Madres Para Ninos

Madres Para Ninos
○ Help Mom with sense of isolation because survey showed that parents did not have contact if a emergency occurred. This program will develop a social network for the mothers at Abbey Court.
○ Experience at School: There will be 10 sessions that will help the women understand the development of the child. This will show them how to be create learning experiences for the child through being resourceful and not spending money. For example, create a book form pictures at home. The program will also help them set up procedures and standards at home to reinforce the procedures and standards that are learned in the school. The facilitator will start discussion to help them learn form each other's experiences with their children.
○ This is a test trial so for the first session there will only be mothers with children in pre-school. This will start a month before school starts and 6 weeks after.
○ Ideas we discussed: providing child care (maybe doing it on Sat. or Sun. while children are playing soccer or providing childcare in the rear room in the learning center [potential noise problem])

Another Human Rights Experience

Hey yall!

I wanted to share with yall another blog - http://maristsouthafrica.blogspot.com/2008_05_01_archive.html

One of my friends (sociology major) went to South Africa this past summer. This is their classes amazing blog. If you get a second check it out because it has some incredible pictures that truly captures what it looks like to provide human rights to those that need it the most!

Update on Pittsboro Habitat Community Organizing

Hey guys...wanted to give an update on the Pittsboro Habitat community organizing project Chelsey and I have been working on. A quick summary -- we are rebuilding the East Cornwallis Neighborhood entranceway sign, which was destroyed during a storm over a year ago. We are also planning a kick-off celebration that will include the mayor, press, and refreshments.

A lot of of the design decisions were given to me and Chelsey. For the main portion of the sign that will say "East Cornwallis Neighborhood" we decided to go with a cedar wood slab. It is pictured below:



The wood is a red cedar, that Herman Hart in Bear Creek cut using a chain saw. He cut the last slab used in the previous sign. The wood is stronger and better quality than what was used in the previous sign. Today we had the slab delivered to Dave Pendergrast at Northwood High School. Him and his class will be carving the letters into the slab and assisting with installation.

We are also working on other aesthetically inviting options for the entranceway. This includes a brick buildup around both pillars and shrubbery around the sign. Our goal is to have flower boxes inside the brick pillars. We are currently working to get plant donations from a number of local nurseries.

Last week we worked with some of the neighborhood children in sanding down the usable parts of the old sign (posts and bottom portion). The kids enjoyed helping out with this and are anxious to help with the painting as well.

We are also working on getting the mayor and press to our kickoff event which will be in December. This will be a community celebration with refreshments. That is it for now, but i will keep you posted as to when the sign is completed and the celebration date.

Rights for the Elderly

My apples project is not on the normal class list, but still very applicable to the topics discussed in class. Many of the people that live in the home where I volunteer are unable to stand up for themselves and rely on the honesty and dependability of the staff to care for them. In fact, several of the residents don't have any family at all and their well being is completely dependent on the quality of care at the facility. I have noticed quite a bit of disrespect on the part of the nurses aids, and it really bothers me. I'm not sure what can be done, as I don't want to rub anyone the wrong way or cause trouble. I am quite sure it is frustrating to work somewhere like that, where you are constantly needed to help someone use the restroom or bathe, but I also feel like everyone deserves respect. Regardless of age or physical/mental ability, nobody should be ignored or disrespected, especially when they are in a vulnerable state.

Human Rights Video

I found this pretty cool documentary on YouTube that helps to define 'Human Rights'. It's pretty surprising how hard it is for people to define this. It also gives the history of human rights and how the idea originated. Here's the link... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ot8YGiRtB7U ...check it out and think about it.

Tuesday Volunteer at AC (Needs Help)

Hey everyone! I am a Tuesday volunteer at Abbey Court. I have never been on any other days to tutor, but for some reason Tuesday's at the center are always packed. Last Tuesday we have over ten kids and only three tutors. If any of you all have some time on Tuesdays please try and stop by the center, because we could definitely use the extra help on Tuesdays.

Also I know last class we discussed grants for Abbey Court. I spoke with Mrs. Nancy on Tuesday and she has some great things to add to our list. A white board (great for doing math problems and being able to see the problems easier), light (lamps) for the back rooms, and dictionaries (they have been checking them out from the local library).

CORRECTION: Seoul Train Documentary

I just found out that the documentary will be showing on Tuesday (11/10) at 7:30 in Manning 209, NOT in Murhphey 116. Sorry about that!

--Liz Vigus

Seoul Train Documentary

Hey guys,
I'm pasting in some info I got in an email about a documentary that will be showing this Tuesday (11/10) at 7:30 in Murphey 116. It looks really interesting, and it involves an underground operation to help oppressed people escape from North Korea. Representatives from an NGO LiNK (Liberty in North Korea) are doing this to raise awareness of the human rights and refugee crisis in North Korea. Read below for more info on the organization and the documentary!

--Liz Vigus

A few students have joined together, with the sponsorship of the campus club Invisible Children, to bring representatives of the NGO called LiNK to campus in order to shed light on the human rights and refugee crisis in Northern Korea. On November 10th at 7:30pm in 116 Murphy we are hosting a short screening of a documentary film called Seoul Train to help educate the UNC student body on the growing crisis in North Korea.

