Two Mack students win in Northern California journalism contest

Pamela Tapia won several awards in 2011 for environmental and feature stories. Here she is pictured accepting an award from Betty Packard at last year’s Northern California Press Women Association awards’ ceremony.

Now a community college freshman, Tapia again won 2nd prize in 2012 in environmental reporting for a story on cleaning up West Oakland. The story first appeared in macksmack and was published in the June 2011 issue of  Oaktown Teen Times.

Stephen Vance, a senior at McClymonds and a summer intern at the Rose Foundation in 2011, won honorable mention for a story he wrote about the Greening of West Oakland.  The story first appeared in macksmack and was published in Oaktown Teen Times in December 2011.

 

 

Six McClymonds students selected as paid summer interns

by Pamela Tapia

Six students from McClymonds are among the 60 or so Oakland students selected for paid four-week summer internships through the city of Oakland’s  Mayor’s Office.

The students —  sophomore Devin Simmons, and juniors Eric Abundis, Dominique Albert, Jazmine McDowell, Victor Smith and Ciana Augustine — will work with Nancy Schiff at the Center for Youth Development through Law.

Students from the other high schools in Oakland will intern with businesses as diverse as Kaiser Construction, Metropolitan Golf Links, East Bay Zoological Society, More Radio, and KICU television.

In the past, as many as 250 students were selected as summer interns. “There is limited funding this summer for job slots,” said Cara Johnson, afterschool program coordinator at McClymonds. “The first place to cut in the budget is always programming for youth.”

Another loss for Mack: Arthur Jackson, college counselor, to leave for grad school

by Pamela Tapia

Another loss for Mack:  its dynamic and popular college counselor.

Arthur Jackson, a Mack alumnus and graduate of UC Berkeley, will leave for graduate school next year.

His departure is part of a major exodus from Mack over two years: first principal Yetunde Reeves and three teachers, now the closure of the Law Academy and “consolidation” of Ina Bendich and Craig Gordon, pink slips for teachers and the departure of Jackson.

“My goal is to hire a better person than me as my replacement,” he said.

Jackson plans to attend Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, where he will pursue a masters in public policy and management.

A Lesson in Restorative Justice: Mack Students Do the Teaching

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by Pamela Tapia

Strange sight.   The tables were turned at Mack last week.

Judges received a lesson on restorative justice from McClymonds students last Friday.

The 15 students opened “the circle” with agreements about trust and honesty. Senior Amber Hill read  a quote by Maya Angelou (“if we lose love and self respect for each other, this is how we finally die”) as students related it to violence in their lives. The judges from Hayward, Richmond, Chicago, and a Mack graduate, all former prosecutors,  looked astonished at the students’ analyses of the quote.

After the circle ritual, the judges praised the students as thinkers and reminded them about the need for more people of color to become attorneys.

As the demonstration of restorative justice came to an end, students who take part in the REAL HARD program escorted the judges to the Malcolm X room where the judges shared the life experiences that led them to become judges and attorneys.

Most Mack students paid particularly close attention to the Mack alumna (class of 1972), Alameda Superior Court Judge Brenda Harbin-Forte, who moved from Mississippi to Oakland during the civil rights movement as a teen mom.

“You cannot use discrimination as an excuse (for not trying harder),” she told the group. “I know:  I lived through it.”

“My momma went to Mack,” brings rappers to school.

by Bonita Tindle

Nobody was shot on Wednesday. Except in the lyrics.

About 45 people were there. I walked in to the auditorium and saw  that only the first three rows were filled for what was billed as a rap concert. Even for a small school, that is bad.

Of course, that didn’t stop the few students who were there from dancing. Energy levels ran high as a string of performers hit the stage. The crowd interacted as one act sang: “If you love life, say ACTION!”

Students screamed as the feature act, Erk tha Jerk, was introduced on stage. The music cut off.  Erk tha Jerk, in the middle of his performance, sat down on the stage, then mumbled, “Ya’ll not havin’ fun.” He asked students to gather closer and they did, right around him.

As they recognized his lyrics, students went wild. Singing along and dancing. This lasted about 2 minutes until the show ended.

