Brandon Stanton's Blog, page 286

“People have such a horrible concept of what is going on in...

“People have such a horrible concept of what is going on in Brownsville. But there are leaders here who are committed to transforming this neighborhood. Ms. Lopez is exceptional, but I could introduce you to many more principals who are just as committed to transforming the lives of their students. There’s Craig Garber at Brooklyn Environmental Exploration School— it’s just incredible what he’s done at that place. There’s Dr. Thomas McBryde from Mott Hall IV. There’s Stacey Walsh from Brownsville Collaborative Middle School. There’s Robin Williams Davson at Brooklyn Landmark. I could go on and on and on. There’s a whole group of educators who are revved up to rebrand Brownsville and the world is going to know about it.”  #BrownsvilleBrilliance

I only had a few minutes to speak with Ms. Lopez yesterday...

I only had a few minutes to speak with Ms. Lopez yesterday because she was hosting a conference for the district’s principals. (Because that’s the kind of thing Ms. Lopez does.) Attending the conference was Ms. Mauriciere de Govia, the superintendent of Brownsville’s school district, who was kind enough to speak with me for a few minutes in a quiet stairwell. I asked for her opinion on Ms. Lopez:

“Nadia is fearless. When she says that every kid can learn, she means it. And not only does she mean it, she puts systems in place to make it happen. It all begins with high expectations. When students arrive at this school, many of them are very behind. But Nadia sets high expectations on every one. She never says: ‘This student lives in the shelter so he deserves a break.” Or ‘Because of his parents, this student can’t be expected to keep up.’ She says: ‘This is how we do things here, and there is no sidestepping.’”

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We are currently profiling Mott Hall Bridges Academy, a very special middle school in a very tough part of Brooklyn. As we learn about the school and its inspiring leader, Principal Lopez, we are also raising funds to help leverage its impact on the community. Please consider donating: https://life.indiegogo.com/fundraisers/let-s-send-kids-to-harvard/x/221102

We’ve raised enough money in 24 hours to make the Harvard...

We’ve raised enough money in 24 hours to make the Harvard trip a permanent part of the MHBA curriculum. With two weeks left in the fundraiser, I sat down with Ms. Lopez today to learn the best way that we could continue to help her secure a bright future for her students.

“We have a major need for a summer program,” she explained. “Learning stops during the summer for my scholars. We have what is called a ‘summer slide.’ My scholars can’t even go outside. It’s too dangerous. As an exercise, my teachers broke into small groups and took a walk through the community. We wanted to understand how our students live. We went inside the housing projects. The parks and playgrounds were empty because it’s too dangerous. Even the library isn’t a safe zone. Just last Saturday, one of my scholars had two guns pulled on him while he was walking to the community center. In broad daylight. It’s just too dangerous to be outside, so my scholars stay inside all summer. They aren’t learning to ride horses or drive boats, and they certainly aren’t traveling. They miss out on the enrichment available to children from more affluent neighborhoods. They need a safe place where they can do activities and continue to grow their minds. I tried to put together a program last summer, but I couldn’t afford it. I couldn’t really put together any activities, and I could only use teachers-in-training. I need the funds to put together a program with my own teachers so my students have a safe place where they can continue to grow outside of school.”

Ms. Lopez estimates that an effective summer program will cost about $40,000 a year. So every $40,000 beyond the $350,000 we’ve already raised will provide another “safe and productive summer “ for the students at Mott Hall Bridges Academy.

If you hadn’t already donated, please consider helping us continue to empower this visionary educator in her quest to transform her school and community: https://life.indiegogo.com/fundraisers/let-s-send-kids-to-harvard/x/221102

Just came back from a quick meeting with Ms. Lopez at Mott Hall...

Just came back from a quick meeting with Ms. Lopez at Mott Hall Bridges Academy, so we could discuss how to make the most impact with the amazing success of our fundraiser so far. ($365,000!) There was a wonderful energy in the school today, everyone was beyond thrilled and overwhelmed by your generosity. My favorite part of the day was when I walked into Ms. Lopez’s office, and discovered that some of you had taken it upon yourselves to send her bouquets of flowers. I’ve said it before— this is the most warm hearted group of people on the internet.

"What’s your biggest goal in life?" “I want to make...

"What’s your biggest goal in life?"
“I want to make it out of the hood. I don’t have to go that far. But if I can just live an inch outside, then I’ll feel safe and know that I’m straight.”

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Adrian is the student government president at Mott Hall Bridges Academy. For anyone who hasn’t seen already, we are currently holding a fundraising campaign to provide the students at Adrian’s school with an annual visit to Harvard: https://life.indiegogo.com/fundraisers/let-s-send-kids-to-harvard

After our first meeting, Ms. Lopez invited me to sit in on one...

