In this second year of the Genius Project, our goal is to share some of the stories in process, before the culminating events. We are honored to listen in to the conversations and frustrations and challenges our seniors are experiencing, and we are honored to listen to them problem solve and seek help and overcome. This is a part of that process. First up, Emily Kvitek. --- Two weeks ago I showed up to work on a Saturday and I left full of hope. On that Saturday, one of our amazing Sage Creek seniors put on her Genius Project. Emily Kvitek is a part of our school’s Bio Medical pathway program and has a deep passion for allowing young girls to explore their interests in STEM. So, instead of lounging and getting lost on social media or relaxing at the beach everyday, Emily organized a STEM conference for girls in grades 5-8. She sent emails and made phone calls, developed a vision and organized an experience. Twelve local sponsors ranging from Thermo Scientific to ViaSat to La Costa Chiropractic jumped in to bring her idea to life. Thermo Scientific even sponsored her financially so that every girl left with a goody bag and and a shirt documenting their time together. This was, of course, ridiculously amazing for a high school senior to pull off. Organizing an event with this many details and contacts and moving parts is something someone does as a full-time job and/or with a team of 10 people. This was, 100%, all Emily. But while the organization and idea is impressive, what left a mark on me most that day was what she said in her introduction to the event. “When I was in 5th grade, I wanted to be a doctor. But there wasn’t an opportunity for me to volunteer or try that out because I was so young. I had no outlet. So my hope for my Genius Project, for you today, is that this is your outlet. Explore and ask questions.” Emily took an experience she felt and named it. She named how it’s hard to be excited about your passions and your future when you’re in elementary and middle school. While she provided them with the outlet, she also provided them with a model to follow. Emily’s not a doctor yet, but she has made intentional decisions since 5th grade to bring that dream to life and she’s still going. For 70 young girls to see someone who’s just a bit older than them, but still within reach, living out an idea she had when she was their age is hope. It’s hope running wild, shouting the endless possibilities that exist in each of the young girls even right now when they aren’t old enough to drive, let alone start their profession. What Emily’s presence and event allowed was for each dream in that room to matter. She connected her experience with them and said “Go!” The thing is, this story of Emily taking her experience, combining it with her heart and hard work, is not singular. This is a story that can be retold and refashioned to anyone. Each one of the students in our care is capable of seeing their heart and hard work come to life. And this is what brings me hope. -- Corrie
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Tomorrow night, an idea comes to its complete fruition. It was an idea started by two of us but has morphed into a collective and communal experience. Tomorrow night, we’re putting on a TED-style conference showcasing the work of our seniors, including eight seniors who will give individual TED Talks, and two seniors who will MC and run the whole shebang― to an audience of about 350 of their peers and community members. It’s kind of ridiculous to think about this all culminating― this idea that two classroom teachers had after being inspired by other classroom teachers. Two years ago, Shannon Alberts and I stumbled into an unconference (EdCamp San Diego), and, consequently, stumbled upon this idea. We knew, deep in our bones, that our students were special. We knew that they were capable of learning and growing far beyond the confinements of a traditional classroom experience. We knew that we were ready to shift our tried and true practices for something outside of the comfortable box. It’s been a challenging journey to take this thing from a scrolling lists of notes on a google doc to something 200+ students put into action. Any time you put your heart and soul into something, you open yourself up to setbacks and heart breaks. But, at the very same time, when you choose to put your heart and soul into something, you open yourself up to the opportunity to learn, grow, and experience in ways you never thought possible. We’ve felt them all as well, and we are so grateful. This idea, the Genius Project, culminating in a TED-style conference, was an idea Shannon and I had back when my two year old was still in the womb, and Danny, Shannon’s 1.5 year old, was still just a dream. Two years and two kids later, this idea is no longer our own, but our community’s. This thing, the Genius Project, belongs to the Sage Creek Leadership Team. They listened to our idea, asked follow-up questions, and set us off to test it out. This ideas belongs to the English Department, all of whom have supported this idea and its potential from the get-go, spending countless hours dreaming and researching and trying out and failing and picking themselves up and trying again. This idea belongs to the Sage Creek Staff as a whole. They encouraged students, covered classes, listened to pitches, and championed us when we were feeling in over-our-heads. This idea also belongs to the parents who jumped in as soon as we asked and helped us make this big idea come to life. I haven’t put on an event like this since my wedding nine years ago, but thanks to the meticulous, creative, and passionate parents in our community, we’re able to pull this off. Eddie, Liz, and Shannon McAndrews― we would be lost with you. And, more than anything, this project belongs to our students, and any part of this Genius Project thing that is a success is because of our students. They are the reason we do this, the reason we’ll keep fixing and revising to make it better. We knew they were special, but they have shattered any ceiling of expectation we had for them. Their passion and their willingness to be brave and vulnerable in sharing their story inspires me more than I can articulate. I am feeling the weight of anticipation. There will, undoubtedly, be about 15 things that go not as we had planned, but I also know and trust that for everything that goes slightly awry, there will be about 15 things that totally surprise me and make me tear up with pride. That last few months of this journal have been a bustling flurry of google docs and email exchanges, brainstorming meetings, and rehearsals. This final stretch has felt full-- brimming with anticipation of this date, May 18th, and what we all hoped and believed it could hold. At the heart of what I’m anticipating is this: We’ll shove open the doors of our campus so that the rest of the world can see the vibrant, unique, gifted, and passionate almost-adults who embody the spirit of Sage Creek. They are pioneers, and they are risk-takers. They are innovators, and they are creators. And, more than anything else, they are driven by their heart. After this event and all that led up to it, I know that without a shadow of a doubt, our community will see what is so true and so special about us: our students. I can’t wait. - Mrs. Myers and the best team a girl could ask for Welcome to our English Department Blog!
