#generationcitizen

So I rarely put pictures up of my students on social media, but these 6 really made me proud today. Today they took part of Generation Citizen’s Action Civics Day in which they had to present the work their classes had worked on this semester. 801 worked on Racial Inequality and the lack of funding in predominantly minority school districts. 802 worked on school bullying. 803 worked on homelessness in the Bronx. They created surveys, researched, and even called legislators to get their issues solved. It’s a shame that our school is closing because I really believed that they would have had success. We did not win any awards, but however we had fun and we even met Justina Valentine from Wildin Out when we walked in Times Square. #teacherproudmoment #thisiswhyiteach #wecanmakeadifference #civicsday2018 #generationcitizen (at New York City Bar Association)

Finishing up our takeover with a few project spotlights from @generationcitizen. Thanks for following along! . 1) Generation Citizen students at Willard Middle School in Berkeley advocated for the incorporation of a sexual assault awareness and prevention component in their district’s middle school health curriculum. At the organization's end of semester showcase, Civics Day, the class won the Collaboration & Diversity Award for clearly and compellingly articulating why their issue matters to them and matters to their community. . 2) Generation Citizen students at Gateway Middle School in San Francisco lobbied in support of a statewide bill that would provide more long-term supportive housing for the homeless in California. At the organization's end of semester showcase, Civics Day, the class won the Systematic Impact Award for providing logical and evidence-based reasoning to explain how their project goal addresses the systematic root cause(s) of their issue. . 3) Generation Citizen students at Gateway Middle School in San Francsico tackled local income inequality by lobbying for the city to require SF-based companies to offer more tech company internships and career programs for San Francisco youth. Students presented their work to local community members and elected officials at Generation Citizen's Civics Day. . Photos courtesy of @generationcitizen #EverydayBayArea #CatchLightEveryday #GenerationCitizen

Civics Day highlights (3/3): . Arlet Cardenas,14 years old, Fruitvale district of Oakland, Spring 2017 Student Changemaker Award Winner. "Our class decided that we needed to rally people in our community to put pressure on the Alameda County Sheriff to end cooperation with ICE. My group put together a petition that stated what was going on in the community. During the May first marches, we even went out in the street and talked to people, and got people that agreed that this problem had to be stopped to sign their names and addresses. While we were working on the petition, my other classmates were working on making letters and sending them to the Sheriff's Office. We hope that our petition and letters reach out to peoples and the Sheriff’s heart, so that we can all be on the same page when it comes to protecting people in our community. We don't know yet what will happen, but this semester taught me that if you see a problem going on in your city or community, you have to dosomething about it. Even if it feels hard or you’re aren’t sure what you will change, it’s better trying and getting the attention of people in government, rather than just standing by and watching these problems affect people." . Photos courtesy of @generationcitizen #EverydayBayArea #CatchLightEveryday #GenerationCitizen

Civics Day highlights (2/3): . Irena, 14, San Francisco, Fall 2016 Student Changemaker Award Winner. "I moved to this country with my parents from Armenia when I was 4 years old. I have lived in San Francisco and gone to public schools here since Kindergarten. For most of my life, I have been a very shy student and nervous to participate in my classes. I would turn bright red every time the teacher said my name in class, and even though I always had something to say, I never had the courage to raise my hand and say it.... Generation Citizen showed me that I have a voice no matter what color my skin is, what my gender is, or how old I am. With the help of Generation Citizen, I began developing leadership skills I never thought I had this year. Generation Citizen helped that shy girl that turned red every time the teacher said her name, who always had something to say but never felt brave enough to raise her hand and say it, into a leader: a leader who loved the feeling of having a plan, a leader who wants to make a change in the world, and a leader who knows how to fight for something she cares about.” . Photos courtesy of @generationcitizen #EverydayBayArea #CatchLightEveryday #GenerationCitizen

Civics Day is our students’ end-of-semester project showcase presents a unique opportunity for students to take pride in their projects, advocate for their issues to a local audience, and collect feedback on their plans from panels of judges. . The school day begins at 8:00am at Oakland Charter High School students, and since the majority of students commute from the Fruitvale or East Oakland, they often struggle with tardiness. Mr. Kubey’s class worked to solve some of the transportation issues students faced. They organized a meeting with a Transportation Planner at AC Transit, to give feedback on Oakland’s bus routes and where students would benefit from more frequent service. They also surveyed their classmates, to identify students who lived nearest to one another and design a school-wide carpool system. They also created a proposal for their school administration, which called for a less punitive tardy policy. Students presented their project to the community at Generation Citizen's 'Civics Day' and won the 'Overall Class Changemaker Award.’ . Photo courtesy of @generationcitizen #EverydayBayArea #CatchLightEveryday #GenerationCitizen

Maddie Johnson, 15 years old, San Francisco, Student Leadership Board Member for @generationcitizen . I was born and raised in San Francisco. I've never lived anywhere else and can't imagine it. My family has my mom, dad, and little brother. Both my parents work in city government at Tax and Treasury and the PUC. . The project that my 7th grade class worked on for GC was anonymously reporting bullying at school. This issue hit close to home because I knew how toxic the school environment was. I, like everyone, did not feel open to sharing with the counselor and other authority figures. The most exciting part of the GC program for me was the project work in teams in the final week. We were crunched to finish our projects before Civics Day. That week we accomplished so much and grew closer as a class. The end result of our project was a physical and e-dropbox for students to report something anonymously to our counselor. . GC has taught me how to take action in my community and not be complacent. Sometimes even the smallest changes can have great impact. You can't focus how small your steps forward are, just that you're headed in the right direction. As a person with the privilege of an amazing education and upbringing, I have the opportunity to help those less fortunate than me. It is my responsibility to stand up for injustices and problems I see in my community. Just because I'm young, doesn’t mean I don't have a voice. It is my job to advocate to the local government for changes I want to see. Photos courtesy of @generationcitizen #EverydayBayArea #CatchLightEveryday #GenerationCitizen

Lexie Tesch, 15 years old, Berkeley, Student Leadership Board Member for @generationcitizen . My name is Lexie Tesch, I am 15 years old, and am currently a Freshman at Berkeley High School. I grew up in Berkeley, California... In my household right now there is my Aunt Christine, who is a quadriplegic and my mom who takes care of her. . My Generation Citizen class worked on convincing Berkeley City Council to fund a year round youth homeless shelter, since the one in place was only open for half of the year. This issue was particularly personal for me because I was homeless for about 3 years, and if it wasn't for my family I would’ve needed to stay in that shelter, but where would I have gone during the time it was closed? This is what real youth had to go through, and we felt that we needed to fix it. . The most exciting part about GC for me was realizing that youth do have a voice that needs to be heard. GC taught me many skills along the lines of public speaking and advocating, but more importantly it taught me that what I have to say does matter, and that adults should care what we have to say because we are the future and we should be able to mold it into how we want it. . Being a part of Generation Citizen has affected my thinking toward my community in a positive way. I've learned to be an active community member. A way that I became an active community member is by joining the City of Berkeley's Youth Commission, and our duty as the Youth Commission is to serve the youth of Berkeley. I feel that these roles I play in different leadership groups give me a bunch of different, diverse skills to better me as a person and expand my view on social issues. I've learned a lot about democracy, leadership, politics, leaders, and more. This has benefitted me in many ways, and has inspired me to build a career in politics. Photos courtesy of @generationcitizen #EverydayBayArea #CatchLightEveryday #GenerationCitizen

Over the next couple of days, EDBA will be be profiling Generation Citizen, one of the many incredible nonprofits working to better our community. . Generation Citizen Bay Area strengthens our democracy by empowering young people to solve problems in their own Bay Area communities through an empowering action-civics course. Students focus on issues and topics that are relevant to their lives and employ critical-thinking and strategic decision-making skills to effect positive change in their communities. Generation Citizen’s goal is for every student to experience a “moment of empowerment” where they see firsthand the strength of their voice and commitment and recognize their responsibility to be an effective and engaged citizen. . We’d love it if you read through the captions to learn about the incredible ways that GC youth are having an impact on our community. Photos courtesy of @generationcitizen #EverydayBayArea #CatchLightEveryday #GenerationCitizen