Jennifer Moody Visit

Democrat Herald reporter Jennifer Moody visited our feature writing class last week the day after live-feeding a school board meeting on the budget cuts I've been following.

I had some reporting related questions for her, but the thing I really wanted to ask was how she balanced family and reporting. During the feed, she wrote "I'm turning the keyboard over...for a few minutes so I can pick up my kid from drama rehearsal. Back soon."


Family/Work Balance - Moody said she works about 30 hours a week and her time is flexible. Before her kids were old enough to be in school full time, she got help from family and babysitters. But she would take them on assignment with her if necessary. And she said that you don't always have to say "yes" to an assignment.


AP Style and the Conventions of Writing - Clarity matters more than AP style Moody said. The conventions of writing always matter though. People judge your intelligence by your writing. She said even her 10 year-old daughter is critical of poor writing and grammar.


Go to the Top - Moody said that one way to try to get around prepared statements is to avoid the person in the middle. Go straight to the person who handles whatever you want to know about. If I want to know why the GAPS superintendent is proposing a certain strategy, I should talk to her, not her assistant.

At a Glance
Jennifer Moody
Democrat Herald

ERDC Rally at the Capitol

Over 50 people joined the Rally to Save Employment Related Day Care (ERDC) last Wednesday afternoon at Oregon’s state capitol.

LBCC student Lisa Bauman set the date last month for the Rally to Save ERDC thinking she might be on the steps of the state capitol alone.

But Bauman’s many phone calls, e-mails and presentations payed off. Individuals and organizations signed up to attend the rally.

One of the first organizations to respond to Bauman, Children First For Oregon (CFFO), was key in spreading the word because of the many supporters they have acquired through their long time commitment to child advocacy.

On Feb. 9, the 50 plus rally participants included those who benefit the most from ERDC - children in day care.

Autumn David runs Salem’s Island Adventure Day Care. About half of the families she serves use the assistance program. If ERDC is cut, the day care she has operated for 14 years will not be able to stay open. She and Yuchin Johnny, who also works at Island Adventure Day care brought nine of the 16 children they care for.

Sue Mackey is a child care provider who currently does not have any clients on ERDC, but came to the rally because she is concerned about the children who will be effected if funding is cut. “It effects me right here,” Mackey said as she patted her heart. “I’m worried we’re going to get kids left at home alone or in cars.”

If ERDC is cut, many of the families currently receiving it will not be able to afford day care, and thus will not be able to work. For the day care facilities losing clients, and income, that means they will have to lay-off their employees or close their doors altogether. That means possibly two more families on full public assistance.

Rebekah Whittaker of SEIU 503, brought her young son Jackson with her to hand out information about the rally to state representatives. “The main focus of our child care workers has been ERDC,” Whittaker said. “ERDC saves the state economy.”

Regan Gray of CFFO said, “Probably the biggest thing that is helping us out right now is that the governor announced his recommended budget. He wishes to expand the Employment Related Day Care to 11,000 families. We’re very supportive of that, so the timing of this rally couldn't be better. The fact that we can say ‘thank you governor.’”

Lucette Wood: Writing With a Purpose

Photo courtesy of Lucette Wood

Lucette Wood arrives at her office balancing a stack of folders in one hand and a tray of food in the other.  She picked up what will be her lunch and dinner early because the cafeteria will be closed before the next break in her day.

Wood is used to juggling her time this way. She has several jobs: writing and English instructor at LBCC, coordinator of the LBCC Valley Writers Series, technical writer, and grant writer. What seems to matter most to Wood is the positive impact she can make with each of these ventures.

She has been a writing and English instructor at LBCC going on 11 years. Currently she teaches technical writing, college composition, and children’s literature.

While she enjoys teaching writing, Wood said she loves teaching children's literature: "It’s a lot of fun and people actually use the information and they share books with their children and with the children in the classroom; they’re (students who take the class) either teachers or parents usually. It’s really fun to hear all of the reports back. so you get to see the effects of it which is nice."

Wood shares an office with writing instructor Jed Wyman. The space is cramped but the officemates don’t seem to mind: “Sharing an office with Lucette is wonderful. I could not ask for a better office mate. We have many good laughs together. She is thoughtful, considerate, EXTREMELY smart, and someone whom I consider to be a good, good friend. I am rather in awe of her.”

In fact, one of their conversations led to a program idea for the Valley Writers Series, a project Wood coordinates with Jane White.

Wood said the idea for a dead authors reading came from a conversation with Wyman about honoring past writers: “We were talking about a time a friend of his dressed up as the author Beatrix Potter. So that’s what inspired it. We decided we should dress up and honor our favorite authors and just read.”

