April 22, 2024 Read Time:
ConnectingStudentsResilienceMental Health
It is often said that children are our future, but recently I have been reminded of how very much children are also our present. On Wednesday, I traveled to Buffalo for a Big Picture Learning Network convening of New York-based high school teachers and leaders. Big Picture is a global network of more than 275 schools whose motto is “leaving to learn.” Their model is highly personalized, and designed for students who have not found success in mainstream schools. Instead, working with their teacher “advisors,” Big Picture students engage in internships that interest them, and inspire them to thrive. Throughout the two day convening we visited internship sites ranging from museums, to a metal fabrication company, to a trail that promotes Lake Erie, to a T-shirt company. At each we talked with students who shared how Big Picture pulled them out of their comfort zones; students who barely spoke when they first arrived at the school were leading panel discussions with poise and comfort. They were highly motivated and engaged.
One could easily attribute Big Picture’s success to the internships alone. What struck me as equally powerful, however, was the focus on community-building. “They treat us like humans,” the students repeatedly said of their advisors. Students also talked about how much they valued their connections with one another and the imperative to get along with everyone. In other words, the internships are embedded in a strong network of relationships.
The power of relationships was a central theme of an unrelated gathering another gathering this past weekend, when a small group of adults and young people met at the Lynn Youth Street Outreach Advocacy (LYSOA), an organization whose mission is to empower the highest-risk youth in the city and beyond.
All year, as part of ECLC’s partnership with Community Catalyst, a national non-profit organization focused on health equity, we have met with young people experiencing mental health and substance use crises and are advocating for changes in school discipline policies in Essex County. It’s been remarkable to watch our connections solidify and our conversations deepen since last August. In addition to learning about advocacy and embarking on an advocacy campaign, these young people are teaching us, and informing our work to create aligned learning experiences for school-based adults in the coming school year. Look for new offerings focused on building a stronger wellness infrastructure for youth in Essex County in our 2024-25 Learning Agenda.
Both groups of young people - those at Big Picture Learning schools and the LYSOA youth - have found a sense of belonging in these alternative spaces because relationships have been front and center. I am so grateful to have had time to meet with them all over the past several days, and to be reminded once again just how much our young people have to teach us.
You can learn more about our LYSOA work at our upcoming Showcase of Learning on May 8, where some of the participating educators will be among the exhibitors sharing their experiences. I hope you can join us for this extraordinary event celebrating another outstanding year of adult learning, and looking ahead to all that we can do next together as a community. Register here.
