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Click here for 22-23 After School Guide

Bridge to CRLS 9th Grade Orientation: from 'pipe dream' to reality

9/6/2022

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On a recent, sunny late August afternoon, more than one hundred nervous 9th graders (all working their hardest not to show it) found their way down to the Lecture Hall at the Cambridge Public LIbrary, and checked in for the first day of Bridge to CRLS. This new 9th grade orientation, hosted Aug 23-25th, came together through a collaboration between Cambridge Public Schools and Cambridge community partners, spearheaded by the Agenda for Children OST’s Middle School Network. Over the next three days, 260 incoming 9th graders traveled between the Library and CRLS for student-led tours, scavenger hunts, and workshops led by community partners and CPS staff, culminating in a Community BBQ on Thursday, August 25th,  with a celebratory meal and send off for the 9th graders to their freshman year. ​

The story: transition meetings to wish lists to reality 

The story of how this new orientation came to be started much earlier -- in December of 2021, at a joint meeting of three citywide networks of community partners (Elementary School & OST Network (ESON), the Middle School Network (MSN) and Reaching all Youth (RAY). This meeting focused on looking across the landscape at the transitions that were particularly difficult and important for families and young people in Cambridge. The 75 folks who were part of this “Transition Years'' meeting broke into groups - one considered the transition into Kindergarten, another group focused on the 5th-6th grade transition, another considered the 8-9th transition, and yet a fourth group looked at the “what comes next” transition beyond high school and after 12th grade. 

All the groups met again in the spring, and came back with concrete takeaways for how each transition could be supported.  The 8-9th grade transition group gained traction, and, more importantly, found something concrete that could be implemented to make a big difference in students’ and families lives. As part of an effort to map out what supports students have been receiving across 8-9th grade, we talked to community programs that work across the transition, 8th grade counselors/teachers from the upper schools, 9th grade counselors at CRLS as well as community members, all who have seen, “So many kids get lost,” once they enter high school. 
Specifically, the two CRLS counselors who were most directly tasked with the transition of those (500 incoming) 9th graders, were asked, “What would help you support 9th graders?” Their wish list started with what was prefaced as “‘A pipe dream -- a longer orientation, like three whole days, to build real community.” Typically, 9th graders orientation consisted of two half days on the first days of school, most of which was usually taken up by important logistical/technical details, especially in the return to school from COVID. When proposed to the Networks of community partners in MSN and RAY, the concept of a “pre-orientation” became something concrete that folks could imagine creating, contributing to and helping to “send off” Cambridge's young people into high school. After a few months of advocacy on different levels, CPS agreed to support a range of in-person activities, workshops, tours and more in August. Key folks were on board, including leadership at CRLS, 9th grade counselor Emily Beaulieu, STARS and Peer Leadership teacher Sharon Lozada, and Nadia Davila, leader of the RAY network of high school aged programs serving youth in the community.   

The vision comes to life: what was it like? 

This August, the vision finally came to life - with a big community response from 9th graders, who quickly RSVPd to attend for this optional orientation happening in the last week of the summer. The Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program graciously agreed to pay any 9th graders who were already working for them that summer, and advertising there & through CPS channels got the word out about the chance to relieve some transition anxiety, meet some friends and get to see the CRLS building. 

For the first two days, students rotated in small groups headed by Team Captains - trusty guides who were either CRLS 9th grade teachers or recent alums who had been part of MSYEP staff all summer. They were charged with helping to ease group awkwardness, meld the group together and get them where they needed to go across each day. Each group got at least one tour of the CRLS building, led by Peer Mentors and upperclassmen at CRLS  - a big draw for nervous 8th graders who had never been in the massive building. 
Picture
Four of the amazing Team Captains (and MSYEP staff) setting up our Tshirt customization table: Mattingly, Hadiya, Mercedes and Xikiyah!
The other workshops students rotated through featured community partners and centered on the theme of Building & Sustaining Relationships - as well as the goal of sharing resources in the context of relationships and real scenarios, rather than via a list on a handout. 

