What's Good in the Neighborhood, June 10, 2019

We’re all there…

Saturday morning I woke up unnaturally early. As I sat in the living room reading a book FOR FUN, I was reminded that very, very soon in my future, I will be able to sit and read or draw in my sketchbook for hours on end. How exciting! At school, I see our students chomping at the bit for time to be in summer camps, running around their neighborhoods, and playing in pools and with hoses. We are almost there, all. For now, we all still need to do our homework and end the year strong.

I look forward to celebrating our 8th graders at graduation on Thursday. What an exciting evening!! We get the chance to witness the culmination of our collective love and work and focus on 28 young people who are ready to take what they have learned at CNH and apply it in new settings. So exciting to see them spread their wings into high school!!! (weep)

Graduation is open to all CNH community members. Come and help us cheer on our 8th graders Thursday night at 7:00 in the auditorium with a reception to follow in the cafe!

Love, Dr. Shyla.

A Look Ahead…

Thursday, June 13 — Last day of school for 8th graders at CNH!!!
Thursday, June 13, 7:00 pm — CNH 8th Grade Graduation in the auditorium with reception to follow in the cafe
Monday, June 17 through Thursday, June 20 — 1:00 dismissal every day next week (UEC will be at the school for extended aftercare. Contact them to reserve your spot!)
June 20 — Last day of school!
June 21 — report cards mailed home
end of July — The Summer Mailing will be sent to all families that includes important information for next year, forms to fill-out for the school, supply lists, opportunities to engage with the school before September, etc.

Thank you for your appreciation!

Last week was such an amazing week filled with school-wide and individual acts of appreciation from families! In the mornings, as I shook hands, many kids and family members walked past with cases of sodas, boxes of donuts, pans of baked goods, and salad items. It was amazing. Thank you to all of the parents and family members who made the CNH Teacher Appreciation Week amazing!!!

And a special thank you to CNH Boardmember Maryhelen Pflug for organizing the Teacher Appreciation Week. Her leadership was amazing with all of the hard work and focused attention that went into every single day for the teachers. It was a fantastic week!!

Announcing our new Director of Student Experience — Rashida Joiner

I am pleased to announce Rashida Joiner as our Director of Student Experience for the 2019-2020 school year. Originally from Chicago, Rashida studied developmental psychology and sociology in preparation for her work with children. She has a background working in independent schools, public schools, and non-profit organizations focused on social-emotional learning, restorative practices, and diversity and inclusion. She will be an excellent addition to the CNH team and a wonderful resource for students!

Why do we have this new position?

What is the Director of Student Experience (DoSE), you ask? The DoSE is a position created to fully focus on supporting each student’s full experience in school through restorative practice.

A little background — Last year, in order to better support student needs and conflicts, we created the Culture of Care position for our school Social Worker, Lauren Clements. She is amazing, and the students have really found her to be a wonderful resource to have in the school! A challenge she has faced this year is that students found it confusing to go to her both when they needed emotional support as well as to be sent to her after a conflict for restorative consequences.

For next year, we will now have three places where children can go for support outside of their classroom teachers: the principal’s office to solve problems and propose ideas, the Culture of Care Coordinator for social and emotional support, and the Director of Student Experience for restorative work and problem-solving. This way, students can holistically be held in a variety of ways.

The DoSE will keep an eye on the full picture of the students: attendance, grades, behaviors, activities as well as build relationships with their families. The DoSE will be the first point of conflict for families when their student navigates challenges with peers in school. She will help students resolve conflicts restoratively and will help students learn from different choices they make along the way. We are very excited to have this new position next year to truly support restorative practices at our school!

A Message from Board member Maryhelen Pflug

Dear Parents –
Thank you to each of that contributed to teacher appreciation last week. I know from my own busy schedule that sometimes it is hard to contribute time and energy of even the simplest of things. As always, CNH families, gave plenty and then some each day of teacher appreciation celebration. There was never a shortage of appreciation for the teachers and staff.
Great job families!!

