People of the South End: Miss Clara Phillips

by Elizabeth DeSantis

Keeping the Past Alive

Mississippi native Clara Phillips has been in Albany for 56 years, and has stayed a loyal resident to the South End ever since. She has been a part of AVillage for the past 8 years ever since running into Willie White one day after her church service who said, “I’m starting an organization”. Ms.Clara has since been known as “AVillage’s first member”, and her dedication to her work is accredited to something her mother always told her -- “If you’re going to do something, stick with it”. Her dedication is visible through the creation of the 100 CDTA bus line and the annual Mississippi Day.

While interviewing Ms. Clara, I asked her what her favorite memory of Albany is, to which she laughed and said, “Well, at first, I didn’t like Albany. It was too quiet”. Now, Ms. Clara said, she would never leave the South End or Albany. Mississippi will always be home, but Albany has become a good second home for her.

She now occupies her time by working at the South End Children’s Cafe where she helps youth with their homework and tries to answer all of the questions about life they throw at her. “They keep you in touch”, she said, when asked about how different is was working with a younger generation. Since younger generations are more involved with social media than Ms. Clara, they fill her in about technology while she tells them stories about her past.

Ms. Clara admitted that she’s not as updated with technology, but she wishes the South End could get more media coverage to raise awareness. “You can’t buy salad in the South End”, she said. The importance of raising her, and many others’ concerns about the need for jobs, health insurance, and vegetables needs to reach more social media coverage so that change can happen.

When asking about her history, Ms. Clara told her life story with a reminiscent look and a smile that never left her face. From sharing stories about the day she cooked for the first annual AVillage Mississippi Day with an injured ankle to how she works at the local South End Children’s Cafe to help students with their homework, it’s clear why social media is important. Without social media platforms, some stories never get shared. They may die with the person they belong to, but Ms. Clara is working against that by writing her first novel. Still in the making, From The Beginning to Almost The End, will share her well known recipes and the challenges she’s overcome. Her hopes for the book is that “it might help someone else”. 

People of the South End will be an occasional feature of AVillage VOICE. If you know someone with a story to tell, let us know. The Editor.

Corey Ellis Talks Economic Development

by Mahalia Cummings

“It was on those yellow pieces of paper that this organization was born,” Albany Common Council President-Elect Corey Ellis begins his talk at December 7th’s Thursday Meeting by calling back to AVillage’s origin story. He talks about the way that Willie White built on an idea. An idea that Corey first witnessed come into its own on bright yellow flyers and on passion before the it was even fully conceptualized.

South End residents dream for themselves, too. Corey Ellis points out that for too many people, the job opportunities they see always come with a barrier or obstacle attached, so that they can see it, but can’t grasp it. Some of these obstacles stem from educational injustice, lack of economic opportunity, the absence of equal representation in government, housing disparities, and racial discrimination.

For Corey, it is about equality and equity. It is about tapping into the entrepreneurial minds of young people, but it’s also about institutions. “You have to have some entity that holds people accountable.” Corey co-founded the Capital District Black Chamber of Commerce to become an economic driving force and leverage  for people who found themselves shut out in the face of systemic discrimination. “What about your lending practices? Your high interest rates?” Corey speaks of crossing into a world where institutions are no longer blocked off to marginalized members of the community.  “That’s where your institutions have to come alive. Your churches, your chambers. Your urban league.”

The discussion also centered on the merits of empowering yourself, any way you can. The inherent value of unions and the importance of advocacy was a hallmark of the meeting.  Members from ECWA local 102, a construction union, were present at the meeting. ECWA Local 102 is proficient in training its members, and works with legislator and community leaders in the city. Corey doesn’t claim to have all the answers when it comes to this subject. But he stresses the importance of going after the people who contract the companies in the first place, and getting down to the nuts and bolts of how many jobs community members will be viable for. And providing access to that training.

When AVillage member Ray Turner asks what he needs to do to achieve what Corey Calls a “sustainable, workable, livable” community, Corey tells him that he’s already doing it. “Being part of an organization that is based on community growth. Being active in the community.”

