Reflection on a day of service: Project 2013

I was fortunate to spend some hours in the Dove Springs neighborhood of Austin last Saturday. As the professor of a service learning class that includes many students who have worked tirelessly over the past year to make this day a reality, I was proud to see my students in action - many tackling first time experiences like tweeting, editing photos, supervising and coordinating to name a few daunting tasks. It was a huge success for the students, community and university staff that poured so much of themselves into this community-university partnership.

In class we are discussing the larger context of service learning, community-university partnerships, reflection, and higher education's civic mission. Students are continuing their service beyond Project in a variety of ways - all of their choosing and design. We have a group oral history project at the request of the Project 2014 neighborhood in Holly Street area of Austin, which is the start of relationship building with that community. Other students are pursuing their passions through existing organizations they are members of and others are paving the way for next year's Project and applying lessons learned. At the end of the semester, they will present the projects and what they learned. Our focus is on the relational aspect of doing community work and building capacity over time. Community work is not a straight line, not much in life really is; however, we often judge ourselves and our work by a "perfect, predetermined outcome". I am hoping students find the magic in unexpected places, allow themselves to be surprised and redefine what success really means. There is so much we cannot possibly know at the onset of a project, and rather than find that terrifying, I am challenging you to open yourself to the possibility of the unknown.

http://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity.html
While driving home from Dove Springs I Saturday, I listed to an interview with Sir Ken Robertson on NPR.  As soon as I got home I listened to his entire TED Talk. I thought about how creativity is choked in education and often forsaken for "practicality" or worse, a mistake free expectation in learning. My biggest breakthroughs were a result of discomfort, missteps, and unexpected roadblocks. I see my role as a teacher to help students navigate the obstacles, not to prevent them. In our quest to learn and build knowledge, and inspire positive change, mistakes are unavoidable, therefore a system that penalizes them is blocking a necessary ingredient to innovate and expand horizons. When we debriefed about Project, we started down that predictable road of identifying where things fell short. Do not get me wrong, feedback leads to improvement; however, turning our attention to what opportunities present themselves when things go off course is also important. What opportunities are we missing for our growth and development and the good of the community? There is no one right way, or one right answer; however, there are countless possibilities to seize if you are flexible and open. Efficiency can always be improved on, and a worthy endeavor that is; however, I caution you not to overlook the magic that is right in front of you.

One encounter, one day, one moment can lead to a lifetime connection and become a tipping point for you or some you touch. Be bold, visionary and passionate, and fly in the face of adversity. Let your mistakes be your teacher and dust yourself and your pride off when you stumble. I am proud of each and every one of you for your dedication and commitment to the UT Austin motto: "What starts here changes the world" and I look forward to the rest of the semester and helping to facilitate your growth and development - and of course learning along with you!

The Power of Art to Uphold Community

While reading the New York Times today I came across this article about the Ghanaian artist El Anatsui.

-->http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/10/arts/design/a-million-pieces-of-home-el-anatsui-at-brooklyn-museum.html?pagewanted=all

I saw this exhibit when it was at the Blanton and was impressed - and as an artist it is not easy to impress me. What I love about his work is that he held his home and community close to his heart in creating works of art and was not seduced to the riches and abandon his culture or identity. For me art has the ability to articulate the complex realities we experience as we navigate our way in the world. It is my language and in many ways my rapture. But art is not limited to the self proclaimed artists of the world, it is for everyone - to enjoy, participate in, to rejoice in, and be moved by. When we create we are all artists, and by create I mean any endeavor, including creating community. You are all artists in community building and I hope you will experience the magic of possibility as you practice your art in Dove Springs and beyond. Hence, another worthy article sent to me today by a friend:

http://dailyserving.com/2013/01/social-practice-skills/

I will conclude with a few pieces of my own art inspired by my engagement with community. See you tomorrow!

