Thursday, December 10, 2009
we could use a few more "ONG's" around here...
So, a few weeks ago I planned on going to ONG, but I just knew something would go wrong.. .I had a feeling, but I drove out there anyways. Upon arrival I find out that the kids were going on a field trip to Red Arrow Park, many of the kids who normally come to the High School Connection program did not show, but the ones that did seemed pretty excited to go. So, I finally decided I would tag along, and followed the bus downtown. Well, some event was going on down by Red Arrow because there were news vans, police cars and a lot of people, so traffic and parking was terrible. I ended up getting separated from everyone else and frustrated due to lack of parking, so I disappointedly went back home. It would have been nice to see how the kids from ONG interact outside of their “formal” environment because the field tip seemed pretty fun (it would have also been interesting to find out what was going on at Red Arrow that night). I also realized that the following week was thanksgiving, and the students had a special dinner planned for Tuesday, which seemed fun but I didn’t want to interrupt that, so finally I am brought to the first week of December and able to visit the volunteers and students at ONG once again.
Although it is the first big snowfall of the year, it seems like everyone is here at ONG (students and volunteers). Like every other day, the students and volunteers are welcomed with hot food, today it is mozzarella sticks and baggies of chips. Also, like most other days, the students have the radio on in the background, and the night begins with everyone settling in, enjoying food and just hanging out with one another. While the students were all settling in, I awkwardly walked up to a table of mostly volunteers (some from UWM) and a few students and asked if I could sit with them. I still feel some-what awkward coming here to take notes and pictures, so today I decide to just talk with a few individuals and try to blend in. I started by talking with the other volunteers at my table, most seem to have been able to make it down to ONG more often than I have, and most of the students seem to know the volunteers pretty well, it would have been nice to build up those kinds of relationships with the students myself. But I found it pretty hard to make it down to ONG living further away and having work most week nights.
After everyone seemed to have settled in, a very outgoing 10th grade boy, who was only one of two students at our table, began proudly showing off some of his drawings to the other volunteers and I. Although he admitted to doing most of his drawings during class- he told us that his teachers get mad because they think he isn’t paying attention- but yet he still gets “A’s,” the drawings were very creative and a few even had poetry that went along with them. He also had a story to tell us about every one of his drawings. Since he admitted to doing his drawings when he was “bored during class” (aka when he shouldn’t be ) I asked if he was in an art class at his high school, but he replied that he dropped out of an art class he was taking because they didn’t let him exercise his own creative expression. Since there was no organized activity/ art project at this meeting, most students are just socializing in a far corner and a few left early (around 5:20), it would have been nice to participate in an art project and see this creative young man that I have been talking to in action! But, from there we somehow ended up talking about history- which is another subject of his interest. He talked about a civil war movie that was played in class, gave us some fun facts on the assassination of Lincoln, and told us some stories from WWII diaries that he read in a class. He even brought up some facts I had never heard of before- I guess you can learn a lot by just opening up and talking to new people!
Above all else, my experience at ONG taught me that it is okay, even great, to open up to strange environments and people… to break outside my shell (I’m for the most part a pretty shy person). You can learn so much by just putting yourself out there and taking the time to talk with people and really listen. I also learned that more communities throughout Wisconsin (maybe even the U.S.) need more places like ONG. It is just a great place to socialize with others, make new friends, get homework done without distraction, get help on problems, and receive guidance. I also learned (from a few of the students) that ONG provides great opportunities for its students, whether it is through college prep, career planning, or just going on field trips. Lastly, I learned from the 10th grade boy I talked to, that ONG is a great place to let your creative energy flow, be it through organized group projects or individual work. The truth is, I wish I had a place like ONG to go to when I was in high school!
Although it is the first big snowfall of the year, it seems like everyone is here at ONG (students and volunteers). Like every other day, the students and volunteers are welcomed with hot food, today it is mozzarella sticks and baggies of chips. Also, like most other days, the students have the radio on in the background, and the night begins with everyone settling in, enjoying food and just hanging out with one another. While the students were all settling in, I awkwardly walked up to a table of mostly volunteers (some from UWM) and a few students and asked if I could sit with them. I still feel some-what awkward coming here to take notes and pictures, so today I decide to just talk with a few individuals and try to blend in. I started by talking with the other volunteers at my table, most seem to have been able to make it down to ONG more often than I have, and most of the students seem to know the volunteers pretty well, it would have been nice to build up those kinds of relationships with the students myself. But I found it pretty hard to make it down to ONG living further away and having work most week nights.