Corey is an example of what community activism does. As he said, he didn’t come to the meeting to talk at community members. He aimed to listen. There wasn’t always complete agreement, but conversations have to be nuanced to make change. Corey Ellis is at the forefront of our Common Council, filled with group of people who take a significant role in representing the residents of Albany. As Vivian Kornegay said at the meeting last Thursday, what affects one of our neighborhoods, affects us all. Corey stated that the resurgence of the South End is going to come hand in hand with aggressive change. We are all a part of that change.

Road Closed Due to Injustice

by Mahalia Cummings

When Willie White speaks to Dave the truck driver on Friday, November 17th, with horns blaring around them, there is a moment of stillness. In contrast to the confrontational nature of the halted trucker at last month’s action, Dave tells Willie that he understands why he's being stopped. There is no quick flash of anger, but compassion.

For the news cameras, this result might have seemed anti-climactic. But it’s the buildup of awareness and open dialogue that will impact change.

Over the past month members of AVillage and the surrounding community have gathered to protest environmental injustice at Ezra Prentice Homes. Members gather at 625 South Pearl St., meeting those from groups such as Citizen Action, students from The Free School, Democratic Socialists of Albany, and Environmental Advocates of New York.   There has been great strength in small numbers, but we hope to continue to grow this movement, to be so loud that people can’t help but to join us.

AVillage advocates for people who have been exhausted by a system that overlooks and exploits them. For some, that means standing and holding signs. For others, that means standing in the road and refusing to move. Either way, AVillage seeks to elevate the voices of those who have been silenced. The residents of Ezra Prentice Homes deserve advocates who are willing to be unmoved.

In the minutes leading up to the conversation, Willie was gathered with other protesters as they blocked the southbound lane of South Pearl Street. While the traffic was blocked, other demonstrators handed out literature to those in their stopped cars. All the while, Dave and Willie engaged in a civil discourse about the toxic environmental impact that diesel truck fumes have on the neighborhood.

Willie echoes some of the  “Dear Trucker” letter passed out to all halted truck drivers who will accept them. To members of AVillage and many residents of Ezra Prentice, it is clear as day. Traffic stoppage is controversial. But the residents have no other tool or leverage to get their voices heard. What is a minor inconvenience for those on their evening commute is part of a larger picture for those who are fighting for their lives.

And at this particular action, it was met with a dialogue that continues to grow. Willie reports that he has received a number of phone calls from Truckers who read the letter and want to talk about how to resolve this issue. They tell Willie they understand the issue and why it’s necessary to take direct action, but also why other routes are difficult right now. One company that has found another route, according to its driver. Willie passes on the information from the truckers to those who have the ability to take action.

Tomorrow, Dave and people like him could be the impetus to the further closing of the gap between the needs of the people and the pressures of the transportation system.

Willie is known for shouting “no more” at protests, a two-word declaration that invokes the true nature of not only AVillage’s activism, but the voices of the oft-silenced Ezra Prentice residents. Enough is Enough. Everyone felt that spirit at the November 17th action, felt that the purpose stretching beyond one singular individual, but embodying the type of resistance that really takes A Village.

Will you join us? If you’d like to participate, please send us your phone number so we can text you about future actions.

The Campaign for Better Health at Ezra Prentice

by Elizabeth DeSantis

From conducting health surveys to installing monitors counting trucks to tracking the air quality at the Ezra Prentice Homes, the journey toward relief is not quite over for the residents who live there. But certainly concerns surrounding the damage to the health of this community have grown more widespread in the last two years.

The NYS Department of Environmental Conservation is spending $500,000 over the next year to conduct an intensive study of air quality in the neighborhood, using new and sophisticated air monitoring equipment with two stationary sites and hand held monitors as well . 

This plan is a year-long study to look into the main contributing sources to air pollution in the South End, which the DEC will assess:

• How much particulate matter comes from motor vehicles versus Port activities?
• How far does particulate matter travel from the road into the neighborhood?
• How much benzene comes from sources in the Port versus vehicles on local roadways?
• What approaches can the DEC take to help the community understand air quality?