In her little spare time, Wood writes for both pleasure and purpose. She writes poetry and recently started a short story inspired by Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s "The Yellow Wallpaper."

Wood also channels her writing skills to benefit others: "I do a lot of grant writing for free. For a lot of organizations who just need it. We’ve received a lot of good grants.”

Wood said one of her favorite grant awards resulted in new playground equipment for a school in Eugene. They were awarded the National PTO Today Lowe's grant.  "There was only one award chosen nationally, and the award was $15,000 for their obesity grant.  When the money was received, I coordinated the installation to completion."

She has also taken on grant writing for more urgent needs: “Coburg Elementary School is being shut down, and it is the only school in that rural area, meaning students would have to be bused at least an hour each way to the next closest grade school.”

“To prevent the doors being closed, the school closure committee petitioned the Oregon Department of Education to become a charter school.”

Wood’s children do not go to that school, but when she learned of the situation she took the initiative to contact the committee and volunteered to write for the grant.

“The funding cuts and sacrifice of the quality our children's education is brutal.  Grant writing is a powerful outlet to affect this crisis,” Wood said.

Ultimately the grant was denied by ODE but approved by 4J. The school will become a charter school next year.

But Mollie Smith, of the Coburg Community Charter School, is grateful for Wood’s involvement with the process. “We found out about the grant roughly a month before it was due. I know Lucette spent countless hours familiarizing herself with the purpose of the grant and integrating information that was outlined in the school proposal into the grant.  She was very professional and we are thankful for her in kind help with this project.”

Even though the grant was denied, Smith said they “did learn a lot about the process and are able to apply again with this new knowledge.”

Wood counts these grant writing opportunities as blessings: "Grant writing has combined my passions, to help children and to promote children's literacy, to provide for the practical needs in the community.  I am blessed to be a part of it."

Lucette Wood

Office: SSH-208

Office hours: Mon. 3:30-4:30 p.m.; Wed. 11:30 a.m. -12:30 and 3:30-4:30 p.m.

Phone: 541-917-4620

WOODL@linnbenton.edu

Valley Writers Series

Funding GAPS

Update: Superintendent Maria Delapoer announced that Takena Elementary is no longer on the proposed chopping block. The Democrat Herald reported Saturday that Delapoer is now also against moving fifth-graders to North Albany Middle School.
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The Greater Albany School District is facing a $7 million shortfall next school year. And an $8 million shortfall for the 2012-13 school year.

Though Executive Assistant Jim Haggart says the superintendent is considering a number of options for the coming school year, the most talked about in the community is the closure of three Albany elementary schools. This was a main focus at the series of public meetings the board held in February.

Superintendent Maria Delapoer is recommending the closure of the three elementary schools and moving fifth-graders to North Albany Middle School, which currently houses sixth through eighth grade, for the 2011-12 school year. Additionally, for the 2012-13 school year, she is recommending a 4-day work/school week and cutting all athletics and activities.

Delapoer said they have to make some difficult decisions because of the budget shortfall. This is the third time in her career she's been through difficult financial times in a school district, and she wants to make sure that the measures they take now will not negatively affect the district when this crisis is over.

She was realistic about the difficult situation. She said real things like "Teachers will continue to see heavier workloads with fewer resources."

When Jane Evans, the principal of NAMS, finished her bit at the parent/public forum at the Feb. 10 meeting, she got a round of applause. Evans framed the closure of Fir Grove Elementary as a positive: "We want you to know how excited we are about having your students with us."

She talked about pairing the incoming fifth-graders with NAMS' sixth-graders and how they would be "cocooned" but not completely separated from the older kids.

Evans said that she understands parents' concerns about grouping younger children with middle-schoolers, but cited Timber Ridge as a successful example of this integration. Timber Ridge currently has children from third to seventh grade. 

In a separate conversation, board member Sandi Evans said "The school (Timber Ridge) was built with that in mind; it has separate floors. NAMS is not divided that way. Models we've looked at are the model we already have: Timber Ridge, which is built for grades 3-8. The administrators from N. Albany have gone there, watched kids move in and out of class, noting how they’re segregated. That building, however, was designed that way, these other schools are not. That's a challenge." 

Haggart said the superintendent and board are not considering the 4-day school week for the 2011-12 school year because they want more time to study 4-day plans and consult with other districts. Considering the limited research that went into exploring the impact of a middle-school environment on fifth-graders, it seems a 4-day week for next year should still be an option.