Before the show, I interviewed students about Erk tha jerk. Guess what they said! Students had no idea who Erk tha Jerk was! Sadly, the only reason some students came was because a friend forced them or that they were bored. This is no surprise. Students not showing up for a performance — whether it’s Erk tha Jerk or President Obama — is typically Mack.

Why iPads Would Help Us — A Tale of Unkept Promises

Checking topography for science class -- a dream without iPad!

by Silvia Cardona

(with reports from The New York Times)

As a ninth grader at McClymonds, I was excited by the promise of being among the first students in the district to use an iPad to learn algebra, keep track of homework and email my teachers.

That promise never came true. At least not this year.

Once again, at McClymonds, we are behind the times in the use of technology and in educational innovation.

Just look around. The New York Times says that  a growing number of schools in the country — most in wealthy districts — are using the iPad to teach algebra (using a Houghton Mifflin only for iPad program) as well as history.

That was the plan at McClymonds.

In an email response, principal Kevin Taylor told macksmack: that the alumni and administration made a commitment to secure the iPads and that the alumni association raised over 80 percent of the funding. Teachers were planning to use them in conjunction with the SMART boards and the iPads were to be used in the classroom.

So what happened?

Two problems arose, says Taylor. Bureaucracy or the need for signatures outside of McClymonds. And then, of course, “security” for the iPads.  ”We don’t have the funding to properly secure the ipads here on campus. ” It makes sense with computers and cameras stolen out of classrooms. Recently a student’s iPod disappeared off her desk. Another ‘s shuffle was stolen last week.

In the meantime, students are grumbling. “What a major let-down,” said Astlee Carver, a 9th grader. “”It’s not fair for anyone who is less fortunate and doesn’t have access to technology.”

“Having an iPad would mean that we wouldn’t have to carry a ton of books,” says Khristian Antoine, a 9th grader.

Besides saving students’ backs and serving as research tools, iPads can make a difference in classroom learning. Roslyn High School in New York  gave 47 iPads to the students and teachers in two humanities classes. The school district plans to hand out iPads to 1,100 students.

The iPads — at $750 apiece –are used in class and at home during the school year to replace heavy textbooks, to email teachers and to turn in papers and homework.

Not everyone believes that technology improves learning. The New York Times says that educators disagree over whether giving every student a laptop makes a difference academically.

While schools are cutting programs and laying off teachers, should they spend money on  iPads? What if they’re free?

“There is very little evidence that kids learn more, faster or better by using these machines,” Larry Cuban, a Stanford professor emeritus, told The New York Times.  Cuban feels  that the money would be better spent to train and retain teachers. “iPads are marvelous tools to engage kids, but then the novelty wears off and you get into hard-core issues of teaching and learning.”

Mack students apply for Obama to speak at graduation

by Pamela Tapia

“Obama at graduation!”

That cry rang through the hallway. Enthusiasm. Excitement, Hope.

“That’s what we need to keep us motivated as young Black men,” said Josh Walters, a senior at McClymonds.

Last Friday, McClymonds students worked hard on deadline to submit their official application to the White House to have President Barack Obama speak at the graduation for the class  of 2011 on June 16.

Students were literally speechless and astonished when a group of students announced that they had applied for President Obama to speak at graduation.

There is no official count, but at least 464 other high schools across the nation have applied. No other Oakland high school is believed to have applied.

The essays included a section on how teachers prepare you in academics, why your school deserves to win and how McClymonds prepares students for college and careers.

Students focused on their involvement in the community, which is predominantly Black and low-income, especially its advocacy for environmental justice. The school was featured in Newsweek Magazine and recently won an award from the Environmental Protection Agency. Senior Terranisha Nathaniel won the Princeton Prize in Race Relations in 2010 and McClymonds sent its top debater to nationals last year.

In the essays, students also mentioned the school’s consistently winning basketball and football teams. It noted that it is the only high school in the country with two living Presidential Medal of Freedom winners, Bill Russell and Frank Robinson.

“We don’t have the same funding as other schools in the district because of our small size,” the students wrote. “Yet we are the movers and shakers.”