The study began only this fall, so the discoveries are not yet in-depth. However, Kyle Frazier, a representative for the DEC, stated,

“Instrumentation has been installed and is up and running.  The portable monitoring portion of the study has been underway for a few months.  To assist our data interpretation, the New York State Department of Transportation has agreed to install a traffic counter on South Pearl St.  DEC plans to compare the car and truck counts to our monitoring data.  We’ve also learned that we need to work better on translating technical information for the community”.

The goal of these air monitors overall is for the DEC to gain a greater understanding about the primary sources of some air pollutants, such as particulate matter and chemical gases that are emitted into the air from motor vehicles, road dust, and loading crude oil from one container to another. There is a monitor that remains constant outside of the Ezra Prentice Homes that tracks Benzene, the most common chemical gas that is created from gasoline fumes, asphalt, and moving crude oil.

A second, smaller monitor has been installed near the Creighton Storey Homes on Third Avenue, almost a mile away from the Port and much further up the hill so data between the two can be compared.

AVillage and the Ezra Prentice Tenants Association have hosted four DEC presentations on the air quality project in the past year to explain the air quality project. Another information session is being planned  for January.

In the meantime, a study conducted this summer by the Capital District Transportation Committee (CDTC) designed to count the diesel trucks and track their origins and destinations is still not complete, but results are expected soon.

AVillage’s Resident Outreach Workers have facilitated health surveys at 107 households at Ezra Prentice This information is invaluable both to make the case that the air quality is affecting people’s health, and also in allowing us to work with CDPHP, the Albany County Health Department and other providers to make sure people get connected with good information about their health issues, and find appropriate services if needed. 

Working with Trinity Alliance and the Radix Center, we will be expanding our surveys and outreach to other parts of the South End starting in January. If you are interested in becoming a Resident Outreach Worker (ROW) to help conduct these surveys, contact Willie White at avillage5@aol.com.

Superintendent Kaweeda G. Adams Speaks On Community Schools

What does education mean to you? The one-word answers from community residents attending the November 9 AVillage meeting included these: “opportunity, equity, freedom, awakening, and access.“

AVillage was honored to welcome Superintendent Kaweeda G. Adams as our featured speaker for the weekly Thursday meeting. Approximately forty people attended last week - members of AVillage who gathered in the name of getting a clearer idea of “community schools,” which now include Giffen Memorial Elementary School in the South End. Click here for video of the meeting, which included poignant questions and open discussion.

Education is nuanced and different for every parent and student, and the Community School concept is equally nuanced. On Thursday we got both the general concept and specific examples of what the Albany School District wants to achieve.  Every students’ needs fluctuates around variables such as home environment, health disparities, social issues, and more. Too often, those variables become barriers to learning. 

The goal of the community school model is to break down those barriers by supporting student enrichment, engagement, and academic participation through a symbiotic relationship between community organizations, parents, students, and teachers.  This is going to look different for every school, but the hope is to that schools become a consortium of sorts, so that each institution can learn from one another about what works better for them.

  

Superintendent Adams previously served as the school associate superintendent of Nevada’s Clark County School District, the fifth largest school district in the nation. She is no stranger to urban settings. Throughout the meeting parents and concerned community members discussed how to tackle the issues that are unique to Albany. With her were other school officials including Community Engagement Coordinator Cathy Edmondson, who is a key link between the school, parents, and community members. From Giffen Memorial Elementary School were Principal Jasmine Brown, and Community Site Coordinator, Amanda Boyd. Together, they formed a picture of the type of collaboration the community school model is meant to foster.

Superintendent Adams spoke of the significance of measuring progress through the lenses of academic achievement and enrichment. It’s not just one or the other, but a balance of increasing the quality of both. She also takes note of the power of language. “Success is how we define it. We can’t put our children in a box to always define what success looks like. We want them to have the opportunities and the possibilities to determine what that success looks like for them with our guidance and with our support.”

Each school will conduct a needs assessment among parents and families that evaluates how the schools can get from where they are to where they hope to be. It also helps them direct where the fiscal pieces fit, and informs the budget. Former school Board President Kenny Bruce asked about the concrete implications of community schools. He knows that this model is an ongoing evaluative process, and that the needs assessment is a key piece, but he wanted to know more about specifics, not the abstract. “...obviously you want the student to learn more,” he said. “But how does the community school model translate into results?”