Parents are concerned about integrating their fifth-graders into NAMS. The GAPS Funding Ideas blog serves as an open forum for discussing school budget options. It is apparent though that the moderators are strong proponents of starting the 4-day plan in the 2011-12 school year rather than closing schools.

The site is managed by community members and parents, Gwen Christensen, and Dawn and Brent Davis. They have recent research on 4-day school weeks posted on their site. There is also research that introducing younger children to a middle-school environment can be detrimental to a child's success in school.

Participants are encouraged to join the discussion by posting on the site. Beyond being a space to voice opinion, the site lists contact information for state and local representatives.

What happens next depends on the state budget, which won't be released until May or June. “I think what the superintendent wants to say is that no decision has been made about closing the schools,” said Haggart, Delapoer's assistant.

At a Glance

GAPS Budget Information

Get Involved

Greater Albany Public Schools: GAPS Continuous Improvement Initiative

GAPS Funding Ideas blog: GAPS Funding Ideas

Lucette Wood Office Hours

 Lucette Wood teaches English and writing at LBCC. She also helps organize the Valley Writers Series.

What are your favorite classes to teach? I teach a lot of the professional work place writing, which I enjoy. I love teaching children’s lit. It’s a lot of fun and people actually use the information and they share books with their children and with the children in the classroom; they’re (students who take the class) either teachers or parents usually. It’s really fun to hear all of the reports back. so you get to see the effects of it which is nice.

Are there any classes you would like to teach, that you aren’t now?

Probably more minority lit courses. I taught Latin American lit six years ago now. I taught a critical thinking course lately and I used a lot of diversity components in that course which was fun.

Is there a particularly memorable experience from one of your classes or the Writer's series that you would like to share?

Some of my favorite experiences at the VW events are the writing workshops. The creative fabric that is woven after an inspiring reading and in the supportive presence of an engaged and appreciative audience is remarkable. The last time Paulann Petersen came, three years ago now, is one of my cherished moments. The room was equally filled with students, community members, staff and faculty and all were responding to a springboard Petersen provided. When participants volunteered their results, written in just a few minutes, the quality was astounding. It was a testament of the marriage between reading and writing and the fruits of the inspiration authors provide. Paul Hawkwood read a poem about a homeless man he encountered after leaving a building in a metropolitan area, and the image lingers with me. His work was just one of countless shared.

In the classroom, the moments that make me smile are those where students' discussions guide and fill the classroom, exploring the boundaries of the learning objective I hold and filling it in a way that mere instruction could not. Those are the times I don't need to be present. Those are the moments I cherish

It seems that student interaction is a key aspect of your teaching style. Have you ever taught an online course? If so, did you feel you were able to engage the students on the same level you have in a traditional on-campus course?

Yes, student interaction is a central element in my teaching strategy. When I first began teaching, my mentor told me to ever only be 80% prepared for class. I had no idea what that meant. Through the years, I've come to believe it is essential to give enough room for a class to breathe and move in a direction that may not follow my outline but is drawn by student engagement. It means you have to have flexibility to allow students to engage and, in return, engage with them, not disengage behind a scope you are cemented to or with a student you are disinterested in. Learning is about processing and applying information to the context of our understanding and experience; it is not simply about receiving information. My job is bigger than delivering information. I need to know individuals in order to effectively teach them.

When I teach online, it is also important to know the individuals I teach, and there are ways to build that relationship with them individually. First, I work to develop a friendly, approachable persona through the tone and the words I use to communicate. I build assignments that ask students to process and reflect on the information personally; I want to know what their experiences are, how they filter the information, and what they build out of their analysis.

My approach to teaching is relational. In order to learn, we have to believe we have something to learn and believe the teacher has something to teach. Additionally, the credibility of the teacher is built on an foundation of ethics and goodwill. When we smile in the hallway, we communicate our goodwill, and it is no different in the classroom. The final component to being an effective learner and teacher is humility. Offer what you know, admit what you don't, and be open to receiving what students and others can teach you. Humility always comes before wisdom.

Lucette Wood

Office: SSH-208

Office hours: Mon. 3:30-4:30 p.m.; Wed. 11:30 a.m. -12:30 and 3:30-4:30 p.m.

Phone: 541-917-4620

WOODL@linnbenton.edu

Valley Writers Series

Descriptive

Another student signs in at the entrance and looks for a free table. She lucked out. There is a spot to share with an outlet to power her laptop while she works.

Most students in this space have set up camp - spreading their homework and notes out around them.
Some look for friends. Some snack on lunch.
 
Other students, slouched in the comfy chairs, wait for their names to be called.