A Day to Rememebr

The passing of time can make it easy to forget but reading my news feed I was once again gripped by the tragic shooting of Treyvon Martin, particularly in the shadow Sandy Hook and the epidemic gun deaths in Chicago. I wanted to share this article with you all as Treyvon's mom thinks of her son on his birthday and the debate on gun laws (stand your ground).

http://thegrio.com/2013/02/05/trayvon-martin-birthday-his-mom-reflects-on-laws/#s:sybrina-fulton-jahvaris-16x9

Hi Class,

I read this blog and thought about our discussion today:
http://www.joshiejuice.com/blog/on-the-hysteria-of-anti-affirmative-actions/
I am following a colleague of mine on her blog - she is teaching the same class I taught last year (Foundations of Social Justice) - and she posted about this blog.

I have encountered many conflicting emotions about race, class, culture, when working in communities, particularly in Mart where I am the white family of a black family, a UT professor, artist and founder of the MCP. I wrote and created art work about the complexity of my work there and the consequence of having multiple roles. I will write more about this as the semester progresses and share some of the visual work I did as a result. Reflection helps put things in perspective!

This a picture of Quan Cosby and I - UT social work alum, UT football star and NFL player who was born and raised in Mart. Quan is a supporter of the MCP and still returns to Mart to visit family and make a contribution.

Hi class,

I wanted to post the link to Imagining America. ( http://imaginingamerica.org/) On the homepage they describe themselves as follows:

We are an organization grounded in scholarship and creative practice, looking to translate our best thinking and creation into actions. Whether exploring how arts contribute to community development, recognizing the wealth of knowledge produced through partnerships bringing together community and campus stakeholders, or making it possible for a faculty member’s public scholarship to “count” when he or she comes up for tenure and promotion, IA is committed to higher education as an active agent for the public good.
A consortium of 90 colleges and universities, and their partners, IA emphasizes the possibilities of humanities, arts, and design in knowledge-generating initiatives. Such activity can span disciplines through collaborations with public health, environmental issues, community education, neighborhood development, and others. We also value the knowledge and creativity-generating components of partnerships among people whose everyday lives produce different kinds of expertise. So the scholar in the library, the teacher in the classroom, the organizer in the community – each provides different expertise that together is greater than the sum of its parts.
Through our website, you can learn about specific projects in this spirit carried out by our members and partners, as well as about IA’s collaborative Research & Action initiatives. You can download various publications produced under our wing. You can find out how to join us at regional and national convenings, and receive our field-wide news. Enjoy!

They have a blog, a Face Book page, and an excellent publications tab so I encourage you to explore as we navigate the waters of community engagement.

Thinking About Community

The debate about gun control has been in the news since the tragic shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary. The President announced 23 Executive Orders and urged Congress to act immediately. On a visit to Auburn University this week I taught a Policy class and discussed social problems - and what makes an issue a social problem. I used gun control as an example of how social policy is a value statement and included statistics about Chicago and the record number of gun deaths in the city in 2012 and already 41 deaths since January 1st, including a 15 year old honor student who played in her school band at the presidential inauguration. (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/31/us/chicago-shooting-shakes-city-and-capital.html) Chicago has strict gun control laws; however, the guns are coming in from surrounding counties and states that looser laws.

I thought about the pain and grief in the hardest hit communities and how violence tears apart the fabric of a community that is already struggling to survive. Hadiya Pendleton's mother was interviewed and broke down in tears - and so did I. As a mother I wondered how you carry on after a loss like that? Two students in the class at Auburn said they were from the town where a child is being held hostage and were checking the news in their phones for updates. (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/01/us/standoff-in-alabama-kidnapping-continues.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=0) For these two students the news flash was personal - and touched them as community members. And then I remembered the outpouring of grief after the Sandy Hook killings - how we as a nation felt part of that community and what we call a "policy window" was created as a result of the tragedy. But the epidemic number of gun deaths in Chicago, the senseless murder of Hadiya Pendleton, and the incident in Alabama reminded me as a nation we are many communities threaded together. Strengthening communities and working collectively to abate the violence that claims far too many lives is a shared responsibility and takes many forms.