Superintendent Adams’s response was centered on the real-life examples that proved that community schools work. “...This is a model that we have explored in New York City and throughout the country. So, tutoring examples: what does that tutoring look like. Is it targeted specifically on what I need as a student? If I need phonemic awareness does the tutoring address that? Within community schools there may be a mentoring program that’s at the school where the community supports the school.” According to Adams, this is an example that has already seen success at Arbor Hill. There, the community school program helps to align tutoring with what the student’s academic needs are.

Community organizations can also fill the gap in extracurricular programs. Superintendent Adams uses sports as a hypothetical example. “Who knew that students that may be interested in lacrosse? Then you know what? We have a community organization that is primed and ready to bring that to the school,” she said.

As far as how community schools fit into the ongoing workings of the school system? “We want to address the whole child - social and emotional well being of our students to make sure that if there are things that are happening in their life, they are emotionally and socially able to address that. That may be a social worker, that may be a counselor. As a school we only have so many resources available, but the community schools grant can help us fund those additional resources to bring them in to take care of our kids.”

Still, there are concrete progress markers that the school will use to measure the success of community schools. “We are going to look at our academics, ELA, mathematics. We are gonna look at discipline referrals, how many students are being referred to the office or referred to the principal’s office for discipline measures. “ The superintendent went on to describe other signifiers of change. She said that the school district hopes the community school model will bring a decrease in aggressive behaviors and apathy, and contribute to an uptick in how many students turning in homework on time, and reading proficiency.

Community schools are a piece of the larger equation when it comes to the success of our students. First, the school district aims to identify the needs of the students. Then, how does the community work to fill the gaps to fulfill those needs? How much does perception have to do with that, and how do we shape that perception through decisive action? 

Superintendent Adams poses a rhetorical question to the room, meeting the eyes of everyone there.“Who are we when we are outside of our schools, and what does our community think about us? We have to work really hard with our students and we really have to help them understand that they’re a part of something greater than what they even see. And that’s gonna take a minute. And language is absolutely a part of it.”

Would you like to find out more about sitting on a community school advisory board? Contact Cathy Edmondson, Community Engagement Coordinator at 518-475-6067. 

Thursday Meetings Bring New Connections

By Mahalia Cummings

AVillage aims to bring the people who are shaping your community to you. Some of them can seem larger than life, but at AVillage we want to highlight the fact that we can be the bridge to the sometimes overwhelming issues of public policy and education. Our Thursday Meetings are an avenue by which we can bring a level of rare connection between South End residents and the leaders that have an influence on your community.

Last month we were honored to welcome the Honorable Carolyn McLaughlin, who counts educational advocacy as one of the many causes she has fought for over the years. AVillage hopes to help make the connection in the dialogue between residents when it comes to elected officials and school administrators.

Making change starts with helping the people of the community to be heard, no matter what. On Thursday, November 9th, AVillage is excited to welcome Albany School Superintendent Kaweeda G. Adams to our weekly community meeting, in which we hope to shed more light on what community schools mean for our children.

Our newsletter and our Facebook page will keep you informed of future Thursday speakers. The third Thursday of the month will be devoted to speakers on health and health advocacy — a major focus of AVillage and a major concern in our community.

A Conversation with Hon. Carolyn McLaughlin

The Honorable Carolyn McLaughlin is a woman of faith. She shares that through her committed work to public service, and that continued faith has kept her unwavering presence in the fight for social justice in Albany. Serving as a representative of the South End in the Common Council, and then the President, she has rich experiences to share.

“I wanted to be a voice for people who couldn’t be for themselves - or who just wouldn’t because they were intimidated by the process,” She said. Standing at the center of community residents who are closely listening, Carolyn was the embodiment of a leader of and for the community.  Having the pleasure of interviewing her the week before the meeting, it was clear that much of the topics discussed at the meeting rang true to what we spoke about privately.

As Carolyn spoke emphatically about a myriad of subjects — senior services, socio-economic equality,  employment, community engagement, and more — it was clear that her twenty years of public service was mired in passion. She said this of running for office: “You can’t do it if it doesn’t come from the heart”. It’s evident from the way Carolyn talks to her constituents to the plans in her mayoral platform, that she is all heart.

