february, 2013

Serving Duluth’s Hillside Neighborhoods February, 2013 Volume 13 Issue 2

“The healthcare system is broken. Without lifetime employment

our healthcare system is broken, expensive, inefficient, and

poorly adapted to an economy no longer built on lifetime employment - a system that exposes Americans to insecurity and possible destitution...”- Formerly, Senator Barack Obama, The Audactiy of Hope

THE HILLSIDERA COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER

Duluth’s East High “Students for the Future” Group.

St. Mark’s Church members

President Barack Obama’s 2nd Inauguration, 2013Source: Huffingtonpost.com

When Praise Is What You

Do

SOURCE: http://blog.justanswer.com/relation-ships/little-known-facts-about-valentines-day/“Here are a few surprising answers, courtesy of the U.S. Census Bureau”(Musbach: 2012)

The Islamic Center of the Twin Ports (ICTP) in cooperation with the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Duluth (UUCD) invites you to a fundraising dinner to help provide food and shelter to the victims of Syria.

This recent crisis in Syria has resulted in a large number of refugees move to surrounding countries, and more than 1.5 million being internally displaced. Our fundraising will help provide food and warm blankets to the needy people of Syria.

We will be serving Middle Eastern cuisine with vegetarian optionsIn place of a set price, a good-will donation will be accepted. To up, send an email to [email protected] reservation is for Syria fundraising meal, tell us the seating time and number of people atttending.

For more information, call UUCD at 218-724-0308 or contact [email protected] (217-416-6322)

WHEN: SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2013SEATING: 5:30PM 7:00PM

WHERE: UUCD835 W COLLEGE STREETDULUTH, MN 55811

available. sign

Crisis

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 2 5:30PM & second seating, 7:00PM Syrian Crisis FundraiserDinner (Middle Eastern & Indian Cui-sine) Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Duluth 835 College Street Organized by: Islamic Center of the Twin Ports http://ictpmn.org/syrian-crisis-fundraiser/MONDAY,FEBRUARY 46:30 - 8:30PM UnFair Campaign* Community Report Back - Moving Forward! Church of Restoration 2623 W. 2nd St.WEDNESDAY,FEBRUARY 65:30 - 7:30PM Lincoln Park Community Garden Meeting #1 (Meeting #2 Wed., March 6)Come one, Come all What’s Your Vision? Refreshments provided. Harrison Community Center 3002 W. 3rd St.6:30 - 8:30PM UnFair Campaign*Community Report Back - Moving Forward! Central Hillside Community Center12 E. 4th St.THURSDAY,FEBRUARY 76:30 - 8:30PM UnFair Campaign*Community Report Back - Moving Forward!

Pilgrim Congregational Church2310 E. 4th St.* The public is invited to one of three events to learn more about the UnFair Campaign, ask questions, share reflections, and join others in making next steps toward racial justice. Refreshments and childcare will be provided at each location. Call 218-727-1939 with questions or to re-quest childcare. Visit www.unfaircampaign.org or www.facebook.com/unfaircampaign for more information.FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 86:00 - 9:00 PM Duluth-Rania Friendship-Exchange Project Fundraiser Dinner & silent auctionFree & open to the publicUnitarian Universalist Congregation of Duluth 835 College Street 218-491-4022. Helpers also needed!THURSDAY,FEBRUARY 14One Billion Rising Global Movement@EveEnsler joins women globally to Rise, Dance & Demand an end to violence against women. Watch the powerful YouTube videos!www.onebillionrising.orgFRIDAY,FEBRUARY 1511:00AM-1:00PM Collective Mind MapNew questions will be asked for community responses@Skywalk @3RD Ave. West10:00AM Lake Superior Binational Forum: Planning for the Future:

Municipalities and Marinas and Climate Change Impacts - Free webinar To register, please email: [email protected],FEBRAURY 1611:00AM - 1:00PM Northern Expres-sion Art Collective (NEAC)Summer Fun Beach DayEngaging, creative, experienced based art learning projects. Healthy snack preparation demonstrated. 1 rule: RESPECT! $5/child (no child turned away) To register, email: [email protected], or at door.Harrison Community Center3002 W. 3rd St.THURSDAY,FEBRUARY 2110:00AM Lake Superior Binational Forum: Shared Stewardship of the Lake Superior Basin - The Faith Community Responds to Climate Change - Free webinar To register, please email: [email protected]

Thank you for your commitment to restarting the Hillsider,

an important publication that brings our city together.

We encourage the community to support the Hillsider.

MUCH TO DO. . .Is a potluck being hosted? A discussion? Training? Childcare? Social engagement? Are you planning something? Send information about a community gathering to [email protected] before February 20th please.

MEETING MONTHLY

2ND&4TH MONDAYS CITY COUNCIL 5:30 - 7:30PM City Hall Room 303 Feb. 11, Feb. 25

3RD MONDAYNATIVE AMERICAN COMMISSION5:00 - 7:00PMCity Hall Room 303Feb. 18

2ND WEDNESDAY HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION 6:00PMCity HallRoom 303February 13th

THE HILLSIDERPAGE 2

“As free citizens in a political democracy, we have a responsibility to be interested and involved in the affairs of the human community...”

- US Senator Paul Wellstone

Add An Event:[email protected]

TheHillsiderDuluth.wordpress.com218.464.6397(n-e-w-s)

928 1/2 E. 4th St. Duluth, MN 55805

DAYS TO REMEMBER

FEBRUARY 21, 1965 Malcolm X was assassinated FEBRUARY 28, 1973 American Indian Movement occupied wounded knee

MEETING WEEKLY Every Monday 5:00 - 7:00PM Lincoln Park Children and Families Collaborative For families & caregivers of children prenatal to five years of age parent groups, family activities and community building

(Dinner and Child Care provided) Rock Hill Church 2401 W. 5th Street

WHERE: UUCD835 COLLEGE ST. W. DULUTH, MN

WHEN PRAISE IS WHAT YOU DOPAGE 3FEBRUARY, 2013

We are grateful to serve Duluth, MN with an outlet for collective voices, creativity,

knowledge, entertainment, and social connections of value.

We are grateful for community support!

Edited by Jennifer Cummings & Treasure Jenkins

You support The Hillsider when you; purchase an advertisement, a banner of support, or donate printing costs for a page; report on life in the

hillside through words, graphics, poetry, photographs; participate in Collective Mind Maps; join the board of directors; read The Hillsider and

talk about the issue with friends and family.

Board of directors voluntarily oversees The Hillsider organization

Current Directors:Bruce Howell

Rosemary HamptonScot Bol

Rebecca DomagalaClaudie Washington

Looking Back and Moving Forward!Wednesday, Feb. 6, 6:30–8:30 p.m.Refreshments and childcare provided.

Visit www.unfaircampaign.org for details or call (218)727-1939

Central Hillside Community Center12 East 4th Street, Duluth

By T. A. Jenkins

Divinity rises and claims the air at Saint Mark’s Church, on Sunday mornings just about 11 am. At the front of the church, near the alter and the piano, 6 or 7 or 8 women lift their voices to worship God.

“Singing in the choir makes me feel happy and singing is fun”, Larita said.

In March of 2011, Michael and Robin Gonzales began their ministry at St. Mark Church. Pas-tor Gonzales says he is led by the Holy Spirit to join the church mem-bers with the message of God, as written in the Bible. The Gospel Choir plays the role of setting a tone to prepare the congregation to receive the Pastor’s sermon.

“We minister to the church with our worship songs”, said Brigette the Director of the Gospel Choir.

Many of us enjoy music and many of us listen to various types but gospel music is sacred. Gos-pel music as a tradition has been composed to be an emotionally sensitive remembrance of God.

“You can feel the Holy Spirit, there is a tingling that you feel and it touches your heart.” Natasha said.

For over ten years, the Saint Mark Gospel choir has inspired the congregation before and during the Sunday church service. The choir has the role of amplifying the message of Christ as Lord and Savior being delivered through the Lord’s word.

“I like to sing and then when we are singing in ministry

to the church, I can feel the Holy Spirit”, said Larita.

A song, a beautiful song plays on the radio. The words describe

your mood and the thoughts you are having at the time. Imagine that the words touch your heart and give a comfort that says God can take care of problems, big or small. Gospel music has that special quality of guiding people to learn to rely on a greater power.

“When I am singing and praising God, all of my trou-bles and the worries I have

go away,” says Eileen.

Some of them are grandmoth-ers, some are single moms, some work in offices and others are students. During the week, each of the choir members have indi-vidual responsibilities. On Sunday mornings, they begin their week by coming together as a Church Fam-ily and praise is what they do.

St. Mark’s A M E Church is warm and welcoming. There is Bible study on Saturday mornings and a church service on Sun-day mornings. St. Mark A M E is located at 530 N 5th Ave E. This year will be the 125th anniversary of its founding. The AME Church has never strayed from the course charted by Richard Allen. The church is wedded to the spiritual doctrine of “God our Father, Christ our Re-deemer, Man our Brother”. Rich-ard AAllen was elected the first bishop of the AME Church in 1816. In 1786, Allen was invited to preach to African-American mem-bers at St. George’s Methodist Church in Philadelphia, Pennsylva-nia where he was required to lead services at 5am so as to not inter-fere with the worship of the white congregants. As the African-Amer-ican membership at St. George’s grew under Allen’s leadership,

racial tensions in the congrega-tion also increased. In 1787, Allen and Absalom Jones founded the Free African Society, an organiza-tion to provide aid to members of the black community. When Allen, Jones, and other African-Ameri-cans left St. George’s in protest of racial discrimination, they turned to the Free African Society as a source of religious leadership. The Society under Jones’ leader-ship would eventually organize the African Church, now known as the African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas, in 1792. Allen, however, wished to maintain a connection with the Methodist church and purchased land at 6th and Lom-bard Streets for the construction of a church. On July 29, 1794, Bethel Church was dedicated at the loca-tion. In 1816, Bethel joined with other black Methodist congrega-tions to found the African Method-ist Episcopal Church in America. Bethel became Mother Bethel and Allen was appointed the first bishop of the church.

Allen and Mother Bethel continued to play a role in the life of the free African-American community of Philadelphia. The church served as a stop on the Underground Railroad, and Allen remained an active leader of the church working for the rights of free and enslaved African-Americans. Constructed in the 1890s, the current Mother Bethel church building still sits at 6th and Lombard on the oldest parcel of real estate in the United States continuously owned by African-Americans. Richard Allen died on March 26, 1831. He and his wife Sarah are interred in a lower level of the church.

RESOURCES The African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas. http://www.aecst.org/about.htm

“About Us – Our History.” African Method-ist Episcopal Church. http://www.ame-church.com/about-us/history.php

“History of the AME Church.” Mother Beth-el African Methodist Episcopal Church. www.motherbethel.com/museum.htm

“Richard Allen.” Africans in America. PBS. www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part3/3p97.html

St. Mark’s Church Gospel Choir

“If we don’t fight hard enough for the things we stand for, at some point we have to recognize that we don’t really stand for them.”

- US Senator Paul Wellstone

February 14th is a day filled with roses, chocolate and greeting cards bringing messages of sweet love. Val-entine’s Day is the special day during the year when couples across the nation celebrate their devotion to one another. In this country, Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day are the two days when more flow-ers are bought and sold, than on any other day during the year. Think about where the flowers are grown, prepared and packaged. There is a detailed process in place for the growth and distribution of flowers, from world mar-kets. This Valentine’s Day, we can notice and come to understand flower production and the workers in Colombia who tend, cut, pack, and ship flowers to consumers in the U.S. Flower workers, most of whom are women, have worked 16 to 18 hour days for poverty-level wages to send flowers to the United States market for February 14th.

Sixty percent of all flow-ers bought in the U.S. come from Colombia, where nearly

100,000 workers are right now working long days to cut and ship flowers for Valentine’s Day. Workers earn less than enough to support their fami-lies, work long hours, suffer sexual harassment, and are fired when they try to organize to improve wages and condi-tions.

Turn Valentine’s Day into International Flower Workers Day and take action to sup-port flower workers and other workers in Colombia who are demanding fair wages, equal treatment, justice, and dignity.You can act Now: Send a letter to the Colombian Labor Minister! The Cactus Corporation and Colombian unions com-memorate Valentine’s Day as International Flower Workers Day in order to expose the conditions that face flower workers.

The Cactus Corporation is a non-profit organization in Colombia that has been supporting flower workers for over a decade. They initiated International Flower Work-ers Day in collaboration with Colombian unions and this year released a series of videos available on YouTube, in Spanish with rough English subtitles. Cactus requests the sup-port of the international com-munity, especially the

“United States, which imports

90% of Colombia’s flowers,”

to support flower workers. Workers in Colombia are not asking you to stop buying flowers this Valentine’s Day because that won’t help them. Crack down on employers who violate the law, who fail to respect worker rights and fail to treat their workers with dignity and justice!

RESOURCESThe Atlantic: “There’s a 1 in 12 Chance Your V-Day Flow-ers Were Cut by ChildLaborers”http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/02/theres-a-1-in-12-chance-your-v-day-flowers-were-cut-by-child-laborers/253084/

Labor Rights Forum: “On Val-entine’s Day, lingering ques-tions about labor violations in the flower industry”http://www.laborrights.org/print/13116

The Florida Independent: “On Valentine’s Day, lingering questions about labor viola-tions in the flower industry”http://floridaindependent.com/69208/valentines-day-flower-industry-colombia-labor

By Antonio Ramos Rosa (born 1928 in Portugal) Translated to English from the original Portuguese.

I cannot hold back loveFor another hundred yearsNo, I cannotEven though the scream chokes my throatEven though the hatred erupts, breaks and burnsUnder the gray mountainsOver the gray mountains

I cannot holdback a hugThat is a two edged swordLove and hatred

No, I cannot hold backEven though the night weighs centuries on the coastsAnd the dawn is still uncertainI cannot hold back my lifeFor another hundred yearsNor my loveNor my cry for freedom

I cannot hold back my heart

Não posso adiar o amor para outro século não posso ainda que o grito sufoque na garganta ainda que o ódio estale e crepite e arda sob montanhas cinzentas e montanhas cinzentas

Não posso adiar este abraço que é uma arma de dois gumes amor e ódio

Não posso adiar ainda que a noite pese séculos sobre as costas e a aurora indecisa demore não posso adiar para outro século a minha vida nem o meu amor nem o meu grito de libertação

Não posso adiar o coração

BE A VALENTINE By A Hillsider Writer

“Sixty percent of all flowers

bought in the U.S. come from Colombia”

I Cannot Hold Back Love For Another Hundred Years

THE HILLSIDERPAGE 4

With thoughts of our ancestors, the freed African slaves who fled North

America after the Emancipation Proclamation relocating to Brazil.

Não posso adiar o amor para outro século

“...Progress. Progress is a nice word. But change is its motivator. And change has its enemies.”

- Former President John F. Kennedy, Chicago, August, 1963.

TEST NOW! New, more difficult computer-based test will start Jan. 2014.

READ AND THEN READ MORE! By A Hillsider Writer

… education, once acquired can never, ever be taken away from us.

Beauty. Garbage. Fairness. Shorelines. Poetry. Corruption. Humility.

Consider words. Consider letters that are placed one after an-other forming something that communicates experience and his-tory, feelings and concepts, principles and instruction. Consider more reading. Read. Reading keeps the mind active and alert. As parents with children who read well, we can expand the educational experience by telling our children to read to us. Then, the family can talk about what has been read together. We can turn off television, let’s say two nights a week, and read a newspaper – like the New York Times, a magazine- like Money or a book – like Audacity of Hope. If there is something you have been curious about, someone has written about that specific topic. Let us allow ourselves to fol-low curiosity, for the joy of the experience. There is a satisfaction

that comes from the internal pride of “knowing”. Education is one source of knowledge and knowledge is power! And I would like to emphasize; education, once acquired can never, ever be taken away from us. We can talk to the people around us, family members, friends and neighbors about the things we have read, no matter how big or how small. Think about the information you have found in print. Is the information true or false? In what situation can the information be helpful? If you do not know the meaning of a word you can, “find out” by asking someone near you for the definition. You can look for the definition in the dictionary and in fact you can read the dic-tionary! I might add the library is our best friend. A librarian will find the definition of a word and other information for you. So many of us have had shaming experiences in the educa-tional system. Now, no one can block our minds. Let us use the opportunity to engage our minds well. And one more thing, I would like to remind you that our favor-ite commercial such as Geico and the best comedy shows from The Jefferson’s to Friends to My Name is Earl started as written words. The most popular songs like, “Imagine” and, “You’re Go-ing To Love Me,” and movies like Star Wars, Schindler’s List, and The Matrix were a print copy, first.

PAGE 5FEBRUARY, 2013

NOTEWORTHYWORD OF THE MONTH

Momentum Part of Speech: NounOrigin: New Latin, from Latin, movement First Known Use: 1610

1. The quantity of motion of a moving body, measured as a product of its mass and velocity.

2. The driving force in human affairs or actions.

3. The force or speed of an object

The car gained momentum going downhill. Her career lost momentum after two years.

“...Education is the key to jobs - to income - to human dignity itself... Go into the classrooms as teachers or parents, as volunteers or just as concerned

citizens, to ensure that every child learns to the full limit his capabilities.” -JFK, Alabama, March 18, 1966, the 35th President of The United States of America

Collective Mind Mapping Collective Mind Mapping is valuable because face to face conversations are initiated spontaneously between people in our community who may rarely, if ever, have the opportunity to communicate. Rather than turnout to an event, Collective Mind Mapping depends on the serendipity of a busy, public space. Responses are anonymous, only recognizable by handwriting and in the moment of verbal exchange. With an open, inviting, and creative methodology people respond in real time to community questions and responses. Here dialogues begin.

Democracy thrives in third places where, “the main activity is conversation,” as defined by Ray Oldenburg, author of The Great Good Place and a resource at the Project for Public Spaces (pps.org). A third place is a public space somewhere between home and work welcoming everyone. Food and/or drink is often offered and people who happen to show up feel like stayin’ a while because the place invites them to do so. Third places offer comfort and and an environment in which one can forget about stresses and casually enjoy the company of others.

Third places, “exist on neutral ground and serve to level their guests to a condition of social equality,” creating a space for titles to mean less than one’s character. Ray Oldenburg calls third places vital social environments. He says every community has something like a third place; the friendliest, most united communities have many, but in the United States of America third places are rarely thriving.

Where in Duluth are people drawn to unplanned conversations with such a high level of diversity?In _______________, _______________, and _______________.

Face to face a verbal dialogue starts with an ask for help. People are eager to help, to give an opinion and grateful someone asked for it! As we write we create a paper trail of how thoughts came about. We see the handwritten responses of people who came before. We choose to read those

thoughts and/or write our own. Together our words influence each other. More questions are stimulated in the process,

ideas expand, knowledge is gained.

Certainly there are more comfortable and inviting public places in Duluth than the Skywalk entrance at the Library. I feel most comfortable in Duluth when I am in __________________, _________________, because ______________________.

Coffee shops and bars come to mind when thinking of places between home and work where the activity is conversa-tion, (indicating lifestyle choices). Oldenburg writes that in the United States of America coffee shops, bars, hair salons, the barber shops still around, and schools are only the closest thing we have to third places, yet all have major problems actually qualifying as a leveling space for social equality; welcoming for all. In most bars talking at a table with one person is often difficult because the music is so loud. Oldenburg points out that like bars, coffee shops expect someone to buy something for the use of their space. Even if economic and design factors were open and inviting to everyone still the United States lacks thriving third places because our communities are physical-ly disconnected by unwalkable means. Transportation is often too high a barrier to draw people together outside homes or offices. #1-4CMM was hosted @Skywalk entrance @Library because the space is public, a bus stop, and a valuable source of knowledge and service for all people in our community. And there is heat.

1.15.13 11am-1pm, Forty people walked by:One man took off his headphones to hear me ask him for help answering the questions and he responded before putting his headphones back on. Between twenty-four and twenty-seven people wrote responses. A few times more than three people were writing responses at once. Off to the side people discussed responses while others wrote.

A few people said they needed more time to answer, or in the moment had much to say in response to, “How has the work of MLK Jr. affected your life?” Had time and space to have a conversation been arranged they probably would have stayed to tell stories of real-to-them personal examples.

Zach stayed a while to talk. He recognizes an absence of prejudice in and toward his bi-racial family, “because MLK Jr. and people in the movementbrought down racism!” he enthusiastically expressed.

One person asked: “Who is MLK Jr.?” and quickly a young person beside him said, “Martin Luther King!” in a ‘dontcha know!’ kind of tone. “Ooh, yeah, that guy,” he said.

8 people thanked me for hosting a CMM, 4 people said they’d come back and wrote responses3 people identified as librarians and wrote responses2 people offered business help while writing responses2 people said they’d come back but wrote no responses2 people were successfully encouraged by another person saying, “it’s pretty quick!” to write responses2 people younger than five passed by 1 person younger than five drew responses1 person wrote responses and came back with a friend to write responses2 people told me their dreams2 people said, “Everyone loves to give their opinion!”2 people stood by as the person with them responded 2 people I recognized wrote respones3 people asked me how to spell words4 people told me they didn’t have time8 people just walked by

From across the entrance Zach said, “It’s an inspiring gift for you to be here doing this.” The child who responded eagerly grabbed markers and went to the board to start drawing. Her mother said to her, “Okay, how do you interpret the question, ‘what do you do’? so, what does it mean when someone asks, ‘what do you do’? The little girl took the marker to the page and began drawing in the top left corner. She told me the drawings were of her three dogs, each a different breed. Her mother asked her the next question, “what do you do?” and she said, “I love. This is my city,” pointing back to her drawing next to her dogs.

27 people offered to help when asked in the moment.

We are grateful!

@Skywalk enterance @Library #1-4CMM responses came from elders, children, moms, dads, teens, twenty- and thirty- somethings, people of different races wearing different clothing, hairstyles, footwear, using the skywalk for different reasons. Some people carried bags from local businesses; Super One, Whole Foods Co-op, Snyders, Blue Cross Blue Shield. Some people carried piles of books to and from the Library. One person younger than five carried a piece of dried mango, “no mango for my brother, only mango for me,” he said.

“It’s my hope that everyone will take the opportunity to join this important conversation and that, by this spring, our schools and community can move forward with a Common educational vision.”

– Bill Gronseth, Superintendent of ISD 709

Our children need schools that welcome them, inspire them and educate them for the future. How we create those schools is up to all of us—as a community.

Think Kids is an invitation to everyone throughout Duluth to share their thoughts about education, the challenges we face, and work together to create the schools we want for our children as we move forward.

Parents, community and business leaders, teachers, grandparents, aunts, uncles, neighbors and more are invited—no one is excluded—your ideas matter.

Attend A Think Kids MeetingCentral Hillside Community CenterFebruary 7, 2013 3:00PM – 5:00PM12 East Fourth Street, Duluth

For questions or to request language services, assistance with transportation, or child care for a session please contact Ron Lake at [email protected] or 218-336-8700 x2014.

Online, Mail or Phone:

Online at duluth.k12.mn.usBy mailing: Think Kids, ISD 709 215 North 1st Avenue East Duluth, MN 55802By phone: 218-336-8700 x2014

EDUCATING THE SYSTEM by Catherine Nachbar

The education system in this country is broken. Our schools are more segregated by color and income than ever before. Children are dropping out of school in higher numbers. There are limited monetary resources to make any real changes. Often the media demonizes teachers, when teachers should be supported for their courage to show up every day to the classroom and try to make a difference in the lives of their students. The national media rarely mentions that the inequality in education and the achievement gap could be attributed to keeping the cur-rent power structures in place. Throughout history education has been a tool for social mobility. Individuals that mirror the values, beliefs, and culture of the ruling class have benefited from the privileged access to education. Our students of color and youth living in poverty pay the highest price and rarely acquire upward social mobility. A dedication to restructuring our current educational system is needed. One must ask why our leaders choose to ignore valu-able research and data that has been implemented by countries like Finland and South Korea. Both of these countries are touted as leaders in education at the international level. We embrace rhetoric of equity but practice what appears to be a commitment to inequality. More than 99 percent of Finnish students complete compul-sory basic education compared to 60-75 percent in the U.S. If one delves deeper into these statistics it is apparent that our students predominantly of color and living in poverty make up the majority of students not graduating from high school. Another factor to consider is our curriculum. Teachers need ac-cess to professional development and content immersion learning opportunities. For 16 years I have been fortunate enough to teach social studies. During this time with budget constrictions, there have been limited resources to attend professional development courses that would allow me to diversify my classroom curriculum. The textbooks I use are over a decade old and there is minimal funding to purchase new curriculum materials. We would never

accept having surgery by doctors without proper training to im-prove their skills and decade old equipment. If we truly want to reduce the race achievement and poverty gap we need to support teachers and examine our curriculum and school structures. As a social studies teacher, I know the importance of educating students about all history, especially traumatic history, i.e. lynch-ings, American Indian relocation, systems created of inequality (Jim Crow Laws), etc. If these items are left out, our students are at a disadvantage. Learning about great reformers and acts of courage from all groups is important. Helping students understand what happened in the past empowers them to use history as a weapon to argue for better policies in the present. Ultimately, students that think critically and have the skills to draw upon past examples will create a stronger country in the future. There is a lot to consider but our society needs engaged citizens and this includes engaging student voices. Become involved in the process of demanding more for our students from national and state leaders and current political systems.

Catherine Nachbar graduated from Cornell College in Mount Vernon, Iowa in 1996. In 2000, she received her Master’s Degree in Education from U M D. She teaches social studies in the Duluth Schools and is an adjunct instructor at the College of St. Scholastica and U M D.

RESOURCES Brown Center on Education Policy at Brookingshttp://www.brookings.edu/~/media/research/files/papers/2012/8/01%20educa-tion%20graduation%20age%20whitehurst%20whitfield/0801_education_gradu-ation_age_whitehurst_whitfield.pdfNational Education Association http://www.nea.org/home/40991.htmHuffington Post “American Schools Still Heavily Segregated by Race, Income” http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/20/american-schools-stillhe_n_1901583.html

PAGE 9THE HILLSIDER FEBRUARY, 2013PAGE 8 Excerpt from President Barack Obama’s 2nd Inaugural AddressMLK Jr.. Day January 21, 2013

“...We, the people, still believe that our obligations as Americans are not just to ourselves, but to all posterity. We will respond to the threat of climate change, knowing that the failure to do so would

betray our children and future generations...”

“...For we, the people, understand that our country cannot succeed when a shrinking few do very well and a growing many barely make it...”

~ 44th President of The United States of America

By Bill Gronseth, Superintendent Duluth Public Schools, ISD 709

Educators in a public school system tend to “think kids” just about every day. After all, that’s our job. Public schools across the country are taking on tough challenges in terms of budgets and funding, curriculum, school climate and dozens of other issues – Duluth is no exception. As we take on these challenges, we’re asking people within the community to “think kids,” too – in other words, to join in the discussion of those challenges, build on common beliefs and values, and work in partnership to create a roadmap to meet them. Our children need schools that welcome them, inspire them and educate them for the future. How we create those schools is up to all of us – as a community.

Through February, ISD 709 staff and volunteers will be meeting with people from across the community and asking several important questions:

• What do you want Duluth’s schools to be?• What do you want Duluth’s schools to offer our children and community?• What’s being done well now?• What could be done better?

This is an opportunity for everyone – parents, community and business leaders, teachers, grandparents, neighbors and more – to participate in a communitywide discussion and decision-making process about the future of our schools. Anyone who wishes to can share their ideas – no one is excluded.

You’re invited to join us at one of a series of Think Kids discussions about what you believe our schools should be as we move forward. Our goal is to work together as a community to build on our common beliefs and values so that we can create a strong, inno vative roadmap for the future of our schools and children.

Groups and organizations are encouraged to schedule a meeting of their own through the Office of the Superintendent - 218-336-8752.

For questions or to request language services, assistance with transportation, or child care for a session; please contact Ron Lake at [email protected] or 218.336.8700 ext. 2014.

YOU ARE INVITED I S D 709 Date Time Focus Site & Address 1/30/2013 6:00-8:00PM Neighbors Lowell 2000 Rice Lake Road, Duluth, MN 55811

2/4/2013 3:00-5:00PM Community Lincoln Park Community Center 2014 West 3rd Street, Duluth, MN 55806

2/5/2013 6:30-8:30PM Community Morgan Park Community Club 1242 88th Ave W, Duluth, MN 55808

2/7/2013 3:00-5:00PM Community Central Hillside Community Center 12 East 4th St Duluth, MN 55805

2/7/2013 6:30-8:30pm Community Woodland Community Center 3211 Allendale Ave, Duluth, MN 55803

THINK KIDSIf you can’t make a meeting, you can

share your thoughts electronically and find

Meeting schedules at www.duluth.k12.mn.us.

Those without access to the internet may call 218-336-8700 x2014

for information or let us know what you think by writing to:

Think Kids, ISD 709, 215 North 1st Avenue East,

Duluth, MN 55812.

I hope everyone will take part in this important conversation and that by this spring,

our schools and community can move forward with

a common educational vision.

SOURCE: LNS classroom oursabha.org

EAST HIGH SCHOOL “Students For The Future” By group members Hallie Davis and Margaret Sanford

A year ago Duluth High School stu-dents found themselves in a challenging situation. With Central High School clos-ing, students had to attend either East or Denfeld High School. These changes brought attention to the many problems circulating among the student body. The school had to find ways to adapt, whether it was East stu-dents finding ways to welcome the former Trojans or having to find ways to adjust to the new environment themselves. Though the students have adjusted well to the new facility, the school is still struggling to overcome the social barriers. As a way of addressing the social tension, last year’s Students for the Fu-ture group worked on bringing the presen-tation, Rachel’s Challenge. Rachel Scott was one of the thirteen victims of the Columbine shootings. Her philosophy was that each act of kindness would facilitate another and as a result there would be a chain reaction of kind thoughts and ac-tions. This presentation was the catalyst for the creation of a new group called Friends of Rachel. In the beginning of the 2012 school year, Friends of Rachel and Students for the Future merged into one group, deciding to keep the name Stu-dents for the Future since it encompassed the ideals that the group wanted to main-tain. Last year Friends of Rachel had applied for a one thousand dollar grant to be used for producing a documentary on diversity and discrimination at East High School. The group will interview various students and faculty members about what their experience of discrimination and racism has been at East. The goal is to bring an awareness of the various kinds of dis-crimination that exist in our school and to start a discussion that could help foster change.

We have had guest speakers such as Ron Hagland, from the Office of Educa-tion Equity, and Calvin Harris, integration specialist, talk about their experiences with racism and their work with the school district. The group created and sent out a survey to the students at East asking if they had witnessed any forms of dis-crimination. The survey showed that while some students have seen some form of it, there are also many people that aren’t necessarily aware of how much discrimi-nation takes place in our school. To help start the discussion we brought a one-man show created by Michael Fosberg called “Incognito” to East. The show focuses on discrimina-tion, identity, heritage, and adoption. We hoped that this presentation would be the starting point for discussion on the topic of all kinds of discrimination. More infor-

mation on the show can be found at www.incognitotheplay.com. Our group held an activity for students to make signs for the Martin Luther King Day March. We interviewed them for the documentary and asked what they thought diversity meant and how it has been addressed in the district.Raising awareness of discrimination as well as working towards its end is the goal of our group. By conducting surveys, in-terviews, preparing a documentary, listen-ing to district officials speak, and bringing a nationally known program, Incognito, to our school, we hope our efforts will be the beginning of the end of discrimination. That would be the fulfillment of Rachel’s Challenge and the hope of Students for the Future.

Pictured below are students from the group.

THE HILLSIDERPAGE 10

“The first issue was fabulous!”

In gratitude,Melanie Ford

Attorney At Law, PLLC

(218) 623-6703 * 24 N 21st Ave W Duluth, MN 55806

“Whether we and our politicians know it or not, Nature is party to all our deals and decisions, and she has more votes, a longer memory, and a sterner sense of justice...”

- Wendell Berry, author, essayist, and farmer

File your state and federal returns beginning January 28 at our FREE tax sites. All tax sites are open to individuals or families with 2012 income up to $49,000.

Site 1: Opening January 29, 2013WALK-INS ONLY

Community Action Duluth 19 North 21st Avenue WestTuesdays, doors open at 4:30 p.m.Saturdays, doors open at 8:45 a.m.

Site 2: Opening January 28, 2013BY APPOINTMENT

Laura MacArthur Elem. School - Family Site 720 N. Central Ave.Mondays and Wednesdays, doors open at 4:30 p.m.People with dependents, senior citizens or people with disabilities only.

For questions, or to make an appointment for the Laura MacArthur location, call Community Action Duluth at 218.726.1665

Site 3: Opening January 31, 2013BY APPOINTMENT

Ordean Building 424 West Superior StreetSuperior Street Level Conference Room BThursdays, doors open at 11:30 a.m.Operated in partnership with United Way of Greater Duluth

To make an appointment for the Ordean location, caII 218.726.4796.

19 North 21st Avenue West, Duluth

phone 218.726.1665 | fax 218.726.1612

tty 800.627.3529 | toll-free 866.761.5257 |

Call United Way Information and Referral for information about additional free tax prep sites. Dial 211 from a land line or call 1.800.543.7709.

L A S T Y E A R , W E H E L P E D 1,600 people G E T M O R E T H A N

$2.76 million I N T A X R E F U N D S !

FREE tax sites are back!

Learn about Community Action Duluth’s Financial Opportunity Center programs!Visit www.communityactionduluth.org for more information

Service made available through a grant provided by the State of Minnesota.

EVER WONDER... ...Where does yarn come from? ? ? How far away is the sun? ? ? What is a Paso Fino? ? ?What is the longest word in the English language? ? ? How many countries are in the world? ? ? What makes some people rich? ? ? Why does the sky appear to be blue? ? ? How many black keys are on a piano? ? ? What is the age of aquarius? ? ? How is plastic made and re-made? ? ? What makes plastic? ? ? Who is Governor of Hawaii ? ? ? How many fish are in the oceans? ? ? How many shipwrecks in The Sweet Sea? ? ?

PAGE 11FEBRUARY, 2013

“If we are serious about reducing the size of government and its burdens, then we need to return economic self-determination to the people. . . We must do everything possible

to assure ordinary citizens the possibility of owning a small, usable share of the country.” - Wendell Berry, Decolonizing Rural America, 1993.

HONOR INDULUTH, MN

MLK DAY& INAUGURATION

DAY

January 21, 2013- 21 DEGREES !

Community members marched from the Central Hillside

Community Center to the DECC in honor of Civil Rights marchers

and freedom fighters.

44th President of The United States of America Barack Obama signs an executive order. Source: AP Photo.

Source: Michael K. Anderson, http://singingcanoe.smugmug.com

Breakfast served to the community MLK Day, 2013. Source: Michael K. Anderson, http://singingcanoe.smugmug.com

ONE BILLION RISING

February 14, 2013

INTERNATIONAL FLOWER

WORKERSDAY

The Hillsider is a 501(c)(3) Non Profit Organization.

Funding comes from advertisements, community

donations, and volunteered time,

knowledge, and creativity.

President’s DayFebruary 18, 2013

George Washington’s Birthday

february, 2013

Documents