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Do More 24: Why do I support the DC Arts and Humanities Education Collaborative?

Submitted by: Anna Walker, DC Collaborative Development Volunteer Images Submitted by: Anna Walker, DC Collaborative Monday, June 5, 2017

“Start Your Activism@Home” 

Why do I support the DC Arts and Humanities Education Collaborative? 

I believe in the power of connecting classrooms with the creative community beyond the school walls. As Washingtonians, we have the opportunity and the responsibility to do more for the education of DC students. One way to do this is by participating in this year’s Do More 24 Campaign through the United Way. I’ve made my financial contribution to invest in the DC Collaborative’s work to provide arts and cultural field trips for students in our public schools and public charter schools, and I encourage you to do the same.

Start Your Activism @Home...

My commitment to the arts and humanities actually began many, many moons ago as a middle school student growing up in the inner city of Jackson, Mississippi. Our class was to join other schools in the city for a matinee performance of Verdi’s La Traviata at the Civic Auditorium. I grew up in a large family supported by my father’s modest salary as a brick mason. While struggling to provide for our basic living essentials, my parents would still gather up the necessary dollars required to have my siblings and I participate in school activities, including field trips. So, I was able to attend my first opera and I was enraptured, and the seed was planted for my lifelong advocacy for arts and humanities education.

A decade or so later, as an elementary school teacher in Jackson, many of my colleagues and I would often use our own money to make sure students whose parents could not afford to do so had the ability to go on field trips of all kinds, including arts exhibitions and performances. The joy I received in observing the light in my students’ eyes was immeasurable. Further, I noticed they demonstrated more interest and creativity in the classroom as a result of this cultural engagement. Later on my career path and life journey, I became an administrator with the local arts council and was able to use Community Development Block Grant funds to involve students from low-income families throughout the county in arts experiences in which they otherwise would not have had access.

Since transitioning to DC a few years ago, I have been thrilled to recently find the DC Collaborative, an organization whose unique mission is building connections between schools and the District’s vibrant arts and humanities institutions. It’s not just about bright eyes watching a performance; it’s about bright futures being nurtured. Let’s help families and schools not have to struggle to create these enriching educational experiences for DC students.  “Start Your Activism@Home” by contributing to the DC Collaborative through the Do More 24 Campaign. Your donation of $24 can make a difference for a DC student!

Make your donation now through June 8th by clicking here.

You could be the catalyst for bringing creative change to the education of our students and transforming a child’s life by inspiring a lifelong engagement with the arts and humanities.

~Anna Walker, Volunteer, DC Arts and Humanities Education Collaborative 

To donate to the DC Collaborative through June 8th: DoMore24

For more information about the DC Collaborative: www.dccollaborative.org

 Thanks Anna for sharing your story with us!

Quick Links:

Donate to the Collaborative’s Do More 24 Campaign

www.dccollaborative.org

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I See the President!

 Submitted by: Katie Greer, Programming and Marketing Intern, DC Collaborative  Images provided by: Greta Schorn, Amidon Bowen Elementary School October 20, 2016

AHFES Feature: President Lincoln’s Cottage

As part of our Arts and Humanities for Every Student program, on October 17th, Amidon Bowen Elementary School was able to go to President Lincoln’s Cottage for their interactive program entitled: I See the President.

Exchanging and Respecting Ideas 

The Story: Lincoln commuted daily from the Cottage through downtown Washington to the White House. Along the way, Lincoln encountered front line soldiers, escaped slaves living in contraband camps, wounded soldiers, and Washington residents. These people influenced Lincoln and his ideas on the Civil War and emancipation. Lincoln’s desire to exchange ideas with those around him is a model to young minds as they learn to respect others’ ideas. In this program, students take on the role of the people Lincoln interacted with on his commute and analyze their first-hand accounts to write a fable that teaches their classmates an important lesson.

View the Curriculum Materials from I See the President here. 

President Lincoln’s Cottage Other AHFES Offerings

Lincoln’s Hat is designed for students PreK-3rd grade. In this program, students will discover Lincoln’s habit of storing his ideas inside his signature hat, and a hands-on activity provides students a place to keep their own ideas.

View the Curriculum Materials here.

Lincoln’s Toughest Decisions: Debating Emancipation is designed for students 6th-12th grade. This award-winning program puts students in the role of President Lincoln’s closest advisors where they will use touch screen monitors to explore historical documents and recreate the heated discussions that President Lincoln had with his Cabinet over emancipation.

View the Curriculum Materials here. 

Quick Links

President Lincoln’s Cottage

President Lincoln’s Cottage AHFES Feature Page

AHFES Online Catalogue

Amidon Bowen Elementary School