. We are incredibly grateful for the partnership with Erie House!

They also participated in our outdoor October 21st Community Market at KIPP One and demonstrated healthy, low-cost recipes.

Rush and Norweigan American Hospitals
We’re so grateful that these two hospitals helped us administer free flu shots at the KIPP One Community Market event.

Cruelty Free You + Me

On December 17th, along with KIPP One, they hosted a warm clothing and food drive + gift event. We’re so grateful for this partnership that continues to bring assistance and joy to our students and families. Check out the KIPPster in line, still logged in for virtual learning while standing in line!

Family Wellness Workshops

 
This January will mark our inaugural Family Wellness Workshop series! As families filled out the wellness survey, the data overwhelmingly suggested that health & nutrition, financial literacy, and parenting resources are top interests. With 13 current partners, we will be offering thematic one-time wellness workshops and workshop series each month.

The first session was held virtually on Thursday, January 28, 2021. Participants cooked a heart-healthy baked parmesan meal with our community partner, Native Tongue, who also offered one bag of free groceries to 10 participating families. While leading the cooking demo, they also answered questions about heart-healthy food staples, low-cost nutritional food options, and quick swaps with current pantry items to make meals heart healthy.

To continue the theme of nutrition and wellness in February, Erie Neighborhood House and KIPP Chicago will offer a virtual cooking and nutrition series for KIPP families. Each week, the menu will consist of low-cost, nutritious recipes that can be prepared by and for the entire family.

The post Increasing Family and Community Partnerships appeared first on KIPP Chicago Public Schools.

On December 11th, Facing History led a civics professional development session for 6th-8th grade social studies teachers, principals, and assistant principals. Elizabeth Hawkins, 6th grade social studies teacher at KIPP Bloom College Prep, notes that, when the group was asked to define ‘Civics,’ a powerful response came when someone said, “Civics is how you show up as a citizen to create history versus just learning history.” Here is how the Facing History curriculum is impacting Elizabeth’s classroom and students:

During the late summer, I discovered a unit on Identity in Facing History geared toward 6th graders. I thought this would be a great way to get to know my students, especially as we started the year remotely. Currently, 6th graders at Bloom are showing up as citizens through a global historical perspective. We’ve studied many ancient civilizations that were praised as “great civilizations.” Taking it a step further, we’ve been tossing around the question, “What will historians write about our society now? Are we great?” In my homeroom, we watch CNN 10 every morning and make attempts to answer this question. It’s constantly evolving! Another piece that comes from our professional development with Facing History is the idea of, “capturing unheard voices,” as the two young girls did in their book, Tell Me Who You Are. This is my personal responsibility and task as a Social Studies teacher, to present multiple and possible unpopular perspectives.

More teacher insight:

“The Facing History has reintroduced me to different views of the intersectionality of race, economics, gender, education, and white supremacy. This will allow me to help better explain some of the factors which are roadblocks to student success. It will give us the opportunity to hold each other accountable to this commitment.”
-Bryan Warner, Interventionist-Content Team Leader KIPP Bloom College Prep

“I really like that the Facing History curriculum seeks to have students examine their identities in relation to history and as a means of better understanding others. It has pushed me to think through how identity can be used to engage and help promote positive change.”
-Briana Jocelyn, 7th Grade Social Studies Teacher, Content Team Leader + Resident Coach, KIPP One Academy

The 1619 Project

The 1619 Project is an ongoing initiative, written by Nikole Hannah Jones from The New York Times Magazine, that began in August 2019, the 400th anniversary of American slavery. It aims to reframe the country’s history by placing the consequences of slavery and Black Americans’ contributions at the very center of our national narrative. Check out this interview with Jones as she explains the significance of this story.

The project is in partnership with the Pulitzer Center, which raises awareness of underreported global issues through direct support for quality journalism across all media platforms and a unique program of education and public outreach. The 1619 Project offers a curriculum that focuses on the African Americans’ contributions and the power of underreported stories being covered by the media.