See below for our list of workshops led by community partners, upperclassmen at CRLS and CPS staff: 
  • Finding Your People: Initiating Conversations with New Adults - with Gigi Laurent, Jess Scarano from Margaret Fuller House & Marie Mathieu, social worker at the Cambridge Public LIbrary 
  • Finding Your Way: CRLS Scavenger Hunt - designed and run by three current CRLS students, Helen Hailemariam, Grace Clemente and Adelina Escamilla-Salomon.
  • Making Money: Using Your People to Find Jobs  - Nadia Davila, George Hinds, Nina Nolan, Rayana Ferej from the Office of Workforce Development
  • Helping Out: What to do when Your Friends are Struggling - Kwame Dance and Capryce Browne from the Cambridge Community Center ACCESS program 
  • Staying Cool: Managing Stress during 9th Grade - Sosa Samura and Sharnia Dottin, social workers in CPS/BPS
  • Taking Care: The Art of Transition - Jack O’Hearn, Lionel Blaise and Sarah Winter from the Community Arts Center Teen Program ​
On Thursday, the third and final day,  everyone returned for the Community BBQ, where students were welcomed by Damon Smith (Principal at CRLS), their Deans and a varied collection of community partners and community members who came to join in, help out and make connections with 9th graders. 9th graders also received their “Class of 2026” t-shirts, which were designed by CRLS alum and Community Arts Center alum Zora Williams, current student at Mass Art - she took the “Bridge to CRLS” theme and created a beautiful graphic to celebrate this incoming class. Once students got shirts, they had the option of visiting our “T-shirt customization” table where the creative and ever-energetic staff from the Mayor's Program showed examples of how to paint, cut, embroider and bedazzle shirts. 
Also featured at the BBQ, was a collective art project created by the Community Arts Center Teen Program staff - a spread of black vinyl and paint markers that would later be cut into falcons (CRLS mascot) to grace the hallways of CRLS. 
 
Our friends (and hosts) at the Cambridge Public Library brought out their ever-popular button maker and advertised their new makerspace (the HIVE), Cambridge Youth Programs teen staff signed up 9th graders for teen internships, and CRLS sports coaches came to represent the various sports available to new students. Given the summer heat, the longest lines were for sno-cones which RECESS director Kyrk Morris cranked out with the RECESS sno-cone machine. Chef Darryl Morris and his catering team prepped and grilled food for 300. Gigi and Jess from Margaret Fuller House, alongside a stellar upperclassman volunteer, manned the raffle table, where students could exchange ‘connection cards’ for raffle tickets for gift certificates, CRLS swag, and back to school items like sketchbooks, markers and journals.

What did the young people have to say about it? 

As part of an exit ticket on the last day of the orientation, we asked students to tell us  “What’s One Important Thing You Learned at this Orientation?” Their responses were real, encouraging, and a good reminder of the importance of concrete details in a big transition (like where the bathrooms are), in addition to mindsets that will help them problem solve as they face challenges later.
Here’s a sampling: 
What’s one important thing you learned at this orientation?
  • "Don’t be late!"
  • "Where and how to get help"
  • "How to sign up for clubs"
  • "Things in my control"
  • "Where the bathroom is"
  • "How to reach out"
  • "All my classes are on the 2nd floor"
  • "To stay on top of everything"
  • "I learned that people are willing to make conversation if you are"
  • "All about stress"
  • "Who to ask for help"
  • "How to deal with social situations"
  • "There are ways to handle stress"
  • "How to get a job"
  • "Adults I can go to"
  • "Youth employment office"
  • "Be myself"
  • "Networking"
  • "Being friendly"
  • "Friendship"
  • "Where things are"
  • "How To deal with stress"
  • "The 3rd floor bridge is too hot"
  • "Everything"
  • "Where most of my classes will be"
  • "Making new friends"
  • "I got to know some of the people I’ll be spending this school year with and saw how they all come from different backgrounds"
Across the 200-some responses, the most frequently listed responses were about two things -  getting around the CRLS building and getting to make new friends. 

"This is now a tradition" 

“This is now a tradition,” said CRLS Principal Damon Smith, as we kicked off the first day. As a first-time experiment, Bridge to CRLS was successful in many ways: