Day by Day

Who are you?

2010-04-24T14:46:00.000-07:00

When doing a little spring cleaning I found a couple of folded up pieces of paper in my old computer bag:

Give Truth; Live Truth. Be Patient and Love. We all hurt and no one person can fully understand another. We all live together, but also we live by ourselves. Our minds must stay open. Open to the understanding that we are all different. And yet despite the differences we continue to need and to have desires that are just the same as the one who seems the most different of them all.

Who are you to say that your faith, that your beliefs, that your life is “the way”. I hope it is the way for you, but it is probably not the way for me. Is that not what makes this a beautiful world? Don’t judge me, I won’t judge you, but I will ask questions, because I want to know you. I want to know that gets you up in the morning. I want to know what gives you that sun on your face, cool breeze, content all over feeling. And I want you to know why I am the way I am.

Highlights of 2009...

2010-01-19T09:02:00.000-08:00

Ups and downs, highs and lows; 2009 was a year with plenty to remember.
Here are a few (well, maybe a lot) of my favorite moments:

2009 began in new orleans celebrating with aubs and carl

just a month later, tom and kels made a trip down to get a taste of the big easy

then it was goodbye 23 and hello to 24

march brought mardi gras 2009

and parades for days

a few extra days off sent me flying to seattle to see the nunley's

to play in the snow

and to have a SPUG reunion

back in NOLA, KJ made a stop on her way down to Florida

and we realized how scary it is to row by an 8 foot alligator in an unsteady little canoe

my students continued to challenge me, but i tried to focus on the positive

and visitors always made everything a little brighter

and in the middle of it all, I was accepted to graduate school

so, in the spring, we took every chance we got to enjoy the sunshine and culture that is new orleans:

at the pool

and sailing over lake ponchartrain

and by joining a 2nd line with the mardi gras indians

enjoying our sunday night family dinners at nirvana

and at the st patty's day parade

and even in the blazing heat of jazz fest

and then before I knew it, it was time to say goodbye:

to teach for america

to my favorite neighbors

and to the ladies of burdette

so I packed up and dad and I adventured across the country visiting friends and national parks along the way

and then I was home in the northwest, with family

and old friends all around

i was lucky enough to find out that it really takes a special guy to buy a plane ticket that leaves 12 hours later, just for a visit

grad school kept me on my toes with a summer filled with intense course work

followed by a celebration with the ladies, vegas style

then T & K took us back to the ranch in wisdom, montana

and to my first rodeo

and on plenty of horse-riding adventures

then I found myself back at SPU as an assistant coach of the SPU Gymnastics team

halloween was spent as a jazzercise instructor with mario and luigi

after a long three month countdown, I had a special date during jack's thanksgiving trip to the NW

then a trip back to New Orleans was necessary, to see my old students

and friends

and most importantly, to be with this guy - in new orleans, then adventuring up north to meet his family in Indiana

a trip down to oregon was filled with ugly christmas sweaters

and a cross-country skiing adventure with michelle and flynne

and finally, the year ended, just as it begun - celebrating with wonderful friends, Aubrie and Carl - this time in New Mexico at their wedding!

Lights and Songs.

2009-12-11T11:30:00.000-08:00

There is something about the sparkle of Christmas lights and the ring of Christmas carols that makes me sad. Well, maybe as my mom says, emotional. Yes, Emotional. Emotional in a way that I am so happy that I could cry because I was born into a family that overflows with love. Tears that recognize the luck I have had, the opportunities, the education. But it also makes me so sad that I could cry. There is something about this season that makes me acutely aware of our totally unfair and unjust world. It makes me want to do whatever it takes to maybe just make one little dent towards the good in the world – towards peace, towards equal opportunities, towards safety, and love, and acceptance. Yes, definitely acceptance – we need more of that.

these are the gifts that were under my tree last year:

the future

2009-09-04T12:29:00.000-07:00

Summer courses are over and I am more confused than ever about what the future holds. This time though I am not nervous or anxious – I am content. I do not need to have a vision of my life in ten years, five years, or even after this year. I think this contentment comes from two strong realizations. One, my life has never gone as I have planned it to. Where I though I would be and where I am, are distant places. Two, my life has worked out in amazing and surprising ways. I know I am incredibly blessed – I have been given opportunities and had experiences that have challenged my thinking, increased my faith, and brought clarity to the broad vision and purpose of my life. I don’t think I will ever be able to fully explain my personal experience as a student-athlete. I know that I cannot verbalize my years in New Orleans (although I’ve tried so many times) and how it has influenced me and my views in such a deep way. Now I add graduated school. Working closely with adults from a diverse background in athletics. 27 of us are now spread around the country – interning in all different areas, gaining practical experience and hopefully finding a niche in the wide open world. And another page turns…

Flyin' By...

2009-07-19T20:19:00.000-07:00

WOW - half way done with my summer term already! Its crazy how fast this is going and how much we are learning. I feel like I am learning about everything I ever wondered about being a collegiate athlete and about so many things that I never even thought about. I am really enjoying the professors and all of my classmates (well, most of them). Everyone has such a unique perspective and personality. They did such an excellent job creating diversity in our cohort - just graduated, professionals, coaches, future ADs, DI, DII, DII, married, kids, all ages from 22-35, collegiate athletes...The mix really makes it interesting.

A bunch of us spent 4th of July "camping"/sleeping in tents in some ones backyard (clearly, you can see the house in the picture).

Cliff Notes from Grad School: Week One

2009-06-29T17:01:00.001-07:00

- It’s a little cold in Seattle, I mean, maybe I was talking up summers in the Northwest a little too much, but seriously? In the 50’s at night and a high of 70 degrees – I am ready for a little something more.
- I have been riding my bike to school and each day seems to be a new adventure. I have some getting into shape to do – the 4.5 mile fairly flat ride should not make my legs as tired as they have beenJ As a hear “On your left” over and over I try to make excuses for myself – I don’t have a fancy bike or but I am carrying a 20 pound bag, but really I just need to dig in and get stronger. For now all I feel is the wind of the bikes flying by and the view of these old men with white hair and tan skin. Maybe by the end of the summer I will have as nice of calves as they do.
- On the way home on Tuesday a rat ran in front of my bike. I was less disturbed by the fact that a rat had actually just crossed the path in front of me and more distracted by the fact that this rat seemed to have a very kinked tail. Do rats play chicken with the bikes? And if they do, this one needs some practice.
- So far my all of the professors, directors, guest speakers, and fellow-students have been great. How inspiring and productive it can be to have such a diverse group of ages, backgrounds, and experiences come together with a common passion. NFL players, Olympic medalists, DI athletes, athletics directors, academic service advisors…AWESOME, but a bit intimidating.
- Now back to work – a paper to write then 5 articles and 7 chapters in my textbook to read, better start crossing something off that list.
- So, I wrote this originally entry on Friday, but because I don’t have internet at my place yet I never posted it. The thing is, now it is Monday morning and I have to pull back on my weather comments – this weekend was wonderful! The sun was out, clouds were gone, and the words “I love this place” continued to slip out.
- Friday night our IAL (intercollegiate athletic leadership) cohort had a happy hour then I went over to the Whalen’s for a nice family birthday for Tom. Saturday morning Carlo and I went rollerblading at Aliki, maybe the most beautiful place to view the city. The rest of the afternoon was spent reading and napping (maybe a little too much of the napping…) I met up with Carlo again at a hockey BBQ and was introduced to a bunch of the guys he plays with – good and fun people. After that I went to see the Hangover with Tom, Cory, and Zach. Sunday I woke up early, wrote my paper, went to church, met with my new prof, did some reading, talked to friends, and made some pizzas that I ate with Linda (my mama housemate) and Jessie (a new friend from IAL). The point is, it was a great weekend…
- Week Two, accounting – now this will be interesting.

Questioning Love and Hate.

2009-06-04T13:40:00.000-07:00

How do I teach love? Do you love because you have been loved? Do you hate because that is what you know? If you know both hate and love, which will prevail? And why do hate-filled words and actions show easiest to those you love the most? What is the magic recipe for those kids who do know so much hate, but break through the cycle using their hurt as motivation to spread love and joy and encouragement? Do my students know how much love I have for them? Do they know how much it breaks my heart when they say such ugly things to each other? How can I ever know? How can I be a model of love, unconditionally? Just as I wish the words would be carefully spoken from student to student, I must be careful to speak only with love. For when the patients dwindles and the temper heats up my words fill quickly with hate just the same. I bite my tongue and change my tone. I forget my ego and remember all we can accomplish comes in baby steps. I speak to the love I have and the love that will carry me though. And even when chaos muffles my words I will keep speaking because that is simply the only way anyone can ever hear me.

“If you mess up, don’t stop dancing”

2009-06-03T07:47:00.000-07:00

I am listening to the chattering and giggling of hundreds of little girls and a few wonderfully brave boys. From age 5 to 18, the kids are smiling. They are happy and nervous - all starting to feel the butterflies in their stomachs. I hear no cursing, I see no pushing, I am filled with joy. Brianna peeks back to make sure I am still here. A quick wink and smile comforts her fears. I wave to some of the other kids’ mom’s across the auditorium and hear a tiny dancer ask Brianna if she is adopted. Maybe not, but my pride for my little girl is beaming as bright as all the other moms. She now knows what it feels like to truly dedicate her self to something. She did not get a prize, money or candy, but the smile that she can’t hold in as she dances across the stage lets me know that this is far better than all that. She gets it.

Our Fears.

2009-05-18T19:37:00.001-07:00

I want my students to see how far they have come throughout the year. I want my students to be respectful to me, but more importantly to eachother. I want my classroom to be safe. I am reflecting upon the vision I created for my classroom and it does mot mirror the reality. Instead, these days are becoming more and more frustrating. They are fighting. They are talking. They are doing what they want, when they want. I request something as simple as sitting quietly and half of the class could care less that any words came out of my mouth at all. They will respond when I yell, as many of the other teachers who are facing the same end of the year struggle have resorted to. But I refuse. I have finally come to see that while it may be fulfilling in that very moment, in the long run it does nothing, but swiftly break down the respect that took so long to build up. I always regret it. I don't know what to do. I don't know what to think. Frustration is high and productivity has hit an all time low. How can I be strong so that my students will want to finish up the year doing whatever they can to prepare themselves for 4th grade? How can I give them that final push to take pride in themselves and what they are creating? I wish they could understand how much I care for them. I try to tell them, but I don't think they understand. I love them by pushing them to be their best. I love them by making them read everyday. I love them by forcing them to face the consequences when they make bad choices. Unfortunatly, in their minds these statements of love are actually acts of hatred. My heat breaks. I don't want to count away the days because I want each of them to be worth something. I have worked too hard to end this on such a bad note. As I write, I am beginning to realize this is all a self-centered battle. I am afraid to be finished. I am afraid to leave here feeling as though I have failed.

Holding on to what is good:

Where I am.

2009-05-03T15:30:00.000-07:00

I have lived in a bubble my entire life. I never realized it before,
and now that I am out, I hope I never go back. It's much harder
outside the bubble. Its raw, it is rough. It is truth. I am a better
person outside the bubble. I understand the world and the density
of the problems we face a little better. I am aware of different
cultures, different ideas and different lifestyles. I am positive that
most things are neither black nor white, but gray. And no matter
how frustrated and fatigued I get, I have to thank God for guiding
me here, outside the bubble. This is where I belong.

Words.

2009-04-27T19:42:00.000-07:00

Words. I am tough with sticks and stones,
but when it comes to words I break. We don't
think enough about choosing our words, they
fly from our mouths like fire from a dragon.
Hurtful words. Damaging words. Words that
will be remembered far longer than the
uplifting words. They break hearts and ruin
confidence. We should choose the loving
words, the simple encouragement - treating
each other with respect. Or silence, the gift
of knowing when to hold our words in.

Down on the Bayou.

2009-04-13T12:57:00.000-07:00

We pulled up to the “Bayou Barn” and the gravel parking lot was full. Cars parked in all the parking spots plus all the grassy areas around. “This many people are canoeing?” I wondered if there would be any canoes left for us to rent. But then I noticed that the people seemed to be a little too dressed up for a day canoeing in the swamps. “Is that woman wearing a wedding dress?” KJ questioned. Sure enough, these people were not at the Bayou Barn for canoeing, but for a wedding – Louisiana style.

After awkwardly walking around the building in search of a front office we got back in the car. We were about ready to leave when we spotted a self-conscious teenager hanging his head as he fumbled around with the canoes on the rack. We got out of the car and sure enough it was his first day as an employee of the Bayou Barn. He led us right through the wedding reception, past the keg, excused our way by the boogying bridesmaids and made it into the office where Ms. Linda was there to help us out. Well, maybe I shouldn’t call it ‘help’. I asked her if we would see alligators, she said, “Oh, yeah, bay-bay, they be all out in that swamp.” I was satisfied. She asked KJ and I to sign on the line. She took our money, held my ID, and handed us a map that looked like a blurry ink splatter with sharpie arrows on it because it had been copied so many times. Then she turned and said, “Have fun.” There was no, “Have you ever been in a canoe before?” or “Don’t stand up in the boat” or “This is what you should do if you get bitten by a venomous Water Moccasin.” Nor did she advise us not to feed the wildlife, or pick the flowers, or go for a swim. She didn’t tell us that the swamp would be covered in plants that are very hard to row through or even a time that we should be back.

We walked over to the canoe, sat down, the awkward teen handed us some life jackets that were made in 1971 and would surely sink to the bottom of the swamp. Then he pushed us into the swamp. Moments later as we tried to get some rhythm my heart started to pound. I finally realized that while it was super exciting to have our freedom, I was not prepared to have an alligator swim passed our little canoe. Eventually we both got more comfortable or maybe just distracted by the fact that we were rowing through thick swamp plants that made it seem like we were actually on land. Two hours of that and we were worn out.

It was a beautiful day and we had such an amazing time. We saw some snakes, lots of frogs, but were disappointed that the only gators we did see were far off swimming ahead of us. We headed back the way we came to check out the other end of the swamp. To get there we had to pass by the Bayou Barn and the reception had really gotten started by then. The music was blaring and all we could do was laugh. So just about 50 yards later we really get stuck in the plants. We rowed and rowed until we finally broke loose and picked up some speed through the water. Just then there was a splash just a few feet in front of the boat and KJ says, “Uh, we really shouldn’t run into this one.” I thought she was talking about the little gator that was swimming away from us, but when she very sternly said “GET OUT YOUR CAMERA”, I took a second look. About 15 feet off to the left side of the boat was the largest alligator I have ever seen taking a nap on a small island. I felt about the same as last summer when we crossed paths with a huge grizzly bear in Glacier National Park. The gator was probably about 200 pounds, significantly smaller than the grizzly, but this time we were drifting towards the beast instead of backing away. The alligator had it’s inner eye lids closed and what seemed like a million very sharp teeth glistening in the sun. The gator was so still that KJ asked, “Is that real”. “Why would there be a fake gator out here?” I questioned. Our eyes never left that powerful animal as we continued to drift closer. Suddenly, in a flash the brute opened its eyes and dove into the water disappearing under the duckweed. Now this was the point that said my prayers. We had no idea where it went.

I had my ore sticking straight into the air, legs crossed, arms wrapped around my body in attempt to stay as far as possible away from the edges of that rickety old canoe. I thought I was going to pee in my pants. We spent a minute silently looking around in the water hoping for some sign that the gator was gone. Finally, when our heart rates evened out we finished up our adventure. And what an adventure it turned out to be. Anyone up for a trip to the bayou?

2009-04-05T19:03:00.000-07:00

I recieved a new girl in my class who came from Lake Havasu City about 3 weeks ago. After a week of confusion because she has the same name as another girl in my class, I have given her the nickname Arizona - she even writes it on all of her papers now. So Arizona's mom moved her 6 children here from Lake Havasu because her fiance got a job here that pays well enough so that she will not have to work and can spend more time with her kids. The thing is, she had no idea of the state of public education in NO. Can you imagine...moving your family into the lowest achieving school district in the country and having no idea? The mom came in to talk to me after school during the first week and after about two minutes the tears were flowing - from her eyes and mine. I work here, so I should support this school, right? But how can I look at this woman and tell her it is going to be all right? That her children will be safe and challenged academically? I am here everyday, I know what its like. So I told her the truth. I told her needs to get her kids into one of the charter schools that is already seeing great progress. We researched the highest achieving schools and are hoping that all six of her kids will be placed for next fall. For now, I do my part pushing forward with adorable Arizona and the rest of my class.

The Happy List

2009-04-03T20:23:00.000-07:00

This is a list that The Cooneystavan's (Kels, KJ, Aubs and I) created through many e-mails over last year. There are so many things to be happy about and its good to remind ourselves everyday:)

THINGS THAT MAKE THE COONEYSTAVAN’S HAPPY:
1. Peanut Butter (after its all stirred up)
2. The smell of home baked bread and then eating it of course.
3. The tired feeling after you exercise really hard where your muscles seem to make complaining sounds if you try to move and then you sleep really, really well.
4. Bunny Cakes (I found our Easter cake in my pile of pictures)
5. My hand mask with Burt’s Bees gloves that have bees on them and when I wore them out of my room my roommates thought I was crazy (nothing new, miss you guys)
6. You three.
7. Dinners with Tom.
8. Movie dates with Carl over the phone.
9. Long walks on beautiful Seattle days.
10. Blueberry muffins.
11. Good mail.
2. E-mails like this one...
13. Mardi Gras parades.
14. Colorful sunrises.
15. Hard work-outs.
16. BBQing.
17. Sporting events.
18. Margaritas.
19. Hot yoga.
20. Cuddling.
21. Back massages.
22. Dancing.
23. The number 23, and Michael Jordan.
24. God.
25. Inspirational Quotes: "Don't ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive." - Howard Thurman
26. When it looks really warm outside, but its really only 9 degrees!
27. Long Showers.
28. Pets like Blanca who live to be 14 years old.
29. My students telling me who is "going" with who during our lunch party.
30. Sunshine and blue sky in January.
31. Hot Cocoa.
32. In some strange way... the way that life never goes the way you plan it to.
33. Snow/Montana's Beauty/Sunshine all illuminating at the same time.
34. Seattle T-shirt Days.
35. My Scrapbooks.
36. Cider Beer.
37. Those once in a while days that you take a look at your life and realize how much you are loved.
38. When Tom comes to visit, I will be an even happier girl when he is here for good!
39. June 21, 2008.
40. Packages from my favorite people (i.e. scarf/hat from KJ, our keep in touch book- from Sar)
41. Days that I feel I have control of my life.
42. Sweets.
43. Sweats.
44. My bed and a goodnights sleep.
45. My Tommorow book that KJ gave me.
46. Pictures .
47. When I hear that all my closest friends are super happy.
48. Planting seeds and watching them grow.
49. Snowbows.
50. Cheese.
51. The smile that comes to my face when I think of the three of you.
52. Looking at old pictures and remember how much fun we always have!
53. BIRTHDAYS!
54. Making dinner with friends
55. Pregnant bellies (did you all hear that Jaynie and Earl are pregnant?)
56. The first sign that spring is coming... the crocus.
57. Crazy letters from all of my little pen-pals!
58. Dinner dates with friends.
59. Tomato basil soup and bread from Metropolitan Market.
60. Chocolate Zucchini Bread (its even good after 2 weeks in the mail, hahah!)
61. Happy Feet!
62. Mugs with special pictures all over them.
63. Competing bars with my parents there to see it.
64. Easter with family
65. 4.0 gpa for winter quarter (better be happy about this one while I can, cause I know it's only going to get harder)
66. Acceptance into the OT grad program at UNM.
67. The arrival of spring and reading in the sunshine!!!!
68. The amazing gift of Easter.
69. Floppy eared dogs with their heads out of the car window.
70. Homemade cookies warm out of the oven (with a cold glass of milk of course).
71. Little adorable turtles (check out the attached picture - he was walking down the sidewalk at school!)
72. Dinners at Station 20.
73. Trips to visit good friends.
74. Long bike rides.
75. Wonderful spring days filled with friend time, laughter, and not having to accomplish much.
76. Mercy and forgiveness.
77. Hot tubs and the refreshing feeling of jumping into a pool afterwards!
78. A good nights sleep.
79. My chocolate puppy, "Rudy".
80. Happy Hour.
81. All Saints.
82. Watching boats on a sunny day.
83. Seeing your friends in the newspaper and getting the recognition they deserve.
84. Jazz Fest - a day in the sunshine with good food and great music!
85. The anticipation of trips and visits from good friends.
86. Running in the rain.
87. Knowing that two of you have found the love's of your life.
88. My cowgirl boots
89. Triathlons (we should really all train and do one sometime. We can make it a reunion and go somewhere fun!)
90. Enjoying a cooling rain from the porch.
91. Invitations to spend time with quality people you do not yet know well.
92. Getting engaged to my best friend on our favorite mountaintop!
93. Organizing and preparing for new beginnings.
94. Waking in my bed with one lab at head and the other curled at my feet.
95. Good health and fitness, especially after losing all my strength in the hospital for the past 5 days with a nasty intestinal infection that was poisoning my body.
96. Helping, loving, motivating, and caring.
97. Getting all dressed up for a night on the town.
98. Coffee dates
99. Hot air balloons floating in blue sky--And watching one be blown up on campus for an audience of children with special needs/ terminal illness from our children's hospital (It gave me goose bumps to see their excitement)
100. YOU!

I miss these days!

It's Official...

2009-03-15T19:30:00.000-07:00

I am moving back to Seattle! I will begin graduate school in June at the University of Washington. I will be working towards a Masters in Education in Intercollegiate Athletic Leadership. I am so pumped:) So many adventures ahead...

I took this picture from Alki Beach...I couldn't resist moving back to a place like this!

I took this photo off the internet. This is the UW football stadium. Maybe the football players are too amazed by the beautiful view to concentrate on their game. Don't worry, I'll get them into shape for next year!

Too funny.

2009-03-07T18:11:00.000-08:00

Malik: Miss Sullivan, all the girls keep touching me.

Sullivan: Thats beacuse they all love you Malik.

Malik: But Miss Sullivan [puts his arm around me] I don't like them like that - I only like YOU like that.

2009-03-06T17:39:00.000-08:00

Mardi Gras is so amazing because it can be whatever you make of it. Its probably not quite like you imagine - definitely not all drunken chaos. Although, if that's what you want, I know where you can find it;) We tried to mix it up and check out all the sights this year. Here are some of the best moments:

The first parade of the season, Krewe de Vieux, and our incredibly large beads!

Sporting our handmade Tu Tus on the roof of Willy's school. A great view of the Endymion Parade!

Willy and I took the little neighbor girls to Bacchus. This darling girl spends so much time hanging out with me that she calls me mama.

Courtney's friend from UVA and I right in front of my favorite, Trombone Shorty!

After Jazz Sunday at church we made our way to Magazine Street to catch Thoth

The need for beads is hard to explain, but we got our fill and afterwards we really just needed a nap!

With Courtney, my beautiful little sprite, at the Zulu parade, nice and early on Fat Tuesday.

It's a record..

2009-02-08T16:49:00.000-08:00

We set a record at school this week, and not in a good way. I think all can agree that this past week was officially the worst week ever. Let me just name 5 incidents that happened out in New Orleans East this week...
1. I got punched in the face.
(You may think that is enough to make it the worst, but there is so much more)
2. A student was talking about this teacher's mama so in turn the teacher yelled some comments about the sexual favors that she has been performing on another student in the class.
3. A student started a garbage can on fire.
4. A teacher had a minor heart attack.
5. A paraprofessional was arrested for fraud, drugs, and a couple other things...

In the midst of all of the chaos I tried hard to focus on all the little successes and funny things that happened each day. This conversation really made me laugh at the end of a long day:

Student: Oh, White Jesus!
Teacher: What?!?! What and why are you saying that?
Student: Oh, Miss Sullivan you never seen First Sunday?
Teacher: Nope
Student: Oh, White Jesus! They say that in that movie, its so funny.
Teacher: {insert confused look}
Student: Have you seen Lil' Man?
Teacher: No
Student: Miss Sullivan you been in Oregon too long.
Student 2: Oregon don't got nothin' on us.

P.S. We went to the first Mardi Gras parade of the season last night and I got some beads as big Christmas ornaments:)

Every once and awhile...

2009-01-24T17:19:00.000-08:00

Every once and awhile something happens that reminds me that I am doing something in my classroom. I gave my students an assignment to write a letter to someone who is a role model to them. They had to thank that person and let them know why they admire them. Here are a couple letters that some of my little girls wrote to me:

Dear Miss Sullivan,
I really want to thank-you for makeing me a better read and learner. You are my role model. Miss Sullivan. I admire you because you are a great teacher. I want to be a teacher now. I admire how you help everyone and you try to be good and you try to get everyone to work. Yes again thank-you and that is why you are my role model. That is why I admire you!! Good-bye.

Dear Miss Sullivan,
Thank you for being my teacher. You give me homework. You give me a lot of homework. I admire you how you teach me. Thank you for helping me.

Dear Miss Sullivan,
Thank you Miss Sullivan for teaching me. Miss Sullivan you are a really good at teaching me. Miss Sullivan you are a nice woman and a gentle woman. Again, thank-you so much Miss Sullivan for teaching me. I love you Miss Sullivan.

My Life Lately

2009-01-20T09:19:00.000-08:00

A quick list of the best things that have happened in my life in the past couple of months...

Barack Obama is officially the 44th president

Kelsey, Tom, and Zach all came to visit me in New Orleans

Aubrie and Carl came to ring in the New Year

I spent Christmas in the "40 year storm" in the Northwest

I turned in my applications to grad school in Athletic Leadership to UT Austin, UW, Northwestern, and Temple

I had an amazing trip to Fort Collins to spend Thanksgiving with KJ

This list could go on....

Life is good, I am loving New Orleans and my friends here. My job is just as stressful as ever, but I am doing a better job of separating it from my life. On top of all of the amazing visitors and trips I have already had, I still have so much to look forward to. I am happy:)

Dear Mr. President

2009-01-20T09:08:00.000-08:00

These are the letters my students wrote to Barack Obama to encourage him, make a request of him, and even give him some advice:

Dear Barack Obama,
When you become president I hope that you work hard. When you change the world I hope that you change Iraq so that no one will get hurt. I think you are a good parent and that you will be a helpful president.
From,
K.H

Dear President Obama,
My advice to you is to do good and stop the war. When you are the president could you please take care of my city, New Orleans? You are good and I am so happy that you are the president.
Sincerely,
R.W.

Dear Barack Obama,
You are lucky to be our president and we are lucky you are our president. Please, please remember to help poor people. I want to encourage you by saying you are really great and a good leader.
Respectfully,
F.B.

Dear Mr. President,
My advice to you is you should give the poor people food. I hope you will be good to people. I am happy that you are the first black president!
From,
A.A.

Dear Barack,
My advice to you is to let the toys be cheap. When you are the president could you please not mess this up? I want to encourage you by being a good boy. I am so glad that you are our president.
Sincerely,
T.R.

Dear Barack Obama,
When you become president you should wish that the 3rd grade will pass the iLEAP. Wish us good luck, please. And please can you help me get all the people that smoke to quit? You make me want to be a president when I grow up!
Sincerely,
J.W.

Dear President Obama,
First of all I want to start with a congratulations for being the president of the United States. When you become president will you please take good care of the white house and take care of your wife and kids. Listen Mr. Obama, I want you to take care of the country as a good president. Barack Obama, please break up all the wars and bring them together as a big family. One more thing, I think you will make a perfect president for the country.
Sincerely,
G.P.

Dear Obama,
My advice to you is to put computers for all the student in each classroom. When you are the president could you please give poor people stuff on the holidays? I think that you are a role model to people. I know you are a role model to me!
Your Friend,
M.G.

Dear Barack Obama,
When you become president I wish you will do the right thing. When you are president could you remember my name, please? My name is M.B. I am proud that you are the first black president.
Love,
M.B

Dear Mr. President,
My advice to you is to please take care of the poor. Maybe you can invite me to the white house and we can go feed the poor and we can also give the children toys. When you are the president could you please come to my house. I really want to meet you and your family. I think you are the man. I read your book and it was great. I love seeing your face. Your face has hopes and dreams. Make those dreams come true.
Best Wishes,
J.C

Dear President,
Hello, my advice to you is to be safe and watch out for cars. Please remember to take care of your family. I think you are a great father.
Love,
L.F.

Dear Barack,
My advice to you is to help the poor people. Barack you are a man who has a lot of money. Please remember to bring some money for the poor people. I am happy because we got a black president.
Love,
P.J.

Dear Pres,
How are you doing in the White House? I am glad that you are the president. I hope you are not like the old president. I hope you are ten times better than him.
Respectfully,
T.C.

Dear Mr. President,
When you become president can you make Louisiana a good place to live in, please? Please remember the homeless people. I think you are going to be a good president. I am so proud that you are going to be the next president.
Love,
J.J.

Dear Mr. President,
Words cannot express the feelings of pride and optimism that are exploding inside of me. This is a new day and our country is ready for change. You symbolize the possibility for change for me and so many Americans.
I am so excited that my students have you as an incredible role model. You have worked through adversity to ensure that the right thing is done. You are proof to us that nothing can stop us from having big dreams.
I urge you to stay strong, continue to root yourself in morality and work hard to accomplish the things you have promised to us. We are counting on the change you speak as we strive to encourage, support and cheer for you along the way.

God bless you Barack Obama.

With Great Respect,
Miss Sullivan

NOPD

2008-11-09T16:54:00.000-08:00

When I first moved to New Orleans I heard from so many people that the cops in New Orleans were generally not the best. I have tried and continue to try to be open-minded. I know that there are many great cops working for justice in this city, but I have just continue to be let down by them. They live here…they should know how to communicate with people, maybe they have lost hope for this lost city. Here are a few examples of my disappointment…

Last year our house was broken into. My roommates lost their computers, a DVD player, and a digital camera. I was lucky – they didn’t even go into my room, but it still felt terrible. We called the police, Court and I decided to stay outside in our cars because didn’t feel comfortable going inside of our house in the dark. We waited, and waited, and waited. Eventually we couldn’t wait any longer – our friends came over and checked the house out for us. After securing all the doors and windows we went inside. We waited for three more hours. The police came, didn’t seem to have any interest in our problems, left and we never heard anything again.

One of my sweetest and quietest students told me in the middle of our grammar lesson that her mama was taken to jail. When the other students at her group looked up in surprise of her blunt comment she said in an embarrassed tone that they weren’t supposed to hear her. That she only wanted to tell me. After we agreed that we were all great at keeping secrets she seemed alright. I talked to her more in the afternoon. She told me that they busted in the door because her mom didn’t want to let them in. They shined lights in her face and put her handcuffs. “They talked to her mean, they wouldn’t let her put pants on, they took her in her nightgown.” One of her sisters tried to stop the cops and they threw her down too. All while their father jumped out the back window. She told me they were after her dad because he sells drugs. The kids somehow finished getting ready for school and made it on time for breakfast – she if she didn’t say anything, I don’t think I would have ever found out. When I hear these things (much to often) my heart breaks. Especially when it’s the sweet little kids, you just want to take them home with you. My reaction was at first anger towards her parents. How could that father leave his wife and children to deal with the cops? It is so frustrating that the dad is selling drugs…but what are the alternatives? A $6.15 minimum wage job in this broken economy? He isn’t on drugs himself, he is trying to provide for his family, he is not abusive, he is actually there – that is probably the most impressive part. I don’t know the answer, but I do know that there is absolutely no reason for the cops to put this mother and her young children through such a dramatic scene. This isn’t NYPD Blue, these are real kids who are going to have this image of their mom on the ground in her nightgown, handcuffed for the rest of their life.

It was a beautiful Saturday morning and I decide to go on a short run around the neighborhood. I went a different way than normal to check out another part of our neighborhood. I knew that it was not as nice of an area, but it was 11am, daylight, and kids and families were out enjoying the sunshine. I was running in the middle of the street, aware of my surroundings as I have learned to be in all areas of this city or any city for that matter. A cop pulled up next to me and I said Good Morning. He replied, “Do you know where you are?” I had no good response at the moment, so I just said “Yes, thank-you, I am being safe.” Both cops looked at my like I was crazy and continued on their way. I was confused. Thankful, I guess, that they were looking out for me, mad that they weren’t actually doing anything productive. My thoughts were interrupted by a few kids voices, “What did they ask you?” “Oh, they just said Good Morning.” What was I supposed to say? They were worried about my safety outside of your house. They think this is an unsafe neighborhood. They didn’t ask the kids if they knew where they were. They didn’t seem worried about their safety. I ended up running around the block about three times with the group of kids. We passed the football, they showed me how to use their long board, I let them listen to my iPod. I wished I would have had a smarter comment for the cops. Yes, I do know exactly where I am. This is my neighborhood, these are my kids.

Walking up to the office on Friday evening I saw a cop car pulled up I the parking lot. I guessed that some students were not picked up and the police were called to locate the parents. As I walked in I saw my principal, vice-principal, and secretary. Standing up by the counter were two cops with their shiny badges and chests puffed up. In the corner sat two little boys(8 and 6 years old) heads hanging down, ashamed. The adults were talking as if the students were not in the room – as if they didn’t already feel unwanted. I walked in during the middle of the conversation and tried to mind my own business – signing out and picking up papers from my box. This is what I heard.
“Do you have the paperwork to file a case?”
“Ma’am, we are cops – we file criminal cases.”
“Their mom came at 3pm and decided to leave without them.”
“Like I said, we file criminal cases.”
“And where are the kids supposed to go?”
“You will have to wait for someone to pick them up.”
“Sir, we HAVE been waiting.”
“Its not that long to wait.”
‘It is 5pm and we get off work at 3:15.”
“Well we can’t do anything with them its not like we are babysitters.”
“And neither are we, this is a school not a daycare.”
“Well you are closer than we are.”

“BUHHH” That was my reaction from the corner. I couldn’t contain it and I don’t have any idea how the leadership staff at my school kept their cool. What do these guys do? They are pretty into themselves, I could tell that just from their body language. If they only work with “criminal offenses” they better start working a little harder because this city needs some help. And do they have any idea that this is when it starts. Give these kids some hope, give them some love so that in ten years you aren’t hauling them off to jail. Stop it where you can. Care about your job, care about your city’s future, treat people with respect. Saying ma’am certainly doesn’t cover up anything. And since when is it not a crime to come to school to pick up your kids and decide you don’t want to take them home?

Something needs to change...

2008-11-08T13:28:00.000-08:00

Barack Obama is the President of the United States of America. It is finally really sinking in. After a day of screaming GEAUXBAMA and BARACK THE VOTE, my friends and I sat down to watch the election. When the results were called I was silent. I had nothing to say. There was hooting and hollering on the porch, phone calls, and I just sat there. Tears rolled down my cheeks. Barack Obama. The first black president of the United States of America. It was a victory for our country, for civil rights, for my students, for my community. How blessed I am to witness such an event.

I believe in him and I believe that he will bring the change that he promises. Everyone has a right to believe what they want. I just hope that now that the election is come to a close, that everyone can support him and the decision that our country has made. I pray that the divisions created by the drama of this election can fall and that we can come together with great pride for our country and for our future. Our country needs change, no one can argue with that. I am excited to see how we will move forward, conquering adversity along the way.

I was brought to tears again when our school received a letter from the president elect. It arrived on November 5th to a teacher whose students had written him letters a few months ago. It was a beautiful letter. Words of encouragement of belief and of high expectations - the things I try to share with my students everyday – but this time from Barack Obama. I am going to get a copy of it and read it to my students every week – it’s a good reminder of why I am here.

“If you are walking down the right path and you're willing to keep walking, eventually you will make progress.” – Barack Obama

Much better than a devil...

2008-10-25T06:46:00.000-07:00

My students have been writing Halloween stories, this was one of my favorites;)

I was trick-or-treating when suddenly my teacher came out like an angel. She was pretty and the boys came on her.
I said, “Miss Sullivan, why are you dressed up like an Angel?”
“Because the class said I should be an angel.”
“That’s cute.”
Then my sister came to me and said, “Let’s go, we have to go home.”
My teacher told us it was funny.
She came at my door and said, “Trick-or Treat, I’m Jalen’s teacher.”
Then my mom said, “Come in and play Wii with us.”
She said, “Wow, you have Wii?”
“Yes we do!”
We had fun, then everybody went home.
THE END

Monday, Monday...

2008-10-20T18:27:00.000-07:00

"Miss Sullivan you can't dress up like a devil because you already are the devil"

What a great start to the week...

TURK-WASH

2008-10-07T19:29:00.000-07:00

Last week my students laughed in my face, not in a bad way. I was laughing too. I was thinking, “Are they serious?” They were thinking that I had gone mad – totally crazy. Right now, I can’t even remember why, but we were talking about colors. One student repeated a word about three times and no matter how hard I tried I could not understand her. Finally, after about the fifth try and some explaining from her I figured it out, “Oh, the color you mean is turquoise”. This is when the laughing began. The sweet little girl giggled a little as she responded, “No, Miss Sullivan, turk-wash”.
“Turk-WASH?”
“Yeah Miss Sullivan, turk-wash, like the color of your shirt.”
“I think you mean turquoise”
More laughter.
I could hear a few students mimicking me, “turk-coy-z?” “turrkwoys?”. As I repeated, “Turk-wash?”
Eventually, we were all laughing. The dilemma wasn’t solved, it was better left just as it was.

What not to wear.

2008-09-11T19:08:00.000-07:00

Never ever wear a dress when tropical storm force winds are in the forecast. I pulled a Marilyn Monroe….a much less sexy was more awkward Marilyn Monroe that is. Walking across campus my dress blew up and seriously covered my face. I felt the breeze on my buns. Luckily my dress has a belt at the waist or it might have flown right off. I don’t know what I would have done if my students were around, I am pretty sure for the rest of the year they would only be able to imagine me in my underwear.

Back in NOLA.

2008-09-06T11:43:00.000-07:00

Courtney and I got up early Friday morning to begin our trek back home. It was a nice and fast drive, we were both very happy to be back and see for our own eyes that everything was really okay. When we got back our power was still out, our house roasting and our refrigerator smelling. Other than that it was just how we left it. I put my swim suit on to try to stay cool and we hit the fridge with our noses plugged and garbage bags in hand. It was so sad to throw so much stuff away, but we have to continue to remind ourselves that we are so lucky that food is all we lost...doesn't seem like such a big deal after all. That evening when I was lying on Courtney's bed trying not to move in order to stay cool our house seemed like a robot coming to life. Lights switched on, machines began to beep, the air started flowing....ahhhhh:)

We cleaned up the house, put things back on the porch and got settled in. Wilhelmina, Courtney and I went to a relaxing yoga class that was offered for free to Gustav evacuees. It was an interesting experience, one of those when I really feel a part of this community. I have felt that way a lot during this evacuation time...suddenly we all have something in common. Conversatiosns on the street and in the store flow easily, everyone seems to be much more open to talking and sharing their stories. This morning the three of us got up and went downtown to help volunteer. The busses have began to roll back into town with the evacuees who didn't have their own transportaion. And families in the city are still trying to survive without power and a very limited amount of grocery stores open! We packed up some food plates to hand out and later passed out MREs (Meals ready to eat) to those people who came by. An Army group from Kansas and Air Force New Orleans were working together on the project. Most seemed a little disinterested in our help, but after a lot of smiles they warmed up to us. We did help the line go about twice as fast. One man said all they needed was a few women to help these guys move it along...what would they do without us?

I am excited for a little bbq (or cookout as Court likes to "correct" me) we have planned for our place tonight. It should be great...good food, great friends, and no hurricanes!

Love.

Take Me Home

2008-09-03T18:33:00.000-07:00

I missed a call while I was sleeping last night. The message went something like this, “Miss Sarah Jean Sullivan, this is ADT calling to inform you that your alarm system has been set off and we will be notifying the police, please give us a call back as soon as you can.” Knowing that Courtney was in the other room, Lizzy was in Tampa Bay, Mary Ellen (who just finished her summer sublet) was in Seattle, and Wilhelmina in Austin, my first reaction was panic. I called ADT back and then couldn’t given me much information just that the front door alarm as well as the motion sensor had both been set off at 6:50 this morning and that they had notified the police department. I asked what happened when the police came and the man told me that he actually didn’t even know if they went over to our house. Once they report it, it is up to the police department’s discretion whether they respond or not. So we call the NOPD and they tell us there is no way they can check for the status of the response because all their computers are down. Of course Courtney and I automatically imagine our house getting robbed for a second time. After a few more panic-filled calls we finally got a hold of our landlord who in fact was the man who broke into our house and he somehow didn’t have the code to the alarm system! I am so thankful that it was him and our house is safe. He let us know that our house is in good shape, no outside damage, but unfortunately we still don’t have power. No word on when it will come back on, so it looks like we wont be heading back home just yet.

I am ready to be back. I am ready to get things back in order. I cannot believe people live with the possibility of this happening several times every hurricane season. We got lucky this time, but many other cities are suffering in bad ways. Let us remember them and help in anyway we can.

"Rolling down the road
Going no where
Guitar packed in the trunk
Somewhere round mile marker 112
Papa started hummin the funk
I gotta jones in my bones before we know
We were singing this melody
Stop the car pulled out the guitar
Halfway to New Orleans

Said take me home
Take me home"

-Mark Broussard
"Home"

No more NEWS

2008-09-01T10:51:00.001-07:00

Yesterday I got a call from one of my student's parents. She knew I had never evacuated for a storm and wanted to make sure I was out of the city, safe, and had a place to stay. It was so meaningful to me. I have been so worried about my students and their families. I have only had her son in my class for 2 weeks and only have had 2 or 3 converstations with her. What a wonderful and caring woman - a act of kindness that I will not forget.

Overall, I can't watch anymore. Thankfully Gustav is slowing down and things are not looking too bad on land, but Courtney and I have seen enough. Even with the good news it still works me up. We still have a few hours to go - praying that the levees are strong enough for the final surge.

Good Morning Fate.

2008-09-01T06:41:00.000-07:00

Here we go. So far not too bad.

Building Strength

2008-08-31T15:59:00.000-07:00

I have felt so many emotions in the past four days. It is so hard to explain all that has gone on and the emotions that have come with it. I am praying to God that after tomorrow all my life will go back to “normal” but unfortunately no one really knows. Late Thursday night and early Friday morning my housemates and I packed up our important documents, notes/cards/pictures and other mementos and a suitcase full of clothes. We gathered food, filled up an extra gas can, cleaned out our refrigerator, took everything off our porch, and closed all of our blinds. We all had to work on Friday so we packed up the cars and headed to school. Courtney dropped me off because I chose to leave my car – it is parked in the drive beside our houses because that seemed like the highest ground. The whole day my mind was on one thing Hurricane Gustav and wondering how bad could it be. My students asked me a lot about it, and about Katrina. They have so many confused thoughts – most of them do not understand. Many of them think it is a woman and that she may come back. It is hard to explain that she is gone and will not come back, but we never know what will happen when another Hurricane hits. My kids are so young that many of their first memories are from the tragedies that followed the hurricane. While most of my students watched a movie at the end of the day a few helped me to secure my classroom as best as I could - moving all furniture away from the windows, turning bookshelves towards the walls, and covering all the computers and other technology with plastic. Will it be enough? Will our portable building be able to withstand hurricane force winds? Will it stay in place with 10 + inches of rain that may come? You try to think positively and be optimistic, but it is only natural to question what life will be like if all of this is totally swept away. After school I had a few minutes to gather important things from my classroom and say my “be safe’s” to the other staff at my school. A wonderful woman named Ms. Wiltz, who also teaches third grade, has become very motherly to me over the past year. She has been a mentor for me as a teacher and a supporter for me as I have transitioned into a new culture. Through it all I have never once felt judged by her, as I often do from other staff members at my school. She gave me her final advice for evacuation and her very optimistic thoughts and a great mom hug. I broke down and wept in her loving arms – I cried for the community and all the people who have gone through this before and I cried for my students who are so scared and confused and I cried because if by the slight chance it hits us hard, New Orleans may not be able rebuild this time around.

And ironically on the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, we began our evacuation. Courtney and I had an uneventful drive to Pensacola, happy to beat the traffic and be east of the predicted path. We stayed at our friend Dan’s place. He was a wonderful guest and helped us to keep our minds off of the storm with some great food, good conversation and some live music. Saturday morning we got up and traveled farther east to Fort Walton Beach and that is where we are now. We are staying with Courtney’s aunt, uncle and two little cousins. Today we went to Destin, had lunch, walked on the beach and did a little shopping. There was one rain storm caused by an outer band of Gustav, but it didn’t last long. While we were out we ran into two friends who had also evacuated. We have watched the news a lot. Trying to take in important updates, but not make ourselves too nervous. Gustav is quickly approaching thought to make landfall Monday morning. It is currently a category 3 hurricane with winds up to 115 miles and hour. And again…we just wait….and keep praying.

Gustav

2008-08-27T19:47:00.000-07:00

A hurricane is heading our way. We don't know exactly where it will end up, but it is very likely to head straight up the Gulf of Mexico. Yesterday and today it was in Haiti and it is heading towards the west side of Cuba currently. Some people are very worried, others not so much. I just don't know what to think or to do. Make an evacuation plan, prepare for the worst, and pray - that is all I have come up with so far. I went to Wal-Mart today and got a case of water, gatorade, and canned food. I heard school may be canceled on Friday and a mandatory evacuation could be in announced as early as tomorrow evening. It is hard to just wait, I found my mind wondering a lot while I was teaching. A few of my kids asked me about it, but I tried not to get them all worked up. I mean, no one really knows what is to come. Here is a map of the path it has drawn and what is projected. Keep NOLA in your thoughts...I am not sure if it can weather another big one.

Here we go again...

2008-08-17T20:37:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow we kick off year two. I am so excited and blown away that this day is here already. I don't have time to say much because I still have things to do tonight. But I am feeling optimistic and ready to take on the challenge. Summer really did a lot for me. It was wonderful to see all family and friends that I was blessed to spend time with and travel all around the country. What an adventure I had. And now I am back to the grind looking forward to doing my little part in this broken city.

Peace to you.

today on the playground...

2008-06-03T18:37:00.000-07:00

...I got on the see-saw with one of my students and got stuck up in the air.

Back by popular demand….

2008-05-22T04:02:00.001-07:00

A little glimpse of an afternoon in Miss Sullivan’s circus:

Student one: Crafting a big sign that reads “Jay Tee is MAN” tapping it on the wall and sitting with his legs in a butterfly looking at his creation.

Student two: Balling up paper and throwing it at my feet.

Student three: Reading out loud with me every time I turn my back to him.

Student four: Listening and following along as I read.

Student five: Gazing across the room at student six, the girl he “loves”

Student six: Pulling out chunks of her weave.

Student seven: Holding his hands in front of his face and counting his fingers out loud, with no idea that anyone is looking at him like he is crazy.

Student eight: Throwing a piece of fuzz up in the air and catching it.

Student nine: Moving chair directly behind me as I write on the board so when I turn around she is less than a foot away, with her ears plugged by the way.

Student ten: Laughing in his wheelchair because the class is out of control.

Student eleven: Suspended and sitting at home because he punched someone in the face.

Student twelve: Sitting at home because her mom and mom’s boyfriend punched another one of my student’s moms in the face.

Student thirteen: Coloring me a sign that says “I love Sarah”

Student fourteen: Counting down the 14 days of school until SUMMER!

From an article I read:

2008-05-16T15:26:00.000-07:00

Who will tell the people? We are not who we think we are. We are living on borrowed time and borrowed dimes. We still have all the potential for greatness, but only if we get back to work on our country.

I don’t know if Barack Obama can lead that, but the notion that the idealism he has inspired in so many young people doesn’t matter is dead wrong. “Of course, hope alone is not enough,” says Tim Shriver, chairman of Special Olympics, “but it’s not trivial. It’s not trivial to inspire people to want to get up and do something with someone else.”

It is especially not trivial now, because millions of Americans are dying to be enlisted — enlisted to fix education, enlisted to research renewable energy, enlisted to repair our infrastructure, enlisted to help others. Look at the kids lining up to join Teach for America. They want our country to matter again. They want it to be about building wealth and dignity — big profits and big purposes. When we just do one, we are less than the sum of our parts. When we do both, said Shriver, “no one can touch us.”

Terrible Tuesday Strikes Back

2008-05-13T18:25:00.000-07:00

It’s one of those days as “Terrible Tuesdays” so often seem to be. I had a bad day with my class and then everything else in life seems to be reflected in this dark shadow. Dramatic I know, but that’s just the way it is sometimes. I feel bad about my class, not teaching them enough, not being able to control them. I feel like I am not living up to TFA standards, I wonder how and if I will ever be good at this. I feel like if I leave after two years I won’t be satisfied with the job I did and feel guilty for coming in and out of this broken system so quickly as if I am giving up on it. Am I wasting my talents here? Could I be better used in a different way? This is a crazy journey and I just have to keep holding on.

We got our standardized test results back last week. I don’t have anything to compare it to, so really I don’t know what to think. I was disappointed that some of my students didn’t do better, when I know that they are smarter than they showed. But I was also happy with the scores many of my kids came out with.

And after all….It is nice to hear quality leaders complimenting TFA:

"People were saying, 'Don't expect growth the first year,' " Mr. Vallas(RSD Superintendent) said. "We saw growth the first year." Mr. Vallas attributed many of the improvements in testing to the new teachers. "The biggest contributing factor was the quality of the instructors," he said. Classes are smaller, many of the teachers are youthful imports brought in by groups like Teach for America, principals have been reshuffled or removed, school-hours remedial programs have been intensified, and after-school programs to help students increased."

ADAM NOSSITER (NY Times) Changes at New Orleans Schools Bring Gains in Test Scores

Para mi Madre

2008-05-11T14:23:00.000-07:00

A mother of three adoring daughters.
Who is devoted to her family and friends.
A follower of Christ.
Who is fun and compassionate.
A lover of the outdoors, a good book, and happy hour with her girlfriends.
Who is generous and thoughtful.
A beautiful spirit that shines to those are her.
Who has made sacrifice after sacrifice for her family.
A teacher, cook, and caring friend.
Who is beautiful inside and out and works hard and is loved so very deeply.

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY:)

I don't think we will ever be even.

2008-05-11T14:22:00.000-07:00

The Lanyard

Billy Collins

The other day I was ricocheting slowly
off the blue walls of this room,
moving as if underwater from typewriter to piano,
from bookshelf to an envelope lying on the floor,
when I found myself in the L section of the dictionary
where my eyes fell upon the word lanyard.

No cookie nibbled by a French novelist
could send one into the past more suddenly—
a past where I sat at a workbench at a camp
by a deep Adirondack lake
learning how to braid long thin plastic strips
into a lanyard, a gift for my mother.

I had never seen anyone use a lanyard
or wear one, if that’s what you did with them,
but that did not keep me from crossing
strand over strand again and again
until I had made a boxy
red and white lanyard for my mother.

She gave me life and milk from her breasts,
and I gave her a lanyard.
She nursed me in many a sick room,
lifted spoons of medicine to my lips,
laid cold face-cloths on my forehead,
and then led me out into the airy light

and taught me to walk and swim,
and I, in turn, presented her with a lanyard.
Here are thousands of meals, she said,
and here is clothing and a good education.
And here is your lanyard, I replied,
which I made with a little help from a counselor.

Here is a breathing body and a beating heart,
strong legs, bones and teeth,
and two clear eyes to read the world, she whispered,
and here, I said, is the lanyard I made at camp.
And here, I wish to say to her now,
is a smaller gift—not the worn truth

that you can never repay your mother,
but the rueful admission that when she took
the two-tone lanyard from my hand,
I was as sure as a boy could be
that this useless, worthless thing I wove
out of boredom would be enough to make us even.

A heartbreaker.

2008-05-10T08:28:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite students who also is one of my worst behavior problems let me hug him yesterday. It was one of those hugs that you can tell the other person just needs. You wrap your arms around and they just seem to melt – their shoulders relax and they feel comfortable with you. He never lets me hug him. If I ever try he either wiggles away laughing or worse if he is mad he will violently spin around hitting at my arms or stomping at my feet. No matter how many times my kids get mad, roll their eyes, tell me they hate the class, they don’t care what I say, or for me to get away from them I think they all know that I am on their team. I love them and care about them as students and as people. I don’t think any of them could or would want to make an argument to the contrary. When I gave the student the hug he was telling me about how his mom is on house arrest. Not a surprise to me since I did take a trip to the police station last week for him, his brother and cousin.

I walked out of school, in a hurry, heading to a meeting at the Teach For America office. When I got to the parking lot there was a bus, but the busses had already left an hour before so I knew something wasn’t right. Walking toward the bus it wasn’t hard to recognize the students wearing light blue shirts instead of the royal blue of our school uniform. They hollered my name a waved with smiles on their faces. The bus driver said she stopped at their place three different times and no one came out to pick them up. She needed to go to her next job so we began dialing all the numbers we had. Disconnected, no answer, does not accept incoming calls and finally there was a hello. A cousin, a four-year-old cousin, answering the phone at the house they stay at after school. After a few questions it was determined that no his parents could not come to the phone because they were not home. His twin brothers were home, but they couldn’t get on the line either – they are only one. Let me clarify this for you – this was a four year old at home babysitting two twin one year olds. So I began asking my student some questions;

Who is home when you get home from school? – my 4 year old cousin, the one year old twins and my little brother. How old is your brother? – 1. Three 1 year olds are at the house every afternoon? – yeah. What time does your mom get home? – 10 at night. Where is your auntie? – at work too. Are there any adults at your house? – at 10 when we go to sleep. What do you eat for dinner? – they leave us stuff to microwave or we make something. What do you make? – cereal or sandwiches. So everyday there are 7 of you home? – yeah sometimes 8.

My 9 year old is the oldest out of seven kids home from 4-10pm: 9, 7, 6, 4, 1, 1, 1. Can one-year-olds eat sandwiches? No wonder why they never do their homework. No wonder why he is angry. He is not a kid. He is a 9 year old forced to be an adult. So I hug him, I tell him how brilliant he is, I don’t give him an excuse for his behavior, but I let him walk it off in the hall where he isn’t bothering anyone, I come to school everyday, and I absolutely never quit because I can’t abandon him. And I hug him again.

The three kids were excited to crawl in the back of a police car. I wanted to cry, but I smiled anyway. They showed me the computer and asked the police officer lots of questions. They decided they all wanted to be police officers. I hope the next time they are in the police car they are in the front seat driving, not in the back. I drove to the police station. I was scared; there is something wrong when you feel that unsafe at a police station. I thought I might get jumped making my way through the abandoned cars in the back alleyway up to the trailer where I was directed. People stood outside and starred at me. I didn’t fit in, I felt nervous. I knocked on the door, no answer. The others waiting told me between their angry curses that they were in there I should knock again. I did and a man opened the door a crack – I told him I was coming to be with the students they just picked up from Fannie C. He said, “who you?” I told him I was their teacher and he shut the door. A few seconds later another man stuck his head out and said he found the mother and they were at the house. I went home.

The next morning I came in to the office to see a mug shot of their mother that one of the administrators had pulled up online and printed off. And now according to my student she is home from jail, but on house arrest. But she can still leave to go to work. So I asked so now who stays home with you and your cousins after school? –nobody, we still stay by ourselves.

Why?

2008-05-02T18:41:00.000-07:00

Why do they disrespect me?
Why do they listen when I yell?
How can they say these awful things to each other?
Do they know that hard work is what will get them places?
Why do they not stop fighting when I am in the middle of it?
Why don’t they seem to ever feel ashamed of their own actions?
How can they say they hate the stupid class and then give me a hug five minutes later?
Why is it always someone else’s fault?
Why does the problem have to be solved through physical contact?
Do they have any idea that I completely changed my life to teach them?
Why do they act like everything is indispensable?
Why do they feel the need to damage everything?
Do they know that I use my own money to buy them these rewards?
Do they think I am rich?
Do they have any idea how young they are?
And most importantly...
Do they know that they are brilliant?

New York Times

2008-05-02T18:39:00.001-07:00

My roommate is FAMOUS!

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/30/us/nationalspecial/30orleans.html?_r=2&pagewanted=1&hp&adxnnlx=1209553894-kBMmJhntU19xCI600h88Cw&oref=slogin

It feels like home to me…

2008-04-28T19:15:00.000-07:00

Have you ever been in a place you have never been before, but because of the people you are with it just feels like home? This past week I took Thursday and Friday off from school and drove up to Shreveport to watch the USAG National Championships. My team was competing and I was lucky enough to spend three days with them. It was a wonderful time and I really didn’t want it to end.

I was honestly nervous to see the girls and coaches when I was driving up…it had just been so long since I had seen them – but also I was incredibly excited. It is so hard to see these ladies everyday for four or five hours and then one day move away and not see them for almost a year. As soon as I was with them it didn’t seem like I had been gone at all. I was treated wonderfully with all kinds of hugs and cuddles – just what I love.

As soon as I got into Shreveport I went to Centenary where the competition was hosted to watch the prelim competition. It was strange – standing in the gym, watching these girls from the bleachers. It was the first meet I had been to since I finished my career at Nationals in Seattle last year. I got a little teary eyed – such a mix of emotions that I am still attempting to sort out in my mind. I was happy to be there with the girls, coaches, and parents. I missed the sport and longed for the physical feeling of it all. I was glad to be separated from the drama that comes with spending so much time with a big group of girls. I missed the feeling of team success and personal accomplishment.

In the past I have worked hard at something and been successful. When I had success I was rewarded and praised. My job now is much more humbling. I do not know that kind of success in teaching. I have not done an incredible job, I am definitely a Level 5, maybe even still on pre-team in the teaching world. I am for sure no where near the collegiate level. I make simple mistakes all the time. I don’t know how to cover up mistakes and I am just learning the art of improvisation. I am not as confident because I don’t have years or experience behind me. Success takes time and for now I need to be patient. Hard work has gotten me places in the past.

The girls came into the competition ranked 7th and finished 6th, so improvement is always good. I know they were a little disappointed because they made some mistakes, but I hope they all feel like the competition was a reward for how hard they busted their butts all season! Ashley qualified for individual event finals on Bars and Beam – I was so proud of her. She looked very strong and confident. I was so happy to be with her and Brie and Christie for their last competition. Aubrie, Ashley, Brie and Christie have so much going for them – it may be hard to focus on much besides loosing this huge part of their lives right now, but this is just the beginning. It will be hard for a while, but the world is SO BIG. They are all so talented and hard working that they will achieve so much and find a new passion in all different places.

Because my computer is flaking out on me I can’t add pictures, but I hope to get it straight soon:)

Spring Break with the Sully's (and McLeans)

2008-04-12T07:01:00.000-07:00

This spring I have so much to look forward to, and so many fun things that have already happened. One of the best weeks I have had in New Orleans was Spring Break. I needed some time away from my students so badly, some time to relax and be rejuvenated. What better way than to have the whole family come down to check out my new world. Mama, Daddy, Athena, Bekah, and Scott spent the week with me.

We went to my new church and had a delicious Easter dinner. We Rode the streetcar, hung out in the French Quarter, and went on a Katrina Tour. We had beignets, Jacques-imos, Po’Boys, and Daquaris, We enjoyed city park, the sculpture garden and the amazing wildlife of the area. We had a BBQ on the Fly and looked for ghosts at Audubon. We walked up and down Bourbon, made friends with the drummer in a Jazz band, and Scott sang some Karaoke. We ate gator bites and then saw gators in the swamp. We were amused by the Nutra Rats and the life on the Bayou. We drove through Mississippi and Alabama. We soaked up a little too much sun laying on the beach, swimming in the Gulf and playing football in the smooth white sand. It was an incredible action packed week that of course flew by too quickly.

Here are some pictures, they tell the story better than I do.

Are you fo' real?

2008-04-11T21:26:00.000-07:00

Best conversation of the week.

Little Kindergartener: (with tears) Will you stay with me until my Auntie comes?
Me: Of course baby, I will make sure you have a ride home.
Little Kindergartener: (deep breath, and a little smile, then a pause) My Auntie’s name is Butta.
Me: Butter?
Little Kindergartener: No butta…pause…not like melted butta, just normal butta.

The Luck of the Irish

2008-03-17T20:30:00.000-07:00

Happy St. Patty’s Day

If there is a reason to celebrate, no matter how big or small, this city is all over it. Saturday was wild. After eating the greenest waffles known to man we headed down to the Irish Channel. The Bulldog has already started the party when we arrived and there were people in green and other incredible costumes all around. It was a gorgeous day with a high of 86 degrees and the sun was bright. The parade began to roll and once again I thought to myself about how wild and unique this city is. First there were the old men in kilts or tuxedos with bunches of green white and orange silk flowers. They come give you a flower and a kiss on the cheek. Or some give you pins, stickers, the occasional pair of St. Patty’s undies, or my personal favorite the green lace garter. The floats are much like Mardi Gras throwing beads (but only green ones), but you have to really have those hands ready for the good stuff. All the fixin’s for a wonderful stew. Courtney and I filled our big bag with 3 heads of cabbage, a bunch of mini carrots, 4 onions, a bunch of garlic, and 10 potatoes. It was quite a haul back to our car, but worth it. I think we will have lunch and dinner for the entire week:)

BEFORE

AFTER

After an evening nap we headed back out. We met up with some friends at a little bar in our neighborhood and then Lizzy, Heather, and I ended up at an incredible show in the CBD. First was a short set by Rebirth and then Trombone Shorty played. HE IS AMAZING!!! I believe he is 22 years old and the most talented musician I have ever experienced, plus he really knows how to put on a good show!

“Don’t get me wrong, we got it goin’ on in
New Orleans, he is just better.”
– Allen Toussaint

And finally a wonderful story written by one of my students. This story explains how he would trick a leprechaun into giving him his pot of gold:

I would dress up as St. Patrick. I would find the Leprechaun and act as if I was the Lord of the Leprechauns. I would say, “It is me, St. Patrick, I will confiscate your gold”. So he will give me the gold, and I will run.

23, Michael Jordan had the number for a reason

2008-03-16T10:13:00.000-07:00

My first month of 23 has been wonderful. I have experienced new things, made new friends, become closer with my roommates, and enjoyed some incredible weather. My birthday was great. My students all made me adorable cards and some brought me little stuffed toys.

After my PTP class a group of us went out to the Bulldog and got a drink and expanded our pint glass collection. We celebrated even more over the weekend when we had our 8 months delayed house party/ birthday party. We had a theme of “All you need is LOVE”! We had a good turn out and everyone said they had a great time dancing under out disco ball, talking, and eating heart shaped food. I had a blast:)

Last weekend Courtney, Lizzy, other TFA friends, and I went camping! I know, camping in Louisiana, right? I didn’t know what to expect. We went to Bayou Segnette State Park just 30 minutes from our place. It was nice, but very different from the camping I am used to! The park was pretty open without a lot of trees – we could see our Boy Scout neighbors in all their tug-o-war glory. It was possibly the coldest weekend of the year for New Orleans. It was down in the low thirties at night and only a high of 50 for the day. The first night was crazy cold. I wore 2 pairs of socks, leg warmers, spandex, yoga pants, sweat pants, 2 long sleeved shirts, a sweatshirt with the hood on, a fleece, and a beanie. Even with all of that, an extra fleece blanket in my sleeping bag, and four of us sleeping close I had a hard time sleeping. Luckily the second night was warmer. On Saturday morning we ran in a 5 mile road race. Coach Courtney helped me to pull through and run the whole thing. I was so sore the next day that I could barely walk! Before this race I had only run about 3 miles consecutively. We planned on doing the 2 mile course, but we realized we had a whole day with no plans so we might was well just keep running. We finished in 55 minutes. Even though it was very hard, it felt good to push and challenge myself physically. The whole weekend was great. It was incredible to just enjoy living without an agenda. To take in some fresh air and just relax. I wrote some notes, wrote in my journal, finished my book, drew a picture, took some walks, napped, ate good food. It was a needed trip. I found it very hard to come back into the rush and stress of my daily life. I feel like I do a pretty good job of doing things for me, but this life just doesn’t leave much time to just take a break!

I will soon have a long break – spring break! We have 4 days this week and then I have 10 days off of work! Oh, I cannot wait. My entire family is coming down – Mama, Daddy, Athena, Bekah, and Scott. It is going to be a wonderful 7 days with them. It will be great for them to see what my life is like and experience the crazy Big Easy!

I still cannot say that I love this place, but New Orleans is really growing on me. I can’t complain about this early spring weather. They say it wont last long, but right now it is incredible. I am sitting on my porch looking at the bright blue sky, enjoying the strong sun, and light breeze. The week’s forecast is looking pretty good…

P.S.

2008-03-13T19:50:00.000-07:00

I forgot to inform you of the best New Orleans tradition...on your birthday people pin money on you. I made $45 baby!

2008-03-09T12:46:00.000-07:00

I just had the most encouraging phone conversation. It really was the most motivating and encouraging moment in my short teaching experience. I always put off calling parents because I never really know what to say or how the parents are going to react. The conversations always seem to be just a little awkward. I decided though that I needed to call all of my students parents before the iLEAP (state test) that will be occurring all next week.

I was talking to the mother of a sweet little girl in my class. I asked her if she had any questions about the test and to let her know that I really appreciate her daughter’s hard work and the role model that she is in our classroom. To that she explained that her daughter has wonderful and strong women to be role models to her. Not only the women in her family, but also in me. How lucky her daughter and the other students in my class are to have a teacher who wants to make sure they really understand the material. Her daughter loves to be in my class and says that she can ask me if she needs help on anything. It is great for her to see her teacher work so hard and care so much. The mother was nothing but thankful and full of compliments. I get encouragement from my friends and family all the time so I don’t think I can explain to you why this particular conversation means so much to me or why there are tears rolling down my cheeks. I do know that if has the power to overshadow the daily “I hate this class”, “I wish I went to a different school” or “I shouldn’t have come to school today”.

Fannie C. Williams

2008-03-02T07:51:00.000-08:00

Some people have been asking about my school building - what it looks like, what the original building looks like, etc. So I thought I would put some pictures up on here so give a peek.

Fannie C. Williams used to be a middle school. The school was in a very nice building prior to Katrina. Our school is now Pre-K to 6th and is a group of about 9 modular units on the land next to the original building. The "trailer park" is different from the portables that I has been used to from when I was in school. These units are large and most have 8 classrooms in each.

Here is your tour....
This is where I spend most of my time. The classrooms are very large which is nice!

The halls look a little prison-like

The Blue School - Building 6

We get our exercise by walking up and down this path each day.

The original Fannie C.

The strength of wind and water

This is what happens when it rains at school

Mardi Gras

2008-02-17T19:08:00.000-08:00

Wow, I made it through my first carnival season - what an intense celebration! I never knew that it would go on for weeks before Fat Tuesday or that there could possibly be so many parades. This year there were over 40 parades. It is totally different than the stereotypical Mardi Gras I ever heard about growing up – that is if you stay away from Bourbon Street. The festivities are really what you make of it. You can dress up in some crazy costumes, drink all day every day, enjoy it without drinking at all, bring your grandma or go with the frat house down the street. You can get your face painted watch the parades on TV, or go to pre or post-parade parties. At the very least you have to eat a piece of king cake, experience the magic of a parade, and catch some beads.

As a spectator you really get in the moment and all you want is someone to toss you a “throw”. Some parades have celebrity grand marshals, this is Kevin Costner throwing beads. Each parade has a variety of throws from beads, plastic cups, frisbees, doubloons, footballs, and even coconuts….then you get home and just wonder what the heck you are going to do with all that stuff. Especially the beads, I think I have 20 pounds of “authentic” Mardi Gras beads that I either caught or were given to me. When a float goes by everyone pushes forward hooting and hollering, “Throw me somthin’ mista!” All of the little kids have these awesome handcrafted high chair seats. They are little box seats on top of ladders. This way the kids have a good view and their parents or older siblings can climb up on the back of the ladder and watch too. These contraptions line the streets reserving their spot for the week.

My favorite parade was Zulu, Mardi Gras Day – bright and early. We got up around 6, collected our things and drove as close as possible. After a short trek down Saint Charles we found a small area that wasn’t already reserved to set up camp. The crazy thing was that so many of those people had been out there all night. Some students were still out and drunk from the night before some families had staked their claim hours earlier, some people had a full out camp-site. The mix of people is really part of the glory of it. I brought my little grill and we made all the people around us jealous by cooking a wonderful breakfast of eggs, sausage, and bagels. The parade started a bit after 8am and was rolling for hours. I am so amazed by the people on the floats and most of all by the bands and dance teams…those people walk for miles. I guess some parades can last for 12-15 hours! The prized throw of Zulu are the hand painted coconuts. It was a fight, but all of my housemates came home with one! A lady handed me a coconut from the float and then some girl grabbed it out of my hand. Luckily Courtney has a long reach and she was behind me to steal it right back!

On the afternoon of Fat Tuesday, we were brave and took a trip down to the French Quarter. Courtney’s twin sister and three of her friends from high school were staying with us. The six of us spent a lot of time walking around watching all the people. There was quite a lot to see – men in dresses, evangelists condemning everyone, beads flying, street performers, body paint, and outlandish costumes. We ran into Lizzy who was doing the Cupid Shuffle in the middle of the street with a group of random and spontaneous partiers. The best part of the day was when we were asked to come up on a balcony and throw off beads. It was the best view - we could see all the action and watch the people, but we were not getting pushed around or hit by beads ourselves. The streets were absolutely packed!

Overall it was a great first Mardi Gras for me. It seems to be impossible to explain the New Orleans “Mardi Gras” experience. It is truly something you have to experience for yourself – so start making plans!

Notes for next year:
Its hard to find a bathroom
Wear shoes that are easily cleaned.
It is almost impossible to find a parking spot.
Bourbon Street is trashier than ever, but always entertaining.
You will give yourself a panic attack if you worry about the litter.
The best view is from a balcony.
Be prepared to walk and stand a lot!

Here are some more pictures of the madness!

Barkus, the dog parade

We made our own masks

My students at our 1st annual Fannie C. Parade

People kept asking if we were triplets?

Man on stilts at Endymion

After parades the trees and power lines glisten with beads!

Some friends I found on the street

Martin Luther King Jr.

2008-01-21T14:06:00.000-08:00

We all know that Martin Luther King Jr. was an amazing, charismatic, and courageous man. Suddenly his leadership and strength in our country hits a little closer to home for me. Read about what a few of my students have to say about him:

Let me tell you about why Martin Luther King Jr. was a good leader. Martin Luther King is so good we love him. God made a good man to be out leader. That is why Martin Luther King Jr. is important.

Let me tell you why Martin Luther King jr. is important. Martin Luther King helped people. He wanted to stop the fighting and help others. He marched and sang with them and he loved everybody. He made a big speech. That is why Martin Luther King Jr. is important.

Let me tell you about why Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is so important. Dr. King is important because he was a man who set freedom in the country. He made a dream that all white people and black would get along. He led people that hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that. And that is all I know about Dr. King.

I have a dream...

2008-01-21T13:53:00.000-08:00

On Friday my students wrote "I have a dream..." speeches and they were so sweet (and some hilarious) that I just had to share them:

I have a dream that everybody will not have to go through bad things like shooting, murdering, and raping.

I have a dream that lots of people make it through hurricanes, raining, and storms.

I have a dream that my family stays alive.

I have a dream that nobody does drugs.

I have a dream that people help others.

I have a dream that nobody shouted out or called mean names.

I have a dream that life would last longer than it does.

I have a dream that everybody was nice to each other.

I have a dream that everybody has a nice teacher.

I have a dream that people would stop killing.

I have a dream that everybody had a house.

I have a dream that everyone was healthy.

I have a dream that I can save the poor people.

I have a dream that I can fix up all the houses from hurricane Katrina.

I have a dream that everybody has a girlfriend.

I have a dream that everybody gets flying cars.

I have a dream that everyone love instead of hate.

I have a dream that everybody over the world, black, white, Mexican and Chineese can join together and sing the National Anthem together.

I am

2008-01-17T18:06:00.001-08:00

I am grateful for my amazingly supportive family, answered prayers, hope, and optimism.
For sunshine, Hawaiian visitors, loving roommates and a sweet house. I am filled with thanks for my education, the outdoors, and unconditional love. I admire Martin Luther King Jr., Oprah, Bono, Michael Johnson, and Eugene Sullivan. I dream about people I barely know. I love seeing glimpses of innocence in my children, feeling the human touch, and listening to good music. I am afraid of failure, war, hurting the people I love, and being alone. My sanity is rooted in bubble baths, hot yoga, good mail, and runs in the park. I am excitedly anticipating my first Mardi Gras in the city, sharing N’awlins with the entire Sullivan/McLean clan for spring break, the year of age 23, and the birth of the first baby in the “family”. I am proud of my friends who are amidst challenges around the country and beyond - Bolivia, BC, Washington, Montana, Oregon, Boston, Colorado, New York, Hawaii, Houston, and of course all my girls who are gearing up for season! I am intrigued by the flight patterns of birds, the beauty of the human body, but mostly by the way people think. I cherish old memories and seek out new adventures. I live. I breathe. I am.

Be prepared for a long one... and I mean a really long one!

2008-01-06T13:08:00.001-08:00

I always give Courtney a hard time for never updating her blog and now look at me. It has been over a month since I wrote a real update...ooops!

GIVING THANKS
Thanksgiving was incredible. Even though it was very hard to be away from family, it was amazing to have KJ here with me. We had such a blast, here is a play by play of our adventures:

Friday: Even though it was the end of a long week of doctor visits and days spent sick in bed I was so excited to pick Kristin up from the airport at 10 pm. I saw her standing outside the terminal and could barely stop the car before I jumped out to give her a hug. What an amazing gift to have her in this city with me. After living with her for the last four years and even sharing a room with her for the last year it has been so hard to not even see her once in five months!!! I am so excited that she now has an idea of where I live, work and what my new life is all about.

Saturday: The next day was a chill day, trying to get myself all the way better, so that we could enjoy the rest of our week together. We took a drive down Saint Charles to show her all the massive old houses. Then we headed over to City Park. We walked around and saw some of the sculpture garden. Half of it was closed which was a bummer, but she was amazed by the warm weather in November! On the way back we got some Sno’balls from the Queen of the Ball.

Sunday: What a crazy busy, fun, and totally New Orleans day it was. We went to church then headed straight to the 9th ward. This was her first experience in the 9th – an area of New Orleans known for being rough – before Katrina it was the location of the most crime (gangs, drugs, murders, and other violent acts) in the city and was hit by feet and feet of water during the storm. Some houses were in water up to the roof. It is now left with many abandoned houses and a limited amount of residents who have returned. We went to the annual 9 times pleasure and social club 2nd line. I had never even heard of a 2nd line before moving down here, but now it is one of my favorite things about the city. Basically a group of people all gather and follow along with a brass band as they walk through the streets. The music is so upbeat, the people are all dancing, it is just so hard to explain – it is something you just have to experience for yourself. It’s crazy how things that were so different for me when I first came here have become the norm and I don’t even notice them much at all anymore. Having Kristin experience all those things for the first time made me remember how it really is a different world down here. The crazy music and dancing all the time, alcohol everywhere (even if it is at 9am), being a minority, the way people talk, the awesome hairstyles, how loud everything is, drive up daiquiri shops, the terrible roads and pot holes, the huge mansions built close together, houses being gutted, abandoned houses, the Katrina markings spray-painted on houses, fried chicken shops on every corner, and this is also probably the only place where there is a festival in honor of po’boys. That is just where we headed next - the Po’Boy Preservation fFstival on Oak Street. After viewing about a hundred options we decided on some delicious and huge crabcake po’boys.

Monday: I had to work and it was a very boring day at Fannie C. I sat in about a 6 hour long staff meeting where we all talked in circles without making any decisions. Luckily KJ had some homework to do so she just hung out in my classroom, studied, and even made an awesome map of the world for me. My KJ even got to meet the crazy KJ at my school. Really, she is crazy. She is always cussing, she can never remember my name and she has no shame…She says its because she is old and has been teaching for too long – or at least that is what I think she said…she talks so fast, on and off, with her crazy southern talk that half the time I am not sure what she is saying. I warned Kristin to try to steer clear unless I was there to interpret (this skill has taken a while to develop). Sure enough during our lunch break I looked over and they were talking, later I asked if she knew what she was saying – I guess what she understood was something like her asking what my name was (I guess she forgot again) and that she should get lunch from the pie-man, oh the pie-man, that is a whole different story. We left school and drove to the Hong Kong Market – I think I would normally like the place, but after a long day and still feeling pretty terrible it was a little much for me to take! We tried to avoid the brains, necks, feet and other strange animal parts hanging up around the store, plug our noses, and grab some sushi basics. As always it was fun making our own sushi creations and teaching Courtney and Lizzy how to do it.

Tuesday: While I had some more boring professional development KJ did some exploring around our neighborhood by herself. In the afternoon I picked her up on Maple Street and we grabbed some Gelato. We walked down looking in the CRAZY expensive stores on Magazine and laughed at the SUPER SALE everything on this rack for $100 sign and went home for some dinner. KJ took care of me like old times and made Courtney and I pizza. After a nap we were off to the Maple Leaf for Rebirth’s Tuesday night show. I agree that Rebirth is one of the best brass bands in New Orleans, but the packed, smoky, claustrophobic atmosphere is just not my thing.

Wednesday: Wednesday was a big day. We walked around the French Quarter, ate beignets at Café du Monde and got some sweet gifts from the balloon man. We ate lunch at The Gumbo Shop (even though I am a disgrace to New Orleans culture and don’t like Gumbo!). Since Kristin’s birthday was just 2 days before she came we decided to have Wednesday evening dedicated to celebrating! Her parents treated us to an amazingly delicious fancy birthday dinner @ NOLA, one of Emeril’s restaurants. It was super fun to get all dressed up, but I am for sure not that classy. They have routines perfected for every movement and service, if you get up they escort you to the bathroom and when you are gone they will re-fold your dirty napkin. When the food comes they put all the plates down at exactly the same time. They made KJ this amazing dessert plate with cookies, Drunkin Monkey ice cream, and berries. After our amazing dinner I knew it was going to be a good night…you know how people always wave at fire the firefighters? Well this time the firemen waved at US. In honor of an old New Orleans tradition KJ wore a pin with money on her shirt for her B-day, then everyone knows its your birthday, wishes you a good one and if you are lucky gives you some moneyJ We met up with Court and hung out on the patio at the Bulldog for Wednesday free pint glass night – KJ picked up a few complimentary souvenirs. The Saint Charles street car just re-opened so we took it down to the French Quarter. We tried really hard to find the Zydeco dancing for Jim, but were not successful. We made friends with some guys from “the bayou”, pretended we were in the movie Coyote Ugly, KJ saw her first rodent-sized cockroach, my shoe heel got stuck in a grate, Kristin raised some more birthday money, some people told us they loved us and well apparently that was enough to make us want to hang out with them the rest of the night – they were divers who were cleaning up the mess that was left in the Mississippi. The rest of the night was filled with live music, dancing, and the highlight (after watching other bull riders look ridiculous) we dominated the mechanical bull at Bourbon Cowboy.At the end of a long night we jumped in a Taxi and headed home– it was a good night.

Thursday: THANKSGIVING!!! And so much to be thankful for. Even in the hardest times, I know that I am so blessed. Most importantly I am thankful for my family and friends and strong faith. Without those things this new challenge in my life would be impossible. We spent Thanksgiving with a group of TFA folks. Andrew and Ben hosted the dinner and it was an amazing spread! Even though we ate 2 hours after expected it was all worth the wait. We played games, watched football, and played catch in the yard – I think it was the best it could have been away from home!

Friday: Time to say goodbyeL We had breakfast at the Panola Street Café before I sadly dropped KJ off at the airport. I can’t wait to go visit her in Colorado!

There is plenty more to come…now is a good time for a little STRETCH BREAK!

THE CLASS
No one warned me that the two weeks before Christmas would be absolutely insane. It was almost like we reverted back to the beginning of the year when the students do not know any of the rules and simply do not care what I say. They seem to want to do about the opposite of what I expect of them. Plus, I was over exhausted, and just as anxious and excited for Christmas break as they were.

Its pretty safe to say that there is really no place like the Recovery School District or the “are-a-s-d”. After Thanksgiving my class got shifted around quite a bit. Our school was not following the state mandated inclusion model where special education students are in the regular ed classroom at all times. The problem was that these kids were spread out among all the classes, so in order to give them what they need they put them all in one classroom. For the third grade they choose my class. I was excited at first because it meant that I would have another para-educator and a special education teacher in my room at all times. I thought that this would be an amazing way to really differentiate to the needs and levels of my students. The problem is I only got the extra help for a week and now my class is just very diverse without much help. I do have an amazing para, Miss Collins, but she has to stay with one child at all times. This means in our class we have two children in wheelchairs, one child who has to use a DynaVox to communicate, a student who is hearing impaired and does not have hearing aids, 3 students on a kindergarten reading level, one student who has to be watched at all times because of aggressive sexual behaviors…and I am supposed to teach them something? It is quite a challenge, but I continually remind myself, this IS what I signed up for.

On a better note, I do feel like I am becoming more organized and efficient. I decided not to do work over the break and just enjoy my time off. The break was so short, there is no reason for me to feel guilty for spending it with my friends and family as much as possible and not worrying about work.

I think that my students think I have some sort of magical powers – they always expect me to heal their headaches, stomach aches, or whatever other ailments they can find. One of my students has something wrong with her everyday…maybe I should read her the story “The Boy Who Cried Wolf”.

I have been called so many crazy names lately. One of my students refers to me only as “mama”. I got called “dawg” and my personal favorite “Miss Pinky” (and take note that I was wearing no pink at the time)

HOLDIAYS
We had our TFA Holiday Party the weekend before break. It was great to spend some time with the roommates, get dressed up, and have our corps together for some holiday cheer.

WE GOT ROBBED
I came home a few weeks ago to Courtney walking over to my car crying. I knew it was something bad because in the last 6 months living and spending time with her, I have never seen her really cry. She said we got robbed. How can people do that? It is so frustrating and violating. I was lucky – for some reason they walked right passed my bedroom. They took Courtney’s DVD player, her laptop and digital camera and Lizzy’s computer too. It reminds me I really need to make sure that all of my pictures and documents on my computer are backed up. Because really in the long run when something like that happens it is not he computer you care about, but all that is saved on it.

HOT YOGA
Hot yoga has changed my life. I feel so much better since I started practicing – more like myself. It is just so relaxing and cleansing, just what I need. Plus it is an extra treat to get to see Kasey Jo every week. I love it and recommend it to every one.

FREEDOM…for a week
And most importantly, I have absolutely never been so excited for a Christmas break. I could not wait to get back to the Northwest. It was a little overwhelming trying to see all the people I wanted to, but overall AMAZING. I spent time with all my friends from Sprague, Saw Susan, Ellyn and met her brand new fiance Andrew went to the African Children’s Choir concert, bowling with my old coach and teammates from SGC. I was so glad my sisters and mom had the whole break off so I got to see them a lot and dad only had to work a few days. On Christmas Eve we went over to the McLean’s and then to church.The candle light service is always incredible when they turn all the lights off and we sing Silent Night and then Joy to the World! It is strange to open presents without Bekah there. My most exciting gift was money for a digital camera – my Dad and I went to go pick one out a few days later. The worst part of break was the terrible stomach flu that attacked our house and wiped out my mom, gramps, and I and 4 or 5 of the Nunley’s. Luckily it was just a 24 hour thing, but I still missed my trip to Portland with all my girls:(

2008, ALREADY?
After some crazy car issues I made it back up to Seattle to celebrate New Years. It was one jammed pack day: Breakfast on Queen Anne at Noah’s Bagels with Haley, Carl, and Aubrie. Then Mattie and puppy Joey and I walked around Greenlake. I met Kels and Tom downtown and we caught the ferry over to Bainbridge Island. It was a wonderful day in the Northwest – blue skies and sunshine. One of those days when I am reminded just how much I love SEATTLE!!! It was strange. I loved being in Oregon and spending time with family and friends, but it wasn’t until I got back up to Seattle that I really felt like I was “home”. We got back to the city, stopped by happy hour at Fado Irish Pub and then met back up with Carl and Aubs and Brian came over too!!! >We just hung out, got all jazzed up and some of my old SPUG teammates Sadie, Bri, and Kelli came over to say hi! Then we went over to Deb’s place to see her. And finally I ended up back with Tom, Kels, and Brian at our friend Cory’s New Years party. I was skeptical at first because I knew only a couple guests and soon found out that the vast majority of people were recently engaged or dating - Just my luck, haha! Anyway, I had a wonderful time! We rang in the new year and got back to Aubs and Carl for some last minute hang out time.

I am now back in action. I quickly realized there was really no point in us rushing back for this short week of school. There wasn’t much critical instruction occuring as someone apparently forgot to inform the students that yes, we did have school on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. At most I had half of my class present. I am just taking it is an easy transition back into chaos.

CHEERS
I am amazed by you if you actually made it through this entirely too long update.

God’s blessings of hope, joy, peace, and love to you in 2008!

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let Snow...???

2007-12-08T17:41:00.000-08:00

amazing quote

2007-11-16T17:32:00.000-08:00

Enjoy this amazing quote passed on to me from my roommate Miss Shephard:

“It doesn’t interest mw what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for, and if you dare to dream of meeting your hearts longing.
It doesn’t interest me how old you are. I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love, for your dreams, for the adventure of being alive.
It doesn’t interest me what planets are squaring you moon. I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow, if you have been opened by life’s betrayals, or have become shriveled and closed from fear or further pain.
I want to know if you can sit with pain, mine or or your own, without moving to hide it or fade it or fix it, I want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your own; if you can dance with wildness and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes without cautioning us to be careful, be realistic, or to remember the limitations of being human.

It doesn’t interest me if the story you are telling me is true. I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself. If you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul. I want to know if you can be faithful and therefore trustworthy. I want to know id you can see beauty, even when it is not pretty every day, and if you can source your life from its presence. I want to know if you can live with failure, yours or mine, and still stand on the edge of a lake and shout to the silver of the full moon, ‘Yes!’
It doesn’t interest me to know where you live or how much money you have. I want to know if you can get up after the night of grief and despair, weary and bruised to the bone, and so what needs to be done for the children. It doesn’t interest me who you are, or how you came to be here – I want to know if you will stand in the center of the fire with me and not shrink back.
It doesn’t interest me where or what or with whom you have studied. I want to know what sustains you from the inside when all else falls away. I want to know if you can be alone with yourself, and if you truly like the company you keep in the empty moments.”
-The Invitation, Oriah Mountain Dreamer, Indian Elder

SPU gymnastics

2007-11-14T16:00:00.000-08:00

Seattle Pacific University just got a new athletic website.
It is really neat, check it out:

http://www.spufalcons.com/index.asp?path=gym

Happy Times

2007-11-13T16:03:00.000-08:00

Kasey Jo's 1983 Birthday Bash

Our totally RAD spandex and leg warmers

Little White Lies

OOOOOOOOOREGON!

Carrying on Aubrie's "Dinner in a Pumpkin" Tradition

They have had some practice at this crazy Nawlins holiday!

Miss Sullivan's Art Club

STEP IT UP: Rally to stop Global Warming

Guest Speaker: Presidential Candidate John Edwards

Second Line down the highway

Lizzy and I decided that John Edwards needed some Mardi Gras Beads...
Who knows, someday we may be able to say we gave our beads to the PRESIDENT

I think the guy on the left was more excited about it,
but I don't know, I think I see a smile coming from Mr. Edwards

sicky sick

2007-11-13T09:07:00.000-08:00

I have spent more time in my bed, watching TV, sleeping, on the internet than I have in longer than I can remember. I hate being sick...my head pounds, I can't stop coughing, my throat hurts, and my voice is ridiculous. I went to the doctor and got some medicine it better be kicking in here soon. Luckily I already had a three day weekend to rest, but I am out of school today. I feel kind of guilty not going to school. But I guess I wouldn't be that much of a help without a voice.

This past week was very rough. My kids are out of control, I am really struggling. I just do not know what the answer is. I have been asking for advice, but it always seems like what they say I already know. They tell me I am too nice, but I guess the problem is I just don't really know how to make that change. These kids don't know much about respect because it is not a trait that they see everyday. Kids pick up on things and if they are not exposed to respectful behavior they aren't going to show it themselves. I know my kids can stay quiet and listen, because I see them do it with other teachers. I was so frustrated one day I asked them, not really expecting an answer, why they do not stay quiet when I am talking and little Jamiya said it was because I am too nice. It blew my mind - such opposite thinking - I would have the desire to respect the nice person more instead of less. Its obvious it is something I need to work on if my kids are picking up on it. I just need them to work for me or really work for themselves!!! How do you teach kids work ethic, how do you invest them in their education. Right now I need to get them through this week and when we come back from Thanksgiving make some major changes.

This experience has been such a different challenge than all those I have faced in the past. My hard work has always made me successful. I have made goals and accomplished them with excellence. This is a humbling experience - I cannot be great at everything. Its just hard because I know that my success at his is not only effecting me, but the education of 15 little kids. My core mentor told me the only way to fail is to quit...I know that will not happen.

I feel like I am being such a downer right now...
On a more positive note, KJ IS COMING!!!! Only 3 days until she comes, I can hardly believe it! It is going to be so fun! I better be completely healthy by then. She will be here for an entire week so we will have lots of time to explore. I have professional development on Monday and Tuesday, but they shouldn't be too long of days.

2007-10-28T16:46:00.000-07:00

Go here: http://www.teachforamerica.org/
and click on the second sqaure to watch a video
about TFA in GNO. It is very neat!

What really is going on?

2007-10-23T19:13:00.000-07:00

I know I am supposed to be the adult, the responsible one, the role model, but sometimes I seriously cannot help but laugh at the ridiculous things that happen EVERYDAY at school.

A snapshot of today or I should say a snapshot of the things that happened in about 15 minutes during today.

Student one: Copying down his spelling words writing bitch instead of batch.

Student Two: Hiding under my umbrella that is opened in the back of the classroom.

Student Three: Jumps up on the desk and does a round-off off the side.

Student Four: Pulls out a large ceramic cross out of his book sack (that’s backpack for all you NW folks)

Student Five: Is crying like a baby because she got detention for hitting someone.

Student Six: Is actually doing her work.

Student Seven: Is following me around like a lost puppy.

Student Eight: Writing on the white board in the back of the classroom because I told her not to write on the front board. (really what I meant was you should not be writing on the board at all)

Student Nine’s Grandma: Says I remind her of Mariah Carey.

Student Ten: Laying on the floor.

Student Eleven: Saying “no” to every phrase that comes out of my mouth.

Student Twelve: My encouragement - "Come on buddy, get your work done" and the response, "I want a big Mac"

And I had a few absent students today. Luckily, even when everyone is present, I do have a small class of only 15. I am so thankful that. I cannot imagine adding more to this Sullivan Circus.

Even though we obviously have a long way to go, I see glimpses of greatness from my students. For a few moments today the classroom was so quiet, it was incredible. Every student was busy doing what I asked them to do. Working hard, moving forward, being successful. What a crazy job this is, what crazy kids these are! I have found that the day runs a lot smoother if I allow time for my kids to simply be kids. They unfortunately do not have recess and somehow my class got jipped out of PE and Art, so each day I give them a little free time. Today they started to teach me the Soulja Boy dance. If you have not heard of it – check it out on www.YouTube.com then imagine Miss Sullivan doing this dance surrounded by all her little babies, who are by the way much more coordinated then I will ever be.

Yesterday we had some more crazy weather around here. Another tornado watch and flooding all around the area. Our school site was okay, but the parking lot flooded. I had to move my car mid-day because they thought our cars might get stuck. I was nervous driving through such deep water with my little car. I actually didn’t know how deep it really was until I was walking back through the parking lot and the water was almost up to my knees.

Well I need to go prepare plans for my sub tomorrow. I am going to an inservice DynaVox training. One of my students does not speak and he uses a computer to communicate. The problem is I am his teacher and I do not know how to use it. Hopefully after tomorrow I will be able to teach him more effectively. I hope my kids do not tear up the sub – who knows maybe they will respect him more than they respect me. It may sound bad, but I am a little bit excited about being away from school for a day and I will get to sleep a little too! These 5 o’clock mornings are pulling me down.

Goodnight friends.

2007-10-22T04:03:00.000-07:00

one dark morning

2007-10-18T19:10:00.000-07:00

Even though I was using an umbrella for my short walk from the car to the office the rain soaked me. The sky was dark, the clouds were thick and our walkways began to flood. My shoes got wet and stayed wet for the entire day. I was the first teacher to arrive, walking in with the secretary. She said someone had just called and said something about a tornado. We got inside and check out weather.com:

Tornado Warning for 70128 (our exact zip code!)
Will be overhead at 7:05, moving across the area until 7:30 (it was currently 6:55)

And the best part of it all this is the advice that came next inthe report...
THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS IN A BASEMENT. GET UNDER A WORKBENCH OR OTHER PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. IF NO BASEMENT IS AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF THE BUILDING IN AN INTERIOR HALLWAY OR ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET. USE BLANKETS OR PILLOWS TO COVER YOUR BODY AND ALWAYS STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

IF IN MOBILE HOMES OR VEHICLES...EVACUATE THEM AND GET INSIDE A SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER. IF NO SHELTER IS AVAILABLE...LIE FLAT IN THE NEAREST DITCH OR OTHER LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

Now first of all a basement? Really? So we can drown in the flood waters? Nobody has basements here. So we are standing in the "office" with windows all around and certainly wihtout any sturdy furniture. We are on the lowest floor, but our entire school just happens to be a trailer park...was "lie flat in the nearest ditch or other low spot and cover your head with your hands" really our best option? It was funny at first read, but then I started getting a little freaked out.

Once the rain gave up I headed back to my classroom feeling a bit better since the rain stopped I thought we were good to go. Just as soon as I got into my room by myself the wind roared and the rain began to pound down again. I informed the other teacher in my building that I wasn't going to die in building 6 and started to head out of there. Apparently everyone thought it was funny how nervous I was with tears in my eyes, but then again these are the same people who have told me they have never visited the west coast before because of earthquakes...

In the end, we were just left with one breathtaking rainbow to remind me that no matter how rough the storm may be, I will make it through.

my vision

2007-10-08T16:46:00.000-07:00

As a teacher in this community I will be humble. I will come with a spirit motivated by positive change and growth. I will be prepared to be a leader and ensure that these students are moving forward. I will not be overbearing, but humbled by my limited amount of experience. I will strive for increased achievement in myself as I serve my students. I will not only expect great success from my students, but also from myself. At all times I will focus myself on what I can do to be better as a teacher so that my students truly do achieve all that they can. I will encourage my students daily and instill in them the value of hard work so that they will develop an independent desire to be successful. I will be a model of hard work for my students and in the community by continuously striving for excellence in all that I do.

there's no place like home

2007-10-07T19:16:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe that I have already been teaching for over a month. I have doubled my teaching experience since institute. I am so overwhelmed by all the work I have to do for TFA, my certification program, my class, and my school. My life is consumed by my work. But I guess that is what I came down here to do. I had such great teachers and went to wonderful schools. I feel confident in my public school education. It is not fair that so many kids do not have that opportunity. It is the least I can do to give two years to show my appreciation and help as I am able.

I am learning some new words and phrases down here:
arer = “r”
arnge = orange
making groceries = going grocery shopping
saving groceries = putting them away
cutting up = goofing off
making 23 = turning 23
what ta do? = what am I supposed to be doing
I gotta use it = I need to go to the bathroom
pernt = point

One of my students told me that I should go back to Oregon. I could be really sad about it, but I really think that deep down this student really likes me – he just hasn’t figured it out yet. How’s that for optimism? I am not quite that optimistic about much else. We have been in school for over a month and my classroom management is still struggling. The students are very disrespectful of each other – calling other students names and kicking and shoving them. One of my students has in-school suspension all day on Monday because he is constantly getting in trouble. He finally pushed it too far in the cafeteria and got sent right to the principal’s office. This student is such a struggle for me. He is very smart and FUNNY! He is definitely the class clown and sometimes it is really hard for me not to laugh at him, but he needs to learn that during school is not his time to be putting on a show for everyone. He is so disrespectful and distracting! It is quite ironic that his little sister, a little kindergartener, has taken to me. She always seems to find me on my most frustrating days. She always gives me huge hugs around the legs, she kisses my hand and tells me that she loves me.

According to the district's set schedule I am behind already on what I should be teaching my students. This week was so hard because they had to take their district benchmark and also this tracking diagnostic required by Teach for America. They were dying from all the tests!!! I need to be more efficient with my planning so I can really utilize all the time I have with them and make it meaningful.

Having both my sisters and mom in the education world I always knew that teaching was a hard job, but I never knew it was going to be this hard. There is always more to be done and it is hard to prioritize. I don’t think you can understand really what all goes into teaching until you are in the middle of it. I asked my students what they thought I did when I went home after school. Their responses were: plan for tomorrow, make stuff for us, grade our papers…I would have liked to be offended and tell them about all the great things I am doing after work, but I guess even my students know I have no life.

I have this fear of one of someone throwing up in my class. It seems silly, it shouldn’t really be that big of a deal. I just know my students would probably go berserk and not be very nice about it, plus its just eeehhhhh. Anyway the point is I was sitting at my desk enjoying some yogurt when one of the other 3rd grade teachers comes in to talk to me. She was asking me some questions and then suddenly she just puked all over the floor next to and under my desk. She was literally no more that 3 feet away from me. All I could do was stand up and leave my classroom as fast as possible. Such a nurturing person I am, huh? Poor lady.

On a brighter note I got to go to the LSU vs. Tulane game last weekend. It was so fun to be in the Superdome and ahhh I love FOOTBALL! I wish they would let me play it. The Teach for America Corps members who are graduates of LSU and Tulane got to go down on the field and be recognized – you may have seen it on ESPN.

I am really missing “home”. I miss my family and I miss my friends. And I miss the beautiful NORTHWEST! I miss being comfortable. Even though I have met some great people I have also realized that it just takes time to get really close to someone. I need some good hugs and cuddle time.

But I got the greatest news….KJ is coming!!! My roommate of three, basically four years in Seattle is taking a trip down here from Colorado over Thanksgiving. I am so pumped. It will be amazing to have a little bit of “family” around for the holiday. Only 39 days…

I am so thankful for all the nice e-mails, phone calls, and letters that I have been receiving. They are what keep me going each day. It is such an amazing feeling to know that so many of you are thinking and praying for me. I am starting a wall of notes and always share them with my roommates. I am so lucky to have such tremendous support.

a picture update

2007-09-24T17:04:00.000-07:00

even with all the chaos we are still sneaking in some fun

attack of the love bugs

a close up for those of you have not experienced their glory

the best greeting on my way to work

painted new each day

goodmorning sunshine

the speedy makeover

meet Nigel and his friends

what you need to kill a cockroach
-1 fly swatter
-1 broom
-1 math book with a paper towel taped to it
-2 roommates

once we got it i didn't want to get off the math book

and this is the reason I am here

we tried to take a serious picture

but silly faces were just so much more fun

week two: ch-ch-check

2007-09-15T19:08:00.000-07:00

I made it through week two. We had our ups and downs, but overall I feel good about it. I am realizing just how crazy this whole experience is. Each day I am learning more about this community and through that learning about myself. Yesterday was crazy, maybe because it was Friday, it was raining and they are getting a little too comfortable. I am not quite sure what the students deal was. I have never seen such disrespect. They really just have no sense of respect – I wonder how they say the things they do and not feel ashamed. A couple of sixth graders were mouthing off to me because I asked them to stop talking while the principal was making the announcements. One girl said, “I don’t give a shit” and the boy next to her said, “My mama says I can say whatever the fuck I want.” It was all I could do to stop my jaw from dropping. How can you say that to a teacher? How can you say that to anyone? It makes me so embarrassed for them.

I am so glad my students are at the age where they still have some sense of intimidation from adults. I do not want them to be afraid of me – I just want respect and for them to respect their classmates too! It kills me when I see or hear them being so mean and rude to each other. Its crazy, they know how bad it feels when someone says something mean to them, but they always snap right back. They need to learn to hold their tongues. I think I need to have a little mini lesson on the golden rule next week.

I question why these kids think they are kings and queens. Why are they so mean? What makes them calloused? And then it hit me, how naive can I be? These third graders have had so many hard and tragic experiences in their few years. A big brother died of cancer when he was 13. One wears the same clothes(that are not in uniform) everyday – they get dirtier and dirtier each day. He told me that his mom didn’t have enough money to pick him up and take him to the hotel and that is why he couldn’t get his papers signed. A cousin of one of my students fell from the roof when they were waiting to get rescued off of a roof after Katrina. She was 3 years old, she drowned in the floodwaters. A father was shot in the head and burned to death just last year. They have lost family members, they have witnessed violence, they lived through one of the most destructive natural disasters in history. How can I come in and compare my experience as a third grader with their lives? It is just not fair. I need to be understanding and loving, but I can’t make excuses for them. They need to learn that our classroom is a safe place for them. A place where respect for all is mandatory and a place to feel comfortable and express themselves in a positive way.

Then of course there is the fact that they do need to learn A LOT. I need to teach them everything to help them pass the third grade! They are so far behind and at so many different levels. One will finish the entire assignment before three others have even written their name on the paper. With only 12 students I am already struggling to make it around the room to hold them accountable for staying focused, help them each step along the way, or give them enrichment activities if necessary. I just want them to want it for themselves. They don’t know how to work hard – they are missing the dedication, I need to get them invested. I am so far from where I need to be as a teacher. This is the most difficult thing I have ever done. How do I give these children all they deserve and need.

I am so confused and upset about how behind most of them are. How is it possible to make it to the third grade without being able to read and barely write. What did their past teachers have them do? Were they just excused from doing the work because they couldn’t read the directions? What do their parents/families think?

Sometime tomorrow I am going to have to head over to Fannie C. so get some work done in my classroom. We have our open house on Monday and I really want my room to look good. I am sure the construction workers will be there to heckle me. They are always working hard to get our school completed – they are there when I get to school before seven and when I leave at 5. They like to make comments like, “What grade are you in?” or “YOU are the teacher?” They think they are so funny.

love bugs

2007-09-12T19:17:00.000-07:00

I learned today:
I have a long way to go before I become the teacher I want to be.
Love bugs are actually real bugs who are eternally mating at this time of year.
I am afraid of loosing the people I love the most.
I love to BBQ.
Things are a lot funnier when you are overwhlemed.
"Sweet eyes" is my new favorite term of the South.

funny comment of the day

2007-09-05T18:30:00.000-07:00

As I was walking down the hall I hear:
"She be walking like she be on the Tyra Banks Show"

it just had to be a good day...

2007-09-04T20:03:00.000-07:00

excited

2007-09-03T22:06:00.000-07:00

I can't write much because I should be sleeping right now.
Just wanted to say, WOW!
I am so excited to meet my kids and get a glimpse at what this
experience is really going to be like. This is it, there is no turning
back now. My classroom is decorated a bit, of course not as cool
or complete as I would like. I guess I have plenty of time to fix it
up. I have spend a lot of time on the phone to my sisters and mom
getting advice on anything and everything. I have been changing things
up right to the last minute. I also went to Maggie's cousin's mother-in-law's
(as if that is not confusing!) 3rd grade classroom over on the West Bank today.
She gave me some books, so my bookcase is no longer empty!!! I really
need to work on getting some more books for the poor kiddos!
My other TFAers who have alreadystarted teaching have been amazing
as well. Tiff and Carmen are awesome, so calming and its cool since they
had the first day/week experience so recently! Alright, off to bed....send your
prayers my way and thank you so much to all of you who are so
awesome and supportive!!!

