community outreach – A National Service Initiative

From “My Child” to “Our Children”

I grew up with very little service involvement as a youth. I was taught to be kind and give when opportunity presented itself, but that was pretty much it. When my second child, Charlotte, arrived later in life, I wanted her to have opportunity to “give back” and come to understand the larger community familyContinue reading “From “My Child” to “Our Children””

American Youth Are Unique – Let’s Play to Their Strengths

We need to establish our American identity in our system of education. Our youth are Americans who want to participate in meaningful ways. They want to explore the world and connect with others, they want voice. American youth want to create meaningful change, and know they are capable. As older Americans, we may seek theirContinue reading “American Youth Are Unique – Let’s Play to Their Strengths”

We – the People – Are the Inspiration

If we gathered all the service projects we have created – and organized them by topic so we could see what we have, we would find overwhelming evidence that as a people, we are wonderfully equipped with capability. We already have so much of what we need. Beyond the project details, there is an incrediblyContinue reading “We – the People – Are the Inspiration”

Solution in Our Midst

My husband teaches language arts in our local middle school and he receives publications from NYSUT (New York State United Teachers). I was struck by the recent cover photo and the statistic: 1 in 4 children in New York live in poverty. When I think of poverty, the first thing that comes to mind isContinue reading “Solution in Our Midst”

We Can Start Now; We Don’t Need Permission

We can start now. We don’t need permission. There are no obstacles. We have everything we need: A unified service learning curriculum Schools nationwide Non-profits in every community Project originators Online communication Service learning is an established methodology for coordinating traditional academics with genuine, real life, current time, community needs. Bringing genuine community needs to theContinue reading “We Can Start Now; We Don’t Need Permission”

Youth Managing Community Needs

The K-12 national service initiative places our youth in the role of managing the overview of our community needs. Are youth capable of taking on this management role? Absolutely. Working with non-profit staff and teachers, youth can manage the overview of work and progress in specific areas. With a national projects checklist they can researchContinue reading “Youth Managing Community Needs”

Of the People, By the People, For the People

Americans have always been a forward thinking and innovative people. Our consideration of “the people,” which defined our uniqueness, can expand to include our children—those among us who remind us of purity of purpose—regenerating our potential as a people. A national K-12 service initiative makes sense to the average citizen, is immediately actionable, embraces existingContinue reading “Of the People, By the People, For the People”