One of the most pressing issues  in the South End is educational justice. One of the ways that manifests is through Carolyn’s role in the Black Women’s Association of Albany. She got involved just over a decade ago, and has since established a scholarship in memory of her late mother which helps young girls go to school. Carolyn sees the uplifting of black women as a crucial marker to our society’s progress. She believes that the Black Women’s Association should continue to embrace women of all ages, and sees the generational gap as less of a chasm and more of as a source of wisdom and an opportunity to pool  collective knowledge and varying perspectives.

The championing of diversity is one of the core tenets of Carolyn’s political career. “You need to have people that represent all interests in every level of government...You need diversity of thought,” she says. “And that comes through having diversity. Because people come from all different backgrounds, and they bring different concerns to the table. Be it the ethnic background, LGBT community, seniors, youth. If someone’s not there that has that global interest, then you very well may be the last person they talk about.

“And by the time they get to your issue, there’s no money, or the team is burned out,” she says. At its best, local government can hold up a mirror to people of the community. Not only in the sphere of local politics, but in the educational system. On a practical level, policies made by a diverse set of people can greatly benefit the marginalized, especially students.

One of the issues that Carolyn hopes to be more vocal about in the future is the lack of black teachers in our schools. “I think we have to look at our schools - we know how diverse the population is or is not because 80-90% of those kids are kids of color. But yet, the teachers in the schools don’t reflect that.”

Carolyn talks about how students of color who see themselves reflected in their teachers can get a needed self-esteem boost. And it’s not about ethnicity alone.  “They seem to have a sense of pride, have a sense of self esteem that comes from that teacher standing in front of them that they’re likely to see in their neighborhood, that they’re gonna see in church, or see in the grocery store. Because that’s another thing: they live in their city.”

Education is largely informed by policies that are made by seemingly distant representatives. And although meetings with people like Superintendent Kaweeda G. Adams are a start, Carolyn makes it clear that the issue is ingrained in our institutions. “You have to look at some of these as a systemic things that affect the outcome of our childrens’ education.”

We also talked about what non-profits can do to continue to make sure people have the tools they need to “Never give up on trying to give the information to people. Because one day it’s gonna click,” she said.

Carolyn McLaughlin was one of the original members of AVillage. She remarked on the evolution of the organization over the past eight years. “I think the growth has been phenomenal. And when Willie mentioned that it’s been eight years, I remember when we had the first meeting in the park up here and there was about five of us. And I said to him, ‘Don’t be discouraged. Come back next week.’ ” Carolyn knows Willie White had the vision that the achievements AVillage has made today were within reach nearly a decade ago.

“What AVillage does.” she said,  “is give the ordinary person an opportunity to realize how they can have an impact.”

A Call to Action: The need for local organizations to partner with Community Schools

by Liz DeSantis

The Community School model now at Giffen Memorial Elementary School and four other Albany school gives organizations and community members an opportunity to step up and become active members in our youth’s education.

Community Schools are organized around foundations that are believed to be the most effective to directly address the needs of their students, family members and the surrounding area. Within these schools, students are able to learn under an informal curriculum that has activities aimed to engage students and their families to create strong support systems.

Community Schools help prepare students to become active members in a growing economy through education and learning life skills. By creating connections to resources in the neighborhood, students benefit from an education outside of a set curriculum, such as receiving a hands-on professional education with businesses, environmental organizations, non-profits and art institutions. Giffen Elementary School is in the South End, which encourages the notion that parents and families must receive support in order to support their children. The Family Resource and Support Center utilizes Giffen’s school-community partnerships to provide guidance for families so that their children can succeed as students.

Community schools are important because they embody effective learning styles to prepare youth for a post-academic life. These kinds of institution for educating children can utilize time throughout the entire year to engage students with organizations, rather than primarily during the academic year. By extending time before or after the school day, or during the summer, schools could integrate the time with partnerships to fit into students’ daily lives without taking away from essential academic guidelines. Organizations now have the opportunity to create a program with the school they’re partnering with to ensure that the students are be receiving hands-on experience that will assist them in the future.