After everyone seemed to have settled in, a very outgoing 10th grade boy, who was only one of two students at our table, began proudly showing off some of his drawings to the other volunteers and I. Although he admitted to doing most of his drawings during class- he told us that his teachers get mad because they think he isn’t paying attention- but yet he still gets “A’s,” the drawings were very creative and a few even had poetry that went along with them. He also had a story to tell us about every one of his drawings. Since he admitted to doing his drawings when he was “bored during class” (aka when he shouldn’t be ) I asked if he was in an art class at his high school, but he replied that he dropped out of an art class he was taking because they didn’t let him exercise his own creative expression. Since there was no organized activity/ art project at this meeting, most students are just socializing in a far corner and a few left early (around 5:20), it would have been nice to participate in an art project and see this creative young man that I have been talking to in action! But, from there we somehow ended up talking about history- which is another subject of his interest. He talked about a civil war movie that was played in class, gave us some fun facts on the assassination of Lincoln, and told us some stories from WWII diaries that he read in a class. He even brought up some facts I had never heard of before- I guess you can learn a lot by just opening up and talking to new people!
Above all else, my experience at ONG taught me that it is okay, even great, to open up to strange environments and people… to break outside my shell (I’m for the most part a pretty shy person). You can learn so much by just putting yourself out there and taking the time to talk with people and really listen. I also learned that more communities throughout Wisconsin (maybe even the U.S.) need more places like ONG. It is just a great place to socialize with others, make new friends, get homework done without distraction, get help on problems, and receive guidance. I also learned (from a few of the students) that ONG provides great opportunities for its students, whether it is through college prep, career planning, or just going on field trips. Lastly, I learned from the 10th grade boy I talked to, that ONG is a great place to let your creative energy flow, be it through organized group projects or individual work. The truth is, I wish I had a place like ONG to go to when I was in high school!
Friday, October 16, 2009
Photo Essay
In order to view text for the photos: you have to hit the expand button in the lower right corner of the slide show and then click the "show info" button on the top right to see the text.
"Artist Statement" on Slide Show
Upon first arriving in an unknown area, one can expect to feel nervous and anxious. I had never been to the area of 35th and Lisbon in Milwaukee before and I was not sure what to expect. I didn't know whether I was walking into a friendly community or not, nor what kind of people I would meet, which made me feel both anxious and nervous. But, I was pleasantly surprised upon arrival. I began progress on my photo essay by first walking around, taking pictures of various buildings(one school child asked what I was taking pictures of) and noting consistencies throughout the neighborhood. I also wanted to find out where Our Next Generation Inc. is located simply for future reference. It was a difficult building to find and I had no idea what I was looking for, so I asked a man standing on a street corner, he was very friendly(I had felt awkward approaching a complete stranger) but had never heard of Our Next Generation Inc. Next I decided to walk into a church located on 35th and Lisbon to see if they know where ONG was located, and to my surprise... it is located right inside that very church! The workers of ONG were also very friendly and told me I should come back later on for their High-School Connection program so that I could interview some children about their neighborhood.
So, I began my exploration of the neighborhood once again. As I walked I saw many beautiful Victorian-style homes, many churches and child-care centers (at least 12 total), and many motivational signs. All of these aspects seemed to communicate a strong religious base, a focus on betterment students/children and a future goal of betterment in the community as a whole. I honestly had never seen so many churches and community centers in one area in my entire life, it was quite inspiring. After really getting a feel for the community myself it was time for me to head back to ONG to see what some high school students thought about the community they live in. I was quite surprised to see so many high school kids come to this after-school program- all on their own free will. One ONG worker was kind enough to find two students, Will and Lilibeth, to talk with me about the neighborhood. I found out that most students who come to the ONG program are not from this particular community but commute to the area every Tuesday and Thursday night. While Lilibeth did commute, Will had moved to the neighborhood this past year, when I asked him what he thought about the area he said it was "pretty okay." Both interviewees did agree that the community is strongly focused on improvement and achieves such improvement through organizations such as ONG. Both students (along with others I talked to) spoke highly of ONG and all the various opportunities it provides for them. Some of these are social activism committees, leadership skill, volunteer work, help with homework and much,much more.
Overall the entire community (along with ONG) is very welcoming and genuinely committed to the future of their youth which coincides with the overall betterment of the community as a whole.
So, I began my exploration of the neighborhood once again. As I walked I saw many beautiful Victorian-style homes, many churches and child-care centers (at least 12 total), and many motivational signs. All of these aspects seemed to communicate a strong religious base, a focus on betterment students/children and a future goal of betterment in the community as a whole. I honestly had never seen so many churches and community centers in one area in my entire life, it was quite inspiring. After really getting a feel for the community myself it was time for me to head back to ONG to see what some high school students thought about the community they live in. I was quite surprised to see so many high school kids come to this after-school program- all on their own free will. One ONG worker was kind enough to find two students, Will and Lilibeth, to talk with me about the neighborhood. I found out that most students who come to the ONG program are not from this particular community but commute to the area every Tuesday and Thursday night. While Lilibeth did commute, Will had moved to the neighborhood this past year, when I asked him what he thought about the area he said it was "pretty okay." Both interviewees did agree that the community is strongly focused on improvement and achieves such improvement through organizations such as ONG. Both students (along with others I talked to) spoke highly of ONG and all the various opportunities it provides for them. Some of these are social activism committees, leadership skill, volunteer work, help with homework and much,much more.
Overall the entire community (along with ONG) is very welcoming and genuinely committed to the future of their youth which coincides with the overall betterment of the community as a whole.
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