After our first meeting, Ms. Lopez invited me to sit in on one of her staff meetings. It had been a tough week for many of the teachers, and from the heavy energy in the room, I could feel the immense difficulty of their jobs. “It can be especially hard when you come back from holiday break,” Ms. Lopez explained. “Because it can feel like so much of the progress you made last semester was undone during the break. It’s hard, it’s hard, it’s hard. And it’s OK for you to feel like you want to give up. You can quit anytime you want, and I will pick up the phone and recommend you for a new job, because every one of you could succeed anywhere. But these kids need you. Our girls don’t feel honored and respected. Our boys are being recruited into gangs. Your classrooms may be the one place they feel safe and respected. If we give up, there is nobody else. There is a system out there that is waiting for our scholars to show up in shackles and jumpsuits if we choose to give up on them.”

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We are currently holding a campaign to institute an annual class trip to Harvard for students at Ms. Lopez’s school, Mott Hall Bridges Academy. Thanks to everyone who’s donated, we have raised $185,000 in just a few hours. That is a transformative amount of money, and will fund this initiative for over six years. I would love to continue adding to the fund, so that this trip will become a permanent part of the school’s backbone. In turn, it will hopefully help MHBA become a permanent part of the community’s backbone. If you haven’t already donated, please take a look: http://bit.ly/1JmIB8u

To everyone who donated— thank you, thank you, thank you. I truly fell in love with this school during my visits, and you have lent so much energy to its mission.

I spent yesterday afternoon in a brainstorming session with Ms....

I spent yesterday afternoon in a brainstorming session with Ms. Lopez and her assistant principal Ms. Achu, trying to think of creative ways that the HONY community could help further the vision of Mott Hall Bridges Academy. Our discussion covered many needs, but we kept returning to one in particular— the limited horizons of disadvantaged youth. Ms. Lopez’s school is situated in a neighborhood with the highest crime rate in New York, and many of her scholars have very limited mobility. Some of them are very much ‘stuck’ in their neighborhood. And many have never left the city. “It can be very difficult for them to dream beyond what they know,” Ms. Lopez explained. 

So the three of us struck on an idea. (OK, it was Ms. Achu’s idea, but we all agreed.) We want to create a fund that will provide each incoming 6th grade class at Mott Hall Bridges Academy a chance to get out of their neighborhood and visit a new place. And that place is Harvard University. “I want every child who enters my school to know that they can go anywhere, and that they will belong,” said Ms. Lopez.

So we’re going to try to make it happen! Let’s help this visionary educator enrich the lives of her students. 

Please consider donating: http://bit.ly/1JmIB8u

A couple days back, I posted the portrait of a young man who...

A couple days back, I posted the portrait of a young man who described an influential principal in his life by the name of Ms. Lopez. Yesterday I was fortunate to meet Ms. Lopez at her school, Mott Hall Bridges Academy.

“This is a neighborhood that doesn’t necessarily expect much from our children, so at Mott Hall Bridges Academy we set our expectations very high. We don’t call the children ‘students,’ we call them ‘scholars.’ Our color is purple. Our scholars wear purple and so do our staff. Because purple is the color of royalty. I want my scholars to know that even if they live in a housing project, they are part of a royal lineage going back to great African kings and queens. They belong to a group of individuals who invented astronomy and math. And they belong to a group of individuals who have endured so much history and still overcome. When you tell people you’re from Brownsville, their face cringes up. But there are children here that need to know that they are expected to succeed.”

“I got captured in Vietnam. And I fell out of the helicopter...

“I got captured in Vietnam. And I fell out of the helicopter when they were rescuing me from a prison camp.”
“How’d you get captured?”
“I was on patrol. And I noticed a bush where there hadn’t been no bush before. So I says to the guy next to me, ‘That bush is moving.’ But he didn’t believe me. So I took the bubblegum out of my mouth, and I stuck it on the bush. Then we walked a little more, and we turned around, and sure enough, there was the bush with the bubblegum! I said to my friend, ‘There it is! I told you!’ Then they jumped out and got us.”

“I cried the first time I did heroin. I’d never wanted to do it....

“I cried the first time I did heroin. I’d never wanted to do it. I always spoke out against it. But I was 245 lbs at the time, and I was with the first guy who had ever showed any interest in me. So I did it to feel accepted. Now, I’m always waiting for my next fix. Even when I manage to get clean, the demon is always on my back I always thought I was too smart to be an addict. And I am smart. I sing, I write poetry. There was so much I could have done. And I cry every day of my life. Because I’m too smart for this to have happened to me.”