We will begin using this curriculum in one pilot classroom with one teacher and one grade level before launching to one whole grade level across the region. Each year, we can add a grade level that will explore the resources offered in the 1619 Project curriculum. As our entire region comes together on January 29th, Fareed Mostoufi from the Pulitzer Center will lead a professional development session to introduce the project and its resources.

Project Exploration

Project Exploration creates transformative learning opportunities for youth underrepresented in the sciences, particularly students of color and girls, by equipping them with the skills, practices, and mindset needed for a lifelong pursuit of learning. This past fall, 95 students from KIPP One Primary and KIPP One Academy received materials for the program free of charge to dive deep into the curriculum, work with their peers and facilitator, and strengthen their problem-solving and critical thinking skills. The nature of science, the scientific method, and the engineering design process is at the forefront of each session, as students learn to apply their knowledge to the challenge at hand. This amazing opportunity is set to expand to additional KIPP Chicago schools in the upcoming year.

KIPP One Academy clubs

KIPP One Academy continues to offer a wide variety of clubs for students each week. Clubs such as Pride Club, Creative Writing & Poetry, Current Events, Newspaper, Choir, and Meditation Club are offered during school hours and after school hours. KIPP One teachers are going above and beyond to ensure their students are given opportunities to be part of a group, learn a new skill, and have fun following their curiosities and interests.

The post Embracing an Inclusive and Challenging Curriculum appeared first on KIPP Chicago Public Schools.

As we continue to engage students in virtual art experiences around social justice themes, we are also developing resources for all students while learning at home. KIPP Chicago students created our first CMASJ virtual project which lives on our website as a downloadable coloring book. A hard copy can also be purchased here.

This coloring book is a compilation of positive affirmations collected from our teachers. Students in grades Kindergarten through 8th from across the region chose an affirmation to illustrate and submitted their designs. Positive affirmations can be used to reprogram our thought patterns and change the way we think and feel about things. They are the messages we choose to tell ourselves over and over until we internalize and believe them. We hope that this coloring book can be utilized to practice mindfulness and meditation while reflecting on the affirmations on each page.

Thank you to Dr. Mahalia Hines, who inspired this project with her daily, positive affirmations. We love the idea of believing in our full potential and envisioning our highest selves through the consistent affirming of positive beliefs!

Alumni Artist Feature: Amare Williamson

Amare Williamson, a KIPP Academy Chicago alumni, is now a Sophomore at ChiArts, a prestigious and rigorous arts, and college preparatory high school. Amare’s beautiful illustrations of Black women are part of our latest CMASJ coloring book, and one of her pieces is our cover feature! Her inspiring artistic journey is just beginning, and we look forward to watching Amare use her artwork to engage in social and political issues. Below is a conversation with Amare.

When did you know you were interested in visual art?
When I was in Kindergarten, around that time, I used to always try to draw my classmates or teachers or anyone around me, I was always fascinated by facial features. I wanted to draw a lot. I was mainly inspired by my older brother. He was really into art. I wanted to do it also.

Is there someone in your life who has helped you discover your artistic talents?
My mom, most definitely. She always tells me stories, like how in preschool, I used to draw her as a stick figure. I used to always draw food; I like drawing food. She, to this day, always pushes me to keep improving, and she’d do anything to help me with my art. She sings, but she doesn’t do any visual art.

What are some of your favorite art media/ways to make art?
My favorite is traditional. Sketching on paper using charcoal or ink. I recently started getting more into digital art.

What inspires you and your art?
Mainly my culture inspires me a lot. Black culture. I love making artwork about my people. Anything that I feel like, in the media, or just everywhere, where we aren’t represented a lot. Young girls like me, we don’t have a lot of representation. I love to make artwork that makes us…shows us how beautiful we are and that we matter. I just love bringing the beauty out of Black people. I try to learn more about myself, ya know?