Miami Dade College in Florida has already announced that it will host President Obama as one of their 2011 graduation speakers. Miami Dade’s press release about snagging the nation’s top official doesn’t tell how they did it, but states it is the largest higher education facility in the U.S., with more than 180 countries represented in their student body

Confessions of a Powder Puff football player

by Anonymous

I’m no athlete.

I had only played football in PE. It was fun and exhilarating to have my adrenaline pumping and fly past other girls on the field.

When the head coach asked me to join one of the two “Powder Puff” teams at Mack, I was nervous: I wanted to play, but I’m not used to performing in front of others.

This was the first year we had Powder Puff football at Mack.

And I love it.

Our team is a hodgepodge of non-athletes. We’re not the fastest runners. We don’t have the strongest arms.

Picture this: it’s our first game and we might even have won, if …we hadn’t thrown an interception.

In the second game, we got some help from boys, all football and basketball players. Now that was a funny sight, watching the gazelles running with the rhinos. Too bad we don’t dress up in costume.

At a small school without the fanfare and schedule of events of big schools, Powder Puff is pure fun. It’s an alternative to homecoming. It brings school spirit.

How I Survived Summer School

by Sarai Cornejo

You always go to summer school with a heavy heart (thinking “why am I wasting my time?”) and some guilt. In my case, I had failed US History in junior year at what is now McClymonds in West Oakland. So I had to take the class over again, during the summer, during five weeks at another high school, Oakland Tech.

I prepared myself for boredom (the class) and confusion (I got lost in the hallways many times).

I dreaded the two hours of class time, five days a week, for five long weeks, but I was wrong: the class, packed with over 35 students, turned out to be interesting; the teacher, David Orphal of Skyline, funny and well prepared, and I learned more about the annexation of Hawaii than I ever imagined.

We were a diverse group, with Asian, Latino and African American students, and we even debated as we compared the constitutions of foreign countries. Hundreds of students in Oakland  have to attend summer school, at a cost of more than $1 million to the district.

What I learned most was how to avoid trouble.

There was plenty of trouble at Oakland Tech last summer, as the members of the gangs, the Nortenos and the Border Brothers, fought in the hallways for control of the school.

As a Latina at McClymonds, which is 99 percent African-American, I can easily ignore gang fights at my school.

Here it was harder. Outside the classroom, two tall, strong Latina girls were throwing punches like Muhammed Ali’s daughters, one of them wearing brass knuckles. She managed to punch a hole in the other girl’s face before the fight was broken up.  At my school, girls just yell. Sometimes, they’ll slap each other.

In the end, summer school was worth it, as I was able to learn something and get an A in US History. Because of the gang skirmishes, I was relieved to be back at Mack this year.

Mack’s “Academy Awards”: MC David, awards, rapping

by Lateefah Edmondson

Twenty Mack students won awards Friday afternoon during a school assembly that featured rapping by senior Eric Jones, Victor Smith, and Kia Johnson, dancing by Michael Stills, and introductory remarks and jokes by MC David (McNeal).

The awards were for leadership, most improved academics, attendance, after school leadership. Roger Xu also announced the names of 20 students who already received college acceptances.

The prizes included cameras,  iPods, gift certificates, lunch on the teacher and movie tickets

“ We are here today to celebrate the academic and hard work of students today,” said Cara  Johnson, after school coordinator.

The winners were:

Top in school attendance- Latasha Smith

After school attendance-Shaquille Jackson

New weekly behavior drawing-  – DePaul Nguon- free food , Sabah-camera, Carmen Cumming- 2 free movie tickets.

In school attendence- 9^th grade- (Ms. Hereford) Dreshon Moore, 10^th grade- Eric Jones, 11^th- Jordan Fontaine, 12^th- Miriam Neal

Most improved, 9^th- Tashaye Taylor, 10^th – Theresa Patterson, 11^th- Victor Smith, 12^th- Chavell Boyd

After-school leadership-Pamela Tapia, MVP- Eric Jones

Class Leader-9^th, Ojalique Frison, 10^th- Jazier Combs, 11^th- Amber Hill, 12^th – Ernest Marshall