by Kimberly Sawatka | Apr 8, 2014
The Breakthrough Fellows, along with other GCO team members, recently had the opportunity to watch and reflect on the movie Les Misérables. For those unfamiliar with the story: an ex-convict, Jean Valjean, restores value to his life after a priest accepts him into his home and gives him a second chance to live with dignity. Though Valjean is able to turn his life around, the troubles of his past come to haunt him as his law-zealous adversary, Inspector Javert, recognizes him from his former life.
I found the story of Les Misérables so moving because it perfectly depicts the power of being grounded in morals and bringing purpose to one’s life. By accepting the challenge to become a new man, Valjean is able to transition his life from one stripped of purpose to one dedicated to serving others with true compassion. And though Inspector Javert’s pursuit continually disrupts Valjean’s peaceful life, the morals instilled by the priest are never forgotten. This serves Valjean immeasurably as he overcomes the temptation to slip back into his old ways.
Just as ethics and morals are vital to living well in our personal lives, organizations too must be grounded in values. This reflection on Les Misérables came just on the heels of a larger team discussion about the core values of Georgia Center for Opportunity. Under the example of a ship’s ballast (the heavy material that steadies a vessel), GCO’s President, Randy Hicks, listed Dignity , Humility, Integrity, Excellence, and Team as the traits that guide our work. Through evidence-based policy and community-based solutions, the true foundation of what we do is serving others with these values.
Integrity, Excellence, and Team are common core values for organizations that strive to produce high quality work. What I think makes GCO’s core values unique in the world of think tanks is our inclusion of Dignity and Humility. Often what makes policy effective is not the letter of what is written but rather the principles that connect laws and programs to a higher purpose. As human beings, each of us is inherently valuable and deserving of respect. We know that many of our fellow citizens face barriers to opportunity that limits their ability to thrive, driving our work and creating a sense of urgency. This is how Dignity is made manifest in our work.
But removing barriers to opportunity is complex, and the GCO staff certainly does not have all the answers. Thus we rely on the communities we serve to teach us about their challenges and we work with expert panels and community partnerships to help us identify and implement solutions. We work hard to affect change while keeping in mind our Humility, knowing the limits of what we can achieve alone and recognizing that our greatest impact is realized through working with others.
Human dignity lives by our ability to meet neighbors as equals irrespective of life circumstances, and the ability to accept the compassion of neighbors in times of need. In Les Misérables both Humility and Dignity are not only restoring forces in Jean Valjean’s life, but also guide his interactions with others as a new man. At GCO we recognize, as Jean Valjean did, that it is necessary to hold steadfast to one’s core values. The values that guide our personal lives and our work have the powerful ability to shape a better world around us and hold us to a higher purpose.
by Kimberly Sawatka | Mar 28, 2014
This week the Atlanta Science Festival offered a variety of events scattered across the city to indulge the curiosity of students young and old. As a self-admitted nerd, I was delighted to attend an event last night with the company of my 9 year old brother.
Prompted by his 3rd grade studies of space, my brother and I took full advantage of the festival by attending an open house at Agnes Scott College’s Bradley Observatory. The evening was hosted by the Astronomy Department, and visitors were able to learn about moon phases, view a planetarium show (my favorite part!), and tour the telescope tower amongst other science activities.
As we worked our way through the activity stations, I was thrilled to see my brother enhance his knowledge of the cosmos through such a fun community-based event. It is not every day that a student gets to engage professionals who work in unique areas such as astronomy. My brother really seemed to benefit from the opportunity to ask the professors as many questions as he could. Likewise, conversations with the undergraduate tour guides were a highlight for me. Hearing one student’s aspiration to work for NASA and another student’s study of life in space, I secretly hoped this experience planted a seed of interest in my brother.
Beyond looking through a telescope, my evening at the observatory emphasized the continuing need to spark interest in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math). In the context of the College and Career Pathways initiative, this is particularly vital as America’s economy becomes more rooted in technical and specialized industries. Events such the Atlanta Science Festival are incredibly important as they not only offer early exposure to the careers of the future, but also facilitate partnerships that benefit schools, businesses, and families alike.
(If you would like to take part in Atlanta Science Week yourself, don’t miss Exploration Expo at the Georgia World Congress Center!)
by Kimberly Sawatka | Mar 10, 2014
Below is a guest blog by Dr. Eric Wearne of Georgia Gwinnett College and formerly with the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement. Dr. Wearne currently leads GCO’s College & Career Pathways working group.
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Over the past several months, the Georgia Center for Opportunity’s College and Career Readiness working group has focused on big-picture concepts relating to “college readiness”. Presentations by administrators from Georgia Gwinnett College, as well as from the Foundation for Educational Success, which creates and administers programs on non-cognitive variables, have helped shape our discussion so far.
Most recently, the working group turned its focus towards “career readiness” issues. Early on in the group’s work, panelists supported the ideas coming from Mike Rowe’s foundation, and his theory that American education has not been serving great numbers of American students:
“A trillion dollars in student loans. Record high unemployment. Three million good jobs that no one seems to want. The goal of Profoundly Disconnected is to challenge the absurd belief that a four-year degrees the only path to success.”
To continue its research in this area, this month the panelists heard from both state-level and national experts on various needs and approaches specific to Georgia.
Matthew Gambill, Executive Director of the Georgia Association for Career and Technical Education, spoke to the group and answered questions. The idea of considering CTAE courses as academic credits; the need for more (and more well-supported) career academies across the state; and the idea of trying new advisement approaches to strengthen school counselors’ relationships with individual students were all topics of conversation.
The group also heard from Bob Lerman of the Urban Institute and American University. Dr. Lerman has spoken on MSNBC about the need for apprenticeship programs in the U.S., and is a founder of the American Institute for Innovative Apprenticeship.
Dr. Lerman talked about the relative strength of apprenticeships in Georgia compared to other states, noting the Georgia Youth Apprenticeship Program. He also argues that the Common Core State Standards, because of their one-size-fits-all approach, especially in high school, set up the possibility, or even the probability, of crowding out career-based programs with their focus on college readiness. Ultimately, while Georgia is actually doing some work to promote education and training for careers, Dr. Lerman felt that some opportunities exist in the state for improvements, including getting local businesses more involved in the process of partnering with schools and setting up apprenticeships; keeping the standards for entry into apprenticeship programs high (as a point of comparison, Teach for America, which is rapidly growing and has a good reputation among academically strong students, has a very high bar for entry); and making sure students are getting good counseling, especially in 9th and 10th grades.
Both speakers independently echoed some of the ideas the working group has been hearing in the context of college readiness – that individual relationships with students matter; that students are seeking more and more specific choices and options in their educational careers; and that big, sweeping programs intended to solve every problem for everyone of Georgia’s nearly 2 million students might just be too big.
by Kimberly Sawatka | Mar 1, 2014
Elementary pupils outside classroom talking to teacher. Courtesy: nspt4kids.com
Hidden beneath academic benchmarks, league tables, and other measures of success in education, are the relationships and personal traits that fuel positive and negative outcomes for students. Attending the College Access Challenge Grant Georgia Conference earlier this week, I realized this theme as presenters with extremely challenging backgrounds–such as one man who was abandoned at a bus station when he was 5 years old–shared their stories of trial and triumph. Relationships–both the ones we build with others, and the one we nurture with ourselves–are the true challenge of preparing students to be successful in school and in life.
Prefacing the College Access Challenge Grant Georgia Conference, Georgia Center for Opportunity hosted a meeting focused on the non-academic needs of students earlier this week. Presenters Reginald Beaty and Tony Owens, independent consultants and Co-Deans of Students at Paine College in Augusta, Ga, enlightened the College and Career Pathways working group with trend leading research on non-cognitive variables.
If I just lost you, non-cognitive variables, more commonly referred to as “soft-skills,” are the qualities such as self-awareness, resilience, and even time management that bridge testable knowledge with actual successful outcomes. Notable scholars such as Angela Duckworth, and William Sedlacek, Ph.D have led the conversation on how these skills can be fostered within traditional and nontraditional school settings to transform individual students’ mindsets to ensure they are better prepared to overcome adverse learning challenges.
Paring my experience at the conference with the meeting on non-cognitive variables, I gained 2 important take-aways this week:
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Personal experiences with adversity can build “soft-skills” such as self-perception and grit (the ability to preserve past challenges to reach long-term goals) that aid academic success. However, the framing of these vital skills in a negative context can potentially render them useless to students.
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Actively working to connect with students on an individual level, in some cases weeding through the traumas of a student’s life, can change the context through which students utilize these traits to close achievement gaps and reach personal redemption.
Ruby K. Payne, Ph.D notes in her acclaimed book A Framework for Understanding Poverty, that “support systems are simply networks of relationships.” From both meetings, the consensus was that more streamlined support systems are needed to empower students, and there is still much debate around how to deliver a more relationship-focused infrastructure. Seeking a solution for this issue will continue to be at the heart of the College and Career Pathways working group.
by Kimberly Sawatka | Feb 28, 2014
Sharing wisdom between generations. Courtesy: Thegospelcoalition.org
In addition to remembering the legacy and accomplishments of many great men and women, the essence of Black History Month is also about continuing to build a sense of family within communities. Our mothers, fathers, and grandparents are our first teachers in life. It is strong relationships such as these that help shape who we are, and prepare us to be the new writers of history.
In my own life, I am always amazed at the power of the relationships I share with the beautiful women in my family. I am very blessed to have known my maternal great-grandmother, and to still receive endless wisdom from my grandmother and mother. The special interactions between the generations in my family were the ones that taught me about values and morals, hard word, and dedication. My relationships with these women are also the ones that anchored my commitment to my education. They are the type of relationships, much like I discussed last Fellowship Friday, that seem to be foundational to reaching academic and personal success for all students.
Recognizing that all students can benefit from the guidance and mentorship of older generations, the value of close relationships is not a luxury that has to be confined between blood-family members. These important ties can also be duplicated by the teachers, pastors, friends, and other influential people who enter students’ lives. Finding new points of support for students is particularly important for disconnected youth, who continue to be disproportionate across racial and socioeconomic lines.
Just yesterday President Barack Obama announced an initiative many constituents have been awaiting his entire presidency–one that addresses the unique challenges men of color face in reaching academic, economic, and personal success. My Brother’s Keeper, as the initiative is called, extends a plan for new research and programmatic efforts to empower this group of young people.
Locally, Georgia Center for Opportunity is always dedicated to empowering stronger families and communities. As a Breakthrough Fellow it has been incredible–through the Breakthrough Norcross, College and Career Pathways, and the Prisoner-Reentry projects–to see such concerted efforts to link all Georgians irrespective of their background to better outcomes in life. I am continuing to learn what extends the essence of Black History Month past February. Policy efforts that are underlined with an understanding of service and strong relationships between neighbors, friends, and family are an important start.
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