Here are a few details about the organization LiNK (Liberty in North Korea)
and the Documentary: LiNK, or Liberty in North Korea, is a U.S. based
international NGO devoted to the North Korean human rights and refugee
crisis. LiNK protects North Koreans where they can be reached, advocating
for their human rights. In the field, LiNK maintains a network of shelters
to protect refugees who are in hiding in China and Southeast Asia. The
organization operates underground, helping to bring refugees to safe
countries. In the US and South Korea the "Liberty House" program assists
newly resettled refugees. Protection officers and staff spend extensive
time meeting with North Korean refugees to document their stories and share
them with the world. LiNK believes in the influence of the grassroots and
realizes that change may only come about through international attention
and the conscious action of global citizens.  More information about LiNK
can be found here: http://www.linkglobal.org/

Seoul Train: With its riveting footage from the secretive Underground
Railroad of Asia, "Seoul Train" is a gripping documentary that exposes the
life and death of North Koreans as they try to escape their homeland and
China. Created in China and inspired by the 19th Century Underground
Railroad that saved over 30,000 slaves, up to 300,000 North Korean refugees
today are trying to escape through a similar network of routes in China and
Southeast Asia. Come and discover how you can take part in the today's
modern Underground Railroad and be responsible for rescuing those who have
been oppressed.

For more information about the documentary please see the official website
here: http://www.seoultrain.com/

I was assigned to follow the Environmental Advisory Board (EAB) and how it interacts with Carrboro’s other sectors of government and of course the board’s perception, awareness and stance(s) on human rights. The EAB meets every first Thursday of the month in Carrboro’s Town Hall. The fist available meeting I could have attended ended up being cancelled so I spent that time researching the board’s previous activity through Carrboro’s official town website. It seems that in the past the board has been used as a go-to group when the larger umbrella of the Carrboro government wants to make a decision concerning environmental issues. However, according to most recent meeting minutes it seems the group has been more “proactive” in setting their own agenda especially concerning the newly founded Carrboro open space behind the Spotted Dog on Main Street. Another thing that seemed consistent throughout the minutes was the lack of consistent involvement from members. It is not a judgment just an observation--most minutes have most board members listed as absent. It will be interesting to see how this factor affects the overall group and its agenda as the semester proceeds.

The first meeting I got to attend was interesting. There were few attendees however the meeting was very structured and seemed rather formal (e.g., calling to order, adjourning, handouts, etc.). There was an interesting presentation on the Transition Model. This was a new concept for me. What I learned is that there is apparently an entire model built that communities in the UK are implementing to help themselves better adjust to climate change and other issues such as peak oil. As I am writing this now, I realized that the meeting was fairly specific. That is to say, there were some technical terms used such as peak oil and alternative energies that without my prior background knowledge of environmental science and climate change related issues I would not have been able to follow the discussion as clearly.

A topic that came up in the meeting that seems the most human rights oriented was the overall theme and perspective the group took on understanding how they might implement the Transition Model used in the UK in Carrboro. The general take away of the meeting was that the board’s focus was on empowering the community through the realm of adapting alternative energies and education on climate change. The focus of empowerment and less towards educating is what seemed human rights oriented. According to my interpretation of this, in a perfect world, the board would want everyone in the town’s vicinity to be educated on these topics. Realistically though, I wonder how this might happen. It seems as though the more “privileged” people in Carrboro are the ones able to access this education (e.g, people who go to events at the Carrboro Open Space). Lastly, it seems there is a lot of collaboration with the EBA and other environmental activist groups in surrounding towns such as NC Powerdown and BALLE. It will be interesting to observe how the advisory board chooses to interact with these groups around the emerging idea of using the Transition Model in Carrboro. This thursday is the next environmental group meeting that I will be attending.

Leaf light

So we have moved on from creating a database to creating a survey that we will ask the farmers markets in order to sign them up for accepting the food stamp program. This is a complicated and intense endeavor because we must get certain questions answered that the application calls for, the organization has their own questions they want answered and then we have to make sure we follow all research procedures determined by the IRB. It has taken us about 2 weeks to get to this point.

We are starting to discuss what phone calls will be like and doing practice calls with our script in order to secure effective phone calls. The hardest part of this is working with everyone's schedules (within our group) and fitting the interviewees schedules into our calls. There are a lot of "what if's" but the group is eager to being this new phase. It is also nice when we meet each week for lunch and break bread. It's a nice time to debrief on all the individual work we've done that week

What to do with Teacher Workdays

Hi Everyone,

I wanted to speak about the Teacher Workdays that frequently happen in the Chapel Hill CArrboro School system and during our time in volunteering at A.C.
I noticed that when there is a Teacher Workday we close the center, and are not expected to go to the center and tutor because the kids are not expected to show up. I see this as a potential downfall of our efforts to instill self-determination and motivation in reading and writing. I do believe students should enjoy their day off, but from 3-6pm we should still report to the center. We do not have to work on homework and reading as intensely as we would during the regular school day, but maybe doing a Spelling Bee, or Academic Bowl with math games, or Reading Circle, Story Time. Any activities of that sort, we have to make sure taht we are encouraging reading and writing consistently. We should start teaching them now how to use time off from school effectively, so when breaks such as Winter Break, Spring Break, and Summer come around they know that this time is not all FREE time, and they should find productive, yet fun activities to do as well.

So, for future reference: I am not sure when the next Teacher Workday will be but when it comes up we should advertise that the center is indeed still open and we will be doing a special activity. Maybe with snack and drinks provided, so more kids will come up.

Also, what do you all think about going in on Friday afternoons to do some "special activities" (spelling bees, academic bowls, reading circles) for prizes?

Maybe we can do it like the last two weeks of the semester.

Let me know what you think about this so we can start planning.

Danielle Staggers

Re: Mentoring

I completely agree with you about our jobs as supportive mentors. Every time I work with a new student on their homework I have to stop them from insulting their own intelligence, "I can't do this, I'm stupid." Or they don't want to read in front of me because they know they have an accent. I don't know who lets them get away with this kind of talk or how much they actually believe it, but I always address it because I want them all to be confident students.