Announcing our new Board members for next year!

The CNH Board has 9 Director positions held by CNH Family members who each hold a three-year term. Every year, three Directors end their term allowing space for new membership from families. Thank you to everyone who ran for a position on the board this year! Below are the election results for next school year. Please join me in congratulating our new CNH Board members!

Board Secretary and Chair of Communications

Awsha R. Johnson is the mom of rising fifth-grader A’Shawn R. Johnson-Pace. She is originally from Ohio. She attended The Ohio State University earning degrees in African and African American Studies, Criminology and minored in Dance. Awsha earned her Master’s Degree in Public Administration with a focus in Local Government and Sustainable Communities. She is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Currently, Awsha serves Baltimore City Residents by determining eligibility for federally funded programs with the Department of Human Services with the State of Maryland. Awsha is an AFSCME Shop Steward for local 112 and a member of the Labor Management Committee. Awsha enjoys live music, plays, museums, skating, dancing, water parks, poetry slams and spending time with her family and friends.

Director of Community Relations

Christina Delgado is the mom of rising second-grader Omatola Dewodu. She is a community organizer and manager, photographer, and educational leader based in Baltimore City. She leads with diverse experience in engaging, coordinating, and managing initiatives, along with establishing strong relationships and making big ideas into a creative reality. It’s her conviction that the combination of community engagement, art, and education strengthens minds and makes meaningful connections, which leads to the enrichment and empowerment of society. Christina became a photographer and an artist later in life. Her experience started as a hobby which then became a profession and her reason for wanting to become a teacher. She has been an educator, a photographer, and a community advocate for almost 15 years. In her most recent experience, Christina does community-based consultant work throughout Baltimore, is on the Maryland State Arts Council, Artist-in-Resident Roster, and works with Young Audiences of Maryland as a Teaching Artist.

Director of Fundraising

Shantell Roberts is the mom of rising first-grader Cyan Green. She is a Social Entrepreneur, advocate for Maternal and Child Health, and Founder of Touching Young Lives, Incorporated; a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that focuses on the health and well-being of infants and children. Earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Stevenson University and a Masters in Public Health from Morgan State University, her passion for maternal and child health began in 2011 after the untimely death of her one-year-old daughter. After suffering this heartbreak, she created Touching Young Lives, Incorporated; a 501c3 nonprofit organization that focuses on the health and well-being of infants and children. Since its formation, she has worked with thousands of families and children in Maryland with one goal in mind- preventing another untimely infant or adolescent death. While serving as the Safe Sleep Coordinator for Baltimore City, she identified a huge population of families that lacked sufficient infant sleeping spaces and essential resources. Taking this into consideration, Shantell participated in the 2016 John Hopkins University Social Innovation Lab cohort to launch the Portable Alternative Crib initiative and was awarded the inaugural $25, 000 seed funding. In November 2017, she was selected as an Open Society Institute-Baltimore Community Fellow to build out the Portable Alternative Crib Initiative platform in Baltimore City and create a temple for use throughout the State of Maryland. Since inception, Shantell has provided over 5,000 Portable Alternative Cribs to families in over 6 jurisdictions in Maryland. She has been named a Top 30 Visionary by the Baltimore Magazine, selected by the United Way of Central Maryland as one of the 2018 Philanthropic Five honorees, the Daily Record for the 2018 V.I.P. “Successful by 40” list and the Daily Record’s 2018 Leading Women for the State of Maryland . Previous honorable mentions include but are not limited to: (2015) Recipient of the “We Are The Dream” award from the Baltimore City Youth Council; (2016) Recipient of the Small Nonprofit Innovator Award by the Baltimore City Chamber of Commerce and the Associated Black Charities’ Woman Under 30 Making a Difference in the Community Award. She is currently the chair of the Stevenson University Engagement Committee, an Advisory Board Member for the Johns Hopkins University Social Innovation Lab and an advisory board member for the University of Maryland’s Department of Pediatric’s Center for Infant and Child Loss.