In most academic hiring situation, the first thing considered is the candidate’s academic credentials. Those credentials tend to indicate the classroom achievements of the candidates, and, to some extent, their potential to succeed. Logically, the more classroom achievement, the more potential for success.
What follows is a summary of the credentials of the Site Directors and Program Coordinators of the SCSD’s Say Yes to Education Summer Camp. What you will find missing is reference to academic credentials. Of course, they are well credentialed. All 12 have bachelor degrees, seven have at least one master’s degree, three are pursuing their masters, there is one Ph.D. and three are studying for doctorates. What makes them ideal for their Say Yes positions are their achievements outside the classroom, achievements that prove them to be, in the words of Rachel Gazdick, director of the program at Syracuse University, “well rounded people, that enhance our learning as a staff because of their unique experience.”
Say Yes’s summer program is based on creating a “real world” experience for the 7-10 year old participants, and what better way to show them the relevance of education than to have people with relevant experience as the directors of the program.
Their interaction “creates a rich experience for the students and for us as a staff and a learning community,” says Gazdick.
The site directors and program coordinators for the Corcoran Quadrant actually got the innovative program rolling last December, navigating somewhat unknown waters with what will become a city wide program, with three more quadrants implementing the program over the next three years.
We have met some of the people responsible for bringing Say Yes to Syracuse, now we meet some of the people whose job is to make it work.
McKinley-Brighton Magnet
Roshana Daniel, Site Director at McKinley-Brighton Magnet School has more than 10 years of experience in child welfare and maternal and child health services and has planned, developed and implemented health education and outreach programs for Syracuse Healthy Start and Aunt Martha’s Youth Service Center in Chicago. She was an officer in the United States Army Reserve and was honorably discharged in 2006.
Program Coordinator Kevin Adams spent 7 years as the Program Director of Youth Services for the Syracuse Northeast Community Center, was the Teen Program Coordinator for the Hawley Youth Organization at the Syracuse Northeast Community Center and a Youth Division Aide for the New York State Office of Children and Family Services.
Meachem School
Janet Qui ones Eatman, Site Director at Meachem School was a bilingual speech and language pathologist for over 16 years, She is a published author and frequent lecturer at conferences both nationally and internationally addressing issues of cultural and linguistic diversity in schooling. Her work has included tutoring ESL students and coordinating Spanish as a Second Language programs. She was named a Title VII Graduate Fellow of the U.S. Department of Education from 1998-2002, and has received numerous other Fellowship awards and honors throughout her career.
Meachem’s Program Coordinator, Jennifer Holland, is a former teacher in The New School in Syracuse and most recently managed communications with teachers and families participating in the Supplemental Tutoring Program for Murray Learning in Syracuse.
Van Duyn
At Van Duyn School, Site Director Jenna La Manna is a former management analyst for NASA and more recently a Corporate Business Development Analyst for Syracuse Research Corporation (now SRC). She has volunteered as a youth academic counselor for The Salvation Army, provided support to inmates in Tompkins County Jail and was part of the Mayor’s Intervention Task Force to reduce gang violence in Syracuse.
Program Coordinator Lauren Williams was formerly a Case Manager for the Women’s Christian Alliance in Philadelphia, PA, worked as an intern in the Office of Academic Enrichment at Delaware State University in Dover, DE, was a Youth Development Coordinator for the Simon Circle Boys and Girls Club, and spent several summers as a Youth Worker Supervisor for CNYWORKS.
Roberts
At Roberts School, Site Director Nicole Miller has some 12 years of social service experience to and most recently was a Senior Recruitment Consultant for UK Pro, recruiting and preparing social workers to relocate and work in the United Kingdom. She has been a social worker in the UK, working mostly with children and families, providing clinical services in various settings. She currently volunteers for the Onondaga Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA), where she assists in the resolution of abuse or neglect cases assigned to her by the family court judge.
Roberts’ Program Coordinator, Jessica R. Earley, is a former program director for the American Indian Law Alliance in New York City and the Westcott Community Center in Syracuse. She has worked as a tutor, and a non-profit events coordinator. She spent several years working with the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues in New York City coordinating activities at UN headquarters and surrounding venues
for the American Indian Law Alliance. She wrote and presented the intervention
balancing international Indigenous advocacy priorities with the analysis of UN goals to
eliminate racism, xenophobia, discrimination and intolerance in 2005.
Elmwood
Elmwood School’s Site Director, Asomgyee Pamoja has over 17 years of professional teaching experience, most recently as Assistant Professor and Program Coordinator of the Early Childhood Education department at Capital Community College in Hartford, CT. He was, in 1994, one of four Fellows awarded full academic scholarship through Project ACCESS to attend Eastern Connecticut State University to study and participate in cutting-edge theories and research in Early Childhood Education and conflict resolution and one of 10 fellows selected from a pool of 500 in the state of Connecticut to teach at the Manchester Community Technical College in Manchester, CT. As a volunteer teacher in Botswana, Africa, he established international links with teachers, civil ministries, civil servants and diplomats from various Southern African nations.
Rhoda L. Smith, Elmwood’s Program Director has served as coordinator of public health initiatives for the Onondaga County Health Department as well as the YouthBuild Program preparing young adults to emerge into the Central New York workforce. She was also a youth advocate for the Center for Community Alternatives, and a youth center coordinator for the Syracuse Housing Authority. She also served as the first Executive Director of the local civic organization 40 Below from 2006-2008.
Dr. King Magnet
At School, Site Director Nira Taru, is a former teacher, assistant principal, assistant professor and most recently the Director of Elementary Curriculum, Content, and Accountability for the Trenton Public School District.
Dawn D. Hudson Program Coordinator at Dr. King began her career as a teacher in the Prince Georges County School District in Upper Marlboro, MD in 2002. She relocated to Syracuse to work as a School Age Teacher for Kids University at the Salvation Army, followed by her most recent position as Senior Transitional Planner for Youth Services for the Center for Community Alternatives.
So — these are the educators chosen as the initial group to create a relevant urban learning environment in Syracuse, people whose skills and achievements will help Syracuse’s youth understand that the “real” world they often hear about is, after all, their world as well.