This and That

2007-08-31T21:25:00.000-07:00

We built a fence in our front yard. It was a lot of work, but so much fun. We got to spend some time in the sun, have some roommate bonding, use power tools, and we met a lot of our neighbors. Think our neighbors thought we were crazy, they all came out to see what these new white girls in the ‘hood’ were doing out in the 113 degree weather!

……………………………………………………………

Its crazy how our neighborhood community has built. We have met so many nice people and they all say they’ve got our backs. For all the violence I hear about it the new everyday, I feel pretty safe here. Just in the past week we have had some surprising occurrences. Two young boys came separately seeking tutoring and this other man came to ask for advice because his buddy cut himself (this cut was so sick and deep, by the way). He said he heard we were teachers and he thought we might know what to do or where he should go to get medical help. I thought to myself, why is this man who is old enough to be my father coming to me for advice. I am just a 22 year old college graduate. Suddenly it hit me…I am a college graduate and for the first time in my life that is not the norm for the people around me.

……………………………………………………………

Only in New Orleans will you go to a school district convocation where,
-there is a brass band playing
-1,000 teachers are dancing
-old, young, fat, skinny, white, and black ladies are pulling out their umbrellas to dance with and breaking it down in the aisles
-the mayor stops mid speech when a lady yells something out and says, “oh, I’m sorry baby I didn’t hear you”
-the ice breaker for your school is making up a dance to a Beyonce song and performing it as a group

……………………………………………………………

Sail away….sail away…sail away

Last Saturday afternoon was my dream summer day. Wilhelmina’s Grandpa affectionately known as Pere Pere took us out sailing on Lake Ponchartrain. It was great weather – a beautiful blue sky and bright sunshine. We had snacks, talked, napped out on the deck and went swimming in the lake. I was blown away that the water was actually warm – I have never experienced a warm lake before. I convinced Lizzy to jump in just as we got caught in some strong wind. Luckily I was holding onto a rope on the back of the boat so I just got dragged along, I did have my camera in the water with me, but I managed to keep it dry. But the thing was, Lizzy jumped in and couldn’t catch up to the boat and before we knew it she was left behind, just a dot in the massive lake. Not so good. Everything ended up fine, Pere Pere is quite the captain and brought the lady over board back on board quickly. Speaking of Pere Pere, he is such an amazing man – he makes me not get sad about getting old. He is living it up taking piano lessons, sailing, choir, among other things.

……………………………………………………………

I found out that I will be teaching 3rd grade self-contained at Fannie C. Williams Elementary School. When I got the news I suddenly felt that this was all real. I am going to be responsible for these students. It is my job to ensure that these kids make ‘significant gains’ and keep them safe. There are still so many uncertainties. Only four days until the students will pour into our school. A school that as of today, is not complete. The modular campus is being constructed just next door to the old building. It is so crazy to see the effects of Katrina still so visible in New Orleans East where I will be teaching. The school is near Lake Ponchartrain where the floodgates broke. This area got up to 20+ feet of water. Many houses, grocery stores, and businesses are still abandoned and closed. The six flags has no prospect of opening anytime soon – the sign out front still says ‘ closed for storm’ with a few letters missing. Our original school building was brand new pre-Katrina, now it just sits gutted. They say it would cost 180% more to fix it up then just demolish it and start from scratch. Our ‘trailer park’ next door doesn’t look too glamorous from the outside, but we have been told we have one of the nicest set-ups in the district. It was supposed to be a high school, so we have some extra space for the little ones. It will be nice that we will start the year with clean and brand new classrooms. No matter how frustrated I get with how poorly the Recovery School District is run I still remind myself that this is a new district in a broken school system with new leadership and quite a vision for growth. I am lucky enough to be working under a very enthusiastic, fun, young, organized and hard working principal, Mrs. Batiste. One of the greatest values that she brings is the importance of “whole child” instruction. We have art, music, PE, and library/media time allotted for out students each day. These are the things that help students love school, find what they are good at, learn about heath, get some energy out, express themselves, and hopefully gain some confidence, and work ethic.

my life in pictures...

2007-08-23T15:47:00.000-07:00

you all know how much i love my pictures, so i am just going to let these pictures tell my story. so much has happened in my life over the last six months - firsts and lasts, beginnings and endings...

and then we were seniors...007 baby

the season flew by

but i was so lucky to have support every step of the way

the post season nerves were met with confidence
as we became the 2007 MPSF conference champs

while this trio showed Davis what goes down in "club falcon"

its true that nothing is better than hosting nationals senior year

and seeing my first BIG real-life design project

and having the cutest fan at the championship

and most of all having our team unite...
we never knew 2nd place could feel so good

it looks like gold to me

and before anyone knew it 14 years had passed

and it was time to say goodbye

with more goodbyes coming quickly, I did my best to enjoy seattle....
as a tourist in the market

on aliki enjoying my best friend and our favorite 90's style passtime

eating wonderful themed meals at the coo-ney-sta-van residence

on the water with some babes

and of course loving every moment with the triple k

and then it was time
we graduated on QUEST field (i wished i was playing football)

instead of sitting in the rain

but we did like our spu ponchos

and the next day i became a part of a national movement

and a week later i became a "teacher"

and even with a lack of sleep and a language barrier we still pushed forward

i was lucky enough to work with some incredible people

and together we found the good in the not-so-beautiful houston...
some amazing mexican food

wainwright elementary school

darts and karaoke

rice village

mark broussard

and my personal favorite, the texas two-step

then it was another goodbye to my loves heading to memphis, south dakota, rgv, houston, and hawaii

and hello to my new city

where my eyes have been opened,
to crazy bugs and plants

and some volumptuous women

overall it has been quite an adventure, sometimes am still not quite sure how i got here, but i know
there are many challenges to come and of course lots of fun along the way

the end.

ANDERSON COOPER 360

2007-08-18T15:14:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Courtney and I became friends with Anderson Cooper.

Some things I have learned

2007-08-14T21:05:00.000-07:00

I have learned:
I actually do like spending time alone
I have a hard time not having complete control over my life
Life cannot be planned
I wear my heart on my sleeve
I am too nice to people I don't know (I guess the don't talk to strangers rule never sunk in)
My friends and family complete me
I trust very easily
Nothing is in our time
I need physical affection to survive
And there is so much more to learn....

The Slow South

2007-07-24T07:57:00.000-07:00

Life in the south is going to take me awhile to fully adjust too. You definitely cannot be in a hurry here...It is called the Big Easy for a reason! Life is relaxed and everyone goes at there own pace. For now it has been fine because I haven't had too busy of a schedule, but it might be frustrating when I am trying to get things done.

We just started orientation this week. So far, we have just gotten some basic information and they assured us that we would have jobs before the first day of school. I sure hope that I get my placement before that so I have some time to plan and prepare! We have sessions more specific to our placement, so it will be nice to just concentrate on lower elementary objectives. It would be so much more productive if I actually had a job though! They say the ball is rolling, but I am sure it is so complicated with all these new schools opening.

We got some very interesting statistics yesterday:
Only 1 in 10 students from low-income communities will go to college
100% of students in the Recovery School District (RSD) receive free and reduced lunch - that means ALL of my kids!
1 in 3 adults in this community are illiterate
Out of 128 schools pre-Katrina only 54 have re-opened and 12 more are slated to open this fall
100% of the schools in Orleans Parish were damaged or completely ruined by the storm

This is such a time of building for the education systems in the city. These schools were the worst in the country before the storm, so not only is it our mission to rebuild and reopen the schools, but to make them better and more successful.

On a different note our house is starting to feel more like home bit by bit. First step, we got out water running!!! Now we need beds and other furniture. Here are some pictures of our place:

Micaela

2007-07-20T15:49:00.000-07:00

It’s not about us, but about SHE
It’s not about what she didn’t do, but about all she DID
It’s not about what she missed, but about all the days she did LIVE
It’s not about the songs she never sang, but about all the songs she sang BEAUTIFULLY
It’s not about saying goodbye, but about knowing she is ALWAYS with us
It’s not about lost love, but about all the LOVING she did
It’s not about this moment, but about ALWAYS remembering shared adventures
It’s not about missed opportunities, but about the way she was continuously ACCOMPLISHING
It’s not about blame, but about a lesson that will be with us ALWAYS
It’s not about the tears, but about remembering her SMILING
It’s not about what is fair, but about a greater faith we must ALWAYS rely upon
It’s not about us, it is about Micaela C. Maestas IN OUR HEARTS

SHE DID LIVE BEAUTIFULLY, ALWAYS LOVING, ALWAYS ACCOMPLISHING, ALWAYS SMILING, ALWAYS IN OUR HEARTS.

Rest in peace Micaela, God’s beautiful little girl.

Here in NOLA

2007-07-20T14:17:00.000-07:00

Dang. Once again I have waited so long to update this thing, I will try to get you up to date:

New Orleans...there is really no way to describe it. Somehow I have pride for the city and I have lived here for less than a week. I love all I have seen and am pumped about all the adventures ahead! It is so beautiful, with something new to see around every corner. There are streets with house after house of mansions. They are so big and beautiful - bright colors, intricate details, amazing porches, manicured lawns and big trees line the streets. The craziest part is a block over are houses that have been gutted and barely touched after Katrina. It is so different to be here and see how intense the effects of the storms were and how they are still so visible in the city two years later.

The roads are all crazy confusing - so many one way streets and "neutral grounds" which are like huge grassy medians and the most rugged pot holes. Parts of downtown reminded me of Seattle and then we went around the corner and thought I was in Vegas. The famous Bourbon Street is some strange mixture of Mexico, Hawaii, and what I would imagine of some European city. It is a skinny street with bars, restaurants, bars, hotels, bars, shops, bars. On the second level there are apartments with cool balconies. The places are painted bright colors and many have plants growing down the sides. People are walking around carrying Daiquiris - I guess the open container law is not in effect here.

Every time you drive into a different area there is more diversity and more to see. The city is such a mixture of so many influences and styles. I was so nervous coming here and knowing I had made a commitment to be here for the next two years. So far, so good...

We signed a lease on Monday - it did not take us long to find a place that we love. I will be living in an area of the city called Uptown with three other great girls named Courtney, Wilhelmina, and Lizzy. The house is a double shotgun that has been renovated into a single house. Our landlord just fixed everything up and it looks like new but still holds its character. There are new appliances, fancy lights, refinished floors, and really fun colors in the rooms. I somehow ended up with the huge room with a massive closet and very large bathroom. you know what that means? There is plenty of room for all y'all to visit me!!! I am pumped to get settled in and organized, but first I have to find some furniture!

My first visitor, my mama, spent the week with me. It was so great to have her here and now she will have a picture in her mind of where I will be living. She is so amazing and helped to keep me motivated and get things done. I feel bad that we had so much business to tend to instead of just having fun. We did some exploring though - we went on a Katrina tour. It was very sad, but better for me to have as much knowledge about the storm as I can. I just can't believe the force of nature. It is so crazy and sad to see house after house abandoned. The people who are back in the city have such faith and desire to rebuild this gem. This tour proved to me that I am in the right place doing the right thing. We drove past several schools - abandoned, empty, water lines past the windows, torn apart, boarded up, rusted - two years later, still closed, children loosing precious years of their education at no fault of their own. It is just not fair. I am so blessed to be a part of this time of rebuilding and growth.

I took Mom to the airport yesterday, she flew home early to go to Micaela's funeral - may she rest in peace.

CP and SJ

2007-07-08T19:44:00.000-07:00

It was a fun weekend...this picture is from the charity ball that we went to.

Institute

2007-07-04T20:10:00.000-07:00

I feel like I am getting a little better at this whole lesson planning thing, but it still takes me a long time everyday! Even though my sisters and mom are teachers, this whole experience has made my respect for teachers much greater. I always saw my family busy working, but I never really knew how much goes into the planning aspect of teaching. I was told that my execution is better than my lesson plans - Essentially, I am better at teaching than at preparing to teach. I will have plenty of practice to get this process down, I suppose.

The most patriotic thing I did all day was light some sparklers out front. It doesn't seem like the 4th of July - no bbq, no family, no fireworks. I has sessions for the first half of the day and the second half was filled with a very long nap (on accident!), catching up with Kelsey, and a trip to half price books. Now I just need to crank out a couple rough draft lesson plans for next week and get to bed.

Last night I got to have a good time, relax, and enjoy and dominate in an incredible game of darts.

Little Woodrow's with some O'hana friends!

I miss you guys! Just because I am busy doesn't mean I don't want to know whats up in your life - give me the update!

First Day Picture

2007-07-01T12:04:00.000-07:00

Ms. Sullivan and Ms. Stuckwisch on our first day as official teachers!

Don't worry I am still alive...

2007-06-30T15:29:00.000-07:00

i have been in houston texas living at the university of houston for the last two and a half weeks. i am staying in a dorm called moody towers that makes my dorms at spu seem high class. luckily i do not spend much time in my room and wednesday marked the half way point of this summer institute that is better known as 'teacher boot camp' around here.

our schedule is insane. i am doing surprsingly well for the sleep deprivation that i am facing. the first night was the worst. after flying in the day after graduation i went to sleep and woke up at about the same time that i had gone to bed the night before because of the time change and some late night packing. i usually get about 4 or 5 hours. i have mastered nap taking on the ride home - by the way everywhere we go here we go in old fashined yellow school busses. to school, to social events, to the baseball game(i got to see the mariners vs. astros). i always think it makes it a little hard to assert authority over students who see us arrive at school on a big yellow school bus with our backbacks and matching bright blue lunch boxes!!!

so what I have been up to in all these hours of the day you may ask? Well i am officially Ms. Sullivan - i am a teacher! i was under the impression that the five weeks in houston would be pushing it to train us to become teachers, well it ended up being five days instead! after the fist week of classes we began to teach summer school. i was placed in a first grade bilingual class which is cool because half of the class doesn't understand what I am saying, so it makes it pretty easy to teach them. :) in all seriousness - i do really like them, they are very cute kids. and smart, they just need some practice to get past this language barrier! they definitely give me a run for my money with the behavior management.

when i am not teaching, i am in seesions learning so much! i have never been feed so much information before. i think we cover about 5 credits worth each day. luckily we don't have paper tests, but we are tested in the classroom everyday! we all stay up late working on our lesson plans and preparring for the next day. or sometimes i just sacrifice some sleep to be social too.

my roommate in the grand moody towers is pretty awesome. we are going to live together in nola too! her name is courtney and she is from salem too. salem, virgina that is. she just graduated from university of virgina majoring in enlgish and french and minoring in american goverment...she has a lot to teach me obviously. my pseudo-roommate here is tiffany she basically rocks. we have found a common love for woodchucks and a general dislike for houston. she is a little social butterfly and seems to know eeryone already. after missing induction she has helped me to have made some cool friends here, its too bad that half of them are going to other regions...hawaii, south lousiana, or staying here in houston.

i will try to update y'all (you like that?) more often so that these messages aren't quite so long to read...