How has your experience at Chi Arts helped you grow as a young artist?
Before going to Chi Arts I wasn’t as passionate as I am now. They really push me with learning new things like sculpting and painting that I’ve never done before. And they’ve given me materials that I’ve never even heard of. The school is amazing, it has an amazing personality. People are nice there and accepting. It’s amazing. They push their students a lot. They’re really inspiring.

Do you know where you want to go to college?
It’s between two colleges- California Arts and Spelman. Either one of those. I’m still looking for more art schools.

Do you want to find a career in the arts? If so, what is your dream career?
Most definitely. I want to stick with making art. I love every art media so I will just go with the flow, try new things, practice certain things. I just really want to have my art out there and make inspiring art about political things…things that people are talking about.

A Visual Arts Lesson on Public Space and Confederate Statues
We are so excited to announce that our CMASJ lesson plan, A Visual Arts Lesson on Public Space and Confederate Statues, is part of the winning group of proposals for the ASU+GSV Creator Competition! This lesson for 7th-12th graders utilizes this Fireside Chat: Tearing Down the Statues with Deborah Quazzo and Mitch Landrieu to engage students in a re-imagining of public spaces without confederate statues. If confederate statues stand for divisiveness, hate, and racism, how can students design new art structures to illustrate equity, truth, reconciliation, unity, and hope?

Partnering with Urban Gateways
We are working to partner with more arts organizations around Chicago, expanding our strategic vision of offering engaging art and social justice experiences to our community. In seeking arts organizations with a similar mission of offering arts and social justice experiences to kids, we are grateful to be in conversation with Urban Gateways, which engages young people in arts experiences to inspire creativity and impact social change. Our first joint project was a collaborative grant proposal to bring a 14-week visual art program to KIPP Ascend Middle Schoolers that would include work with two local artists.

Installing CMASJ Artwork in Schools
As we continue to prioritize creating warm, welcoming, and affirming school environments, we believe student-created work should always be on display as much as possible. We are beginning to install our Activist Soup portraits, along with the bios of each person, to create a beautiful, meaningful permanent fixture at every one of our 8 schools. Please consider a donation to our Go Fund Me to aid in our efforts!

The post Sharing resources from our Children’s Museum of Art and Social Justice appeared first on KIPP Chicago Public Schools.

We have made great progress in training all staff members at two schools so far. As each SEL leader from our other 6 schools completes their training, they will lead their whole staff through the workshops. When school staff work through the training together, it creates a sense of shared experiences and empathy that will translate to students’ connection. To date, staff completed 5 training sessions, including:

Emotions Matter: What is emotional intelligence? And why does it matter?
The Charter: Community Agreement Tool and living document. How we want to feel and actionable steps, we will take to achieve those feelings.
The Mood Meter: Tool to Recognize, Understand, and Label your emotions
Meta-Moment: Tool to stop & breathe, see your best self in every moment, and strategize how to regulate your emotions to be your best self.
Blueprint: Conflict Resolution Tool

Our next goal is to ensure all students are subsequently trained after teachers have had time to internalize the shared language, experiences, and practices.

Darlene Santos, 5th grade Math Teacher, and Grade Level Dean, shared her thoughts on the strengths of the RULER program:

“This whole effort has to do with building a community within your classroom, and it’s largely student-driven. When we’re talking about how we are living up to the charter (that students create), it’s their feedback that drives the conversation. They will be able to tell other students, “hey, I don’t think we’re living the charter we created…” This process allows for a lot of student input, and I will need to remember that as their teacher. To ensure investment, I will let them build it. I am here for support, and I will be teaching them how to regulate their emotions and use the RULER framework, but they will be driving the process.”

My Grandmother’s Hands by Resmaa-Menakeem

In November, every KIPP Chicago staff member received My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending our Hearts and Bodies, a story of the journey through the labyrinths of trauma and its effects on modern life, especially for African Americans. Resmaa’s insight into trauma is profoundly impactful, but even more powerful and useful are his strategies for addressing it.

As the KIPP Chicago senior team reads the book together, Jennifer Hodges, Director of the Whole Child Fund, cites chapter 20, Cultural Healing for African Americans, as especially pivotal.

This chapter resonated with me because it underscores the importance of acknowledging African American contributions to global society. Telling a complete story of African American history is critical to psychological strength and self-confidence. Our history did not begin with slavery. I believe teaching from slavery diminishes African American students’ confidence and promotes subordinate self-worth and diminished self-efficacy. I desire to identify or design a curriculum that intersects African history with African American history and present-day experience. Through the Inclusive and Challenging Curriculum priority of Whole Child, my goal is to create an accurate African American curriculum that will nurture confident, proud, and empowered children leaders.

Because of this, it is important that we practice and model self-care, giving ourselves permission to pause and check-in and hold space for our students to do the same. The book says, “Learning to settle your body and practicing wise and compassionate self-care is not about reducing stress; they’re about increasing your body’s ability to manage stress, as well as about creating more room for your nervous system to find coherence and flow.” We look forward to the impact it will have on our entire region, our students, and our families as we read it together. Our entire region will have read the book and gone through three subsequent learning sessions by fall of 2021!

Though it looks different for everyone, we can actively model self-care for students in whatever way feels authentic. Here are some ways you can model self-care:

• Tell students you are going to take a minute to take some deep breaths and have some hot tea
• Provide several moments of pause or quiet
• Ask students to share their coping strategies and model some of your own
• Give students options for how they engage in class that day, ie, submitting journal reflection vs. actively participating in the discussion
• Provide time for creative visual representations of their thoughts
• Demonstrate emotional and mental release through physical activity like stretching, jumping jacks, etc.
• Use CMASJ coloring book to color with students

The post Integrating Social and Emotional Learning appeared first on KIPP Chicago Public Schools.

Over 50 staff members, including School Leaders, senior leadership team members, Assistant Principals, and all direct managers, continue to participate in ongoing antiracist training this school year with Dr. Blanca Ruiz, who was one of the original Leading for Equity trainers, working with Executive Directors and the KIPP Foundation. Part II of the training was held in December and part III is happening January 29th.

McNair Fellows

Through a one year leadership development program, KIPP Chicago will assist leaders in leveraging their unique perspectives to affect broader change within our organization. The McNair Fellows, who have each been with KIPP Chicago for three or more years and have held a leadership position, will be given financial support to utilize for their own leadership acceleration. Individual pathways will include professional development, coaching/mentoring, and the development of school-based impact projects. Each path will be differentiated to meet the needs of The McNair Fellow. The fellowship is designed to elevate leaders to thrive in their roles and amplify the impact of their leadership in the evolution of our organization.

The McNair Fellowship, named after Ronald Erwin McNair, an astronaut & physicist, is KIPP Chicago’s initiative that will increase the development & mentorship opportunities for emerging leaders of color, who identify as​ Black/African-American or Latinx/Hispanic. In development for two plus years, we are thrilled to announce our first 13 fellowship members, spotlighting 2 of them in this edition. Antavis Spells and Yodit Weldu have been with KIPP for over 10 years, both making a profound impact on students, alumni, and families. We asked them these two questions: What are your aspirations in leadership and how do you see this fellowship helping you get there? This program is inspired by the success and life of Ronald McNair. In terms of your career, who is someone that inspires you?

Antavis Spells | Assistant Principal KIPP Ascend Middle School

As a leader, I aspire to transform and cultivate the minds and bodies of our students by coaching them to strengthen their mental and physical muscles. Utilizing coaching that fosters independent thinking rooted in dedication, discipline, and consistency to become the best student athlete they can be. I aspire to create a community where students and families feel heard, seen, respected, and are in a life long partnership with our school community. I aspire to lead a team that is innovative and always prepared to find solutions that will help to change the trajectory of the lives that we serve. I aspire to maintain a staff that believes in second chances, motivates people- not just students- and brings out the lion or lioness inside of everyone. I aspire to be a leader, not by position of power, but by example. I see the fellowship being a stake of support and a compass to help me navigate my way on this journey. I see this fellowship helping me locate and identify the greatest leverageable partnerships and resources that will cultivate my abilities to support students and families. In addition, develop teachers, athletic coaches, and most importantly connect with the community and other stakeholders.

The person I consider a hero, role model, and inspiration is Dr. Mahalia A. Hines. Dr. Hines was my high school principal and my current mentor. Her love for people, motivational words, belief in second chances, and unwavering faith saved me. Without Dr. Hines in my life as a living role model, encourager, and guide, I’m not 100% certain I would’ve had the dedication and discipline to maintain a growth mindset. The growth mindset is not just conducive for myself but others as well, to continue up this mountain of educational leadership. It’s because of her that I believe the relationships we have with our students, families, community, and each other can blossom into anything we desire! I was once the stereo-typical student and statistics predicted my life’s outcome. Dr. Hines coached and mentor me. It is because of her servitude that I graduated from highschool and college. She indeed made me feel that I could conquer anything. I dedicated my life to educating and empowering young people because of the impact Dr. Hines had on me. I witnessed first hand the super-power that educators possess. Education determined my outcome! It was possible, because I was taught to independently think for myself. She gave me HOPE!

Yodit Weldu, High School Transition Advisor | KIPP Forward

What can I offer to the world? How can we make a change? I often ask myself these questions every day. As a leader, I aspire to become a better person by growing, developing my skills, taking advantage of all opportunities, and being an example. The McNair fellowship will maximize my strengths by influencing the youth through the resources provided. The program will give me the tools needed to help others and most of all, light the torch for the youth.

The first name that came to mind was George Washington Carver. A pioneer of his time, he was a brilliant and beautiful man who admired and valued life. Despite his traumatic upbringing, Mr. Carter was able to persevere, and most of all, inspire the world. Through his innovation and research, he was able to change the agricultural world. Mr. Carver was ahead of his time!

KIPP Chicago Alumni Association

Congratulations to our KIPP Chicago alumni!! KIPP Chicago was selected as one of the regions for the KIPP Foundation’s Regional Alumni Association, in order to establish and lead an Alumni Association here in Chicago. The KIPP Foundation will provide support to our regional KIPP Chicago Alumni Association, including funding, coaching, access to the national network of alumni, and an alumni network toolkit.

Our KIPP Chicago Alumni Association has already discussed working to establish a network of alumni to offer mentoring opportunities, professional networking, events, and more.

Special thanks to these 7 alumni who worked together to submit this application and create something amazing here in Chicago: Keith Davis, Paris Clark, Paradise Clark, Ta’Shai Washington, Michallé Fain, Amirah Hall, and Dontorrie Chatman.

KACP Principal, Jarell Lee Featured on Unpublic with Citizen Stewart

On January 7th, Jarell Lee, founding principal of KIPP Academy Chicago Primary, joined Citizen Stewart for a Facebook Live discussion. Jarell shared his story of overcoming barriers to educational success and how he is working to help other students do the same.

The post Cultivating Identity Development Practices appeared first on KIPP Chicago Public Schools.

We’re thrilled to continue our partnerships with Native Tongue Magazine, a free food magazine that promotes food literacy through tailored recipes, cooking techniques, and educational content. This past fall, they contributed free bags of groceries with recipe cards to families at two KIPP Chicago events, one on September 5th and another on October 21st. They also led a Wellness Wednesday Workshop for teachers, demonstrating a 15 minute, family friendly meal with lots of advice to get kids involved in the process!

December 21st Rush food giveaway

On the first day of Winter Break, we partnered Rush Hospital’s Office of Community Health Equity and Engagement to host a Holiday food giveaway at the KIPP Academy campus. 200 boxes were filled with fresh and shelf-stable foods for families to safely pick up.

The post Addressing Food Justice appeared first on KIPP Chicago Public Schools.

As we are all working from home, we sincerely miss the opportunities to gather in person for the sake of community, joy, and wellbeing! In striving to virtually hold space for connecting with others across the region, we’ve hosted 9 wellness workshops since the start of the school year. Workshops have included: yoga, mental health resources presentations, financial health presentations, watercolor, pasta making, family cooking class, paint-and-sip, and holiday hot cocoa bombs. Through partnerships with outside organizations and our own staff members, we’re grateful to the variety of people who presented these thoughtfully curated workshops!

Workshop Partner Spotlight

Yellow Vibrations is a therapist matchmaking platform founded by Christian Ziraldo. Her vision is to build, connect, and support the professional relationships necessary for mental wellness and joy, providing clients with the agency to make informed decisions and take control of their mental health.

Christian, in her own words:

Hi, I’m Christian, and I created Yellow Vibrations to provide a landing place for those seeking therapy and healing but are overwhelmed by the process. Don’t worry! It isn’t you. The tools we currently have to bring together therapists and clients are lacking. The beautiful, wonderful, fantastic part is that many people are becoming aware of the importance of healing past and generational traumas, working through the dark parts of ourselves, and finding ways to cope with our world. The challenging, sticky, frustrating part is- the systems in place to facilitate that healing is convoluted, confusing, and often inaccurate. This is where I would like to offer my help.

A few facts about me:

• I earned my dual master’s degree in Community and School Counseling from Wayne State University and my bachelor’s degree in Social Theory and Practice from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
• My heart and home is in Detroit, MI, but my current adventure has led me to Oakland, CA.
• My passion is helping others find their joy (and finding joy myself!). I love those deep, soul-soothing conversations you have with someone close to you, so I decided to make it my profession.
• In my free time, you can catch me dancing to Beyoncé, baking yummy treats, or spending time with my husband and kitten.

Financial goals and celebrations

Currently, approximately 45% of our team is actively and consistently engaged with Holberg Financial, one of our teacher wellness partners, for financial literacy goals. Since COVID, using the Holberg model for financial health, our team’s aggregate financial health score has increased from 42%-51%. Our staff uses this model when creating a budget, saving for a home, and planning for student loan payments.

The post Enhancing Teacher Wellbeing appeared first on KIPP Chicago Public Schools.

Woke Kindergarten 60 Second Text: Spot the Difference: This one in particular encourages kids to interrogate the differences between how Black Lives Matter protestors and Trump supporters are treated by the police, using photography as the medium to introduce them to these contrasts.

PBS Kids – resource for helping students talk about the news:

https://www.pbs.org/parents/thrive/helping-children-with-tragic-events-in-the-news

Let’s Talk About Race by Julius Lester

Reflection Questions:

• How do you think privilege and/or race might play into what is happening at the capital?
• Does your story begin when you are born? Why or Why not?
• Is skin color a part of your story?
• How does the color of your skin affect you?
• What is the important thing about your story?
• The author says “Race is a story.” What does he mean by this?

This resource has concrete tools and examples.

Here are two informative and timely EDWEEK articles that unpack the events from Wednesday for educators as well as provide additional tips on how to approach communication with students:

Caring for Students In the Wake of a Traumatic News Event by Evie Blad

Insurgency at the U.S. Capitol: A Dreaded, Real-Life Lesson Facing Teachers by Madeline Will & Stephen Sawchuk

The Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence created a free online course for pre-K through 12th grade educators called “Managing Emotions in Times of Uncertainty & Stress.”

Facinghistory.org has created a resource divided into four key sections: 1) creating a brave and safe space 2) sharing facts and information 3) holding student reflection space 4) providing strategies to students for how to follow the news.

Sara Ahmed, educator and author of Being The Change, created a lesson template/protocol to use with students for how to process all types of news.

Sharing resources from our Children’s Museum of Art and Social Justice

Check out our CMASJ lesson plans page here and new coloring book for download here or to purchase here!

The post Whole Child Review Resources and Articles appeared first on KIPP Chicago Public Schools.