I’ve had visions of writing different aspects of our department’s experiences, our highs and our lows, showcasing the stories that mark who we are. But I keep waiting for the right time, for the idea to be perfect, which means I don’t even start. So I decided to just hit pause and think of what is happening today, this week, and start writing. Working on our team feels different. When I came to Sage Creek I had eight years of experience at three different schools. While each of those experiences were incredibly impactful and meaningful, they were often experiences I had mainly with my students and one or two partner teachers. There are myriad ways in which working at Sage is unique, but I wanted to put my finger on one of them and tell that story. So, here it is: The story of the Sage Creek English department and what makes us unique. --- It was August of 2014-- the second year our school was in existence. We sat in my new classroom at our combined desks and poured over the plan-- the plan to create a united department whose goal was to become better versions of our individual selves for our students. There were five of us who had a combined 37 years of experience. We sat together, each with our own previous context and experiences, our own strengths and strategies. And we decided to set those aside. Let me pause right here. Our goal was to take five different English teacher’s experiences and make a collaborative, unified team. If you’ve worked on a team of English teachers before, you know that we can be, well, stubborn. We love our literature and our knowledge of it, we love our students and our experiences with them, and it can be very, very difficult to merge ideas. Again, if you’ve worked on a team of English teachers, or any teacher for that matter, you know that I’m being delicate. You see, from the very first meeting, we had to practice what we practice on an annual, monthly, even daily basis: The humbling, challenging, and inspiring practice of working together towards a goal outside of our own personal pedagogy. Given that the majority of us had taught for awhile, we knew that coming together to create a syllabus would be challenging, but I don’t think we fully grasped the impact and power that first meeting had. We were, in essence, negotiating a contract. It was a contract for ourselves and for our future colleagues. Some items were written, and some were unwritten. While we deliberated over what a gradebook would look like without the traditional Tests/Quizzes/Projects categories in favor for a skills-based assessment system, we were essentially negotiating what it meant to set aside our ego. Because, as is true whenever creative minds merge, we were attached and comfortable to the things we had done before. It was familiar and, well, easier. But we discovered, while explaining and listening, pausing and clarifying, that really, what’s easiest for us is not always best for our students. Our group of five has turned into nine. The faces have changed a bit, but everyone embodies the same passion and drive the five of us had on that just-barely-still-summer afternoon day. We’ve revised and revamped the contracts, but the foundation stays the same. We are continually improving and growing, vividly aware of our shortcomings and how we want to do it better next trimester. But the reason we can do that at all, the reason we can know when to stick to a contract and when to renegotiate is because of the unifying concept we learned on that first day, the truth that unites us all, regardless of our personalities. It’s not a magic potion that covers all wounds and it’s not a catch-all that ensures everything we do goes off without a hitch. It’s embedded into our individual and collective nature: Our genuine and active desire to do what is best for our students. That’s our only true litmus test that every decision is funneled through; it’s the truth that causes us to think introspectively, opening ourselves up to new ways and new ideas. We do all this because our students give us hope. We believe they will become successful college students, employees, voters, mothers, and fathers. We are devoted to creating a space that allows average teenagers to become heroes- even geniuses. We are unwaveringly focused on the goal of urging this generation of students we’ve been gifted with to believe in who they are and then go be it, as best as they possibly can. Everything we do and believe individually and pedagogically comes second to what is in the best interest of our students. In short, we are a team. A team is always better than a solo experience. A team means you’re inspired, encouraged, and supported. When one person’s heart breaks for a particular student, we all feel it. When one person is feeling overwhelmed, we all jump in. When one person has a breakthrough moment with a student, we all celebrate. We share the good and the bad, trusting that because we’ve all signed this proverbial contract, because we all keep showing up and being our whole selves, we’re in it together. And so, going to work isn’t easy. But it is fulfilling, rewarding, empowering, and invigorating. I’ll take that contract any day of the week. - Corrie Myers |
AuthorHi! I'm Corrie Myers, English Department Chair at Sage Creek High School. The purpose of this blog is to share our story. We've learned a lot along the way and know that writing helps cement the learning experience for us. We never want to stop learning and growing, so this is a step in that direction. Thank you for reading! Archives
September 2017
CategoriesSage Creek High School is a comprehensive high school in Carlsbad, CA.
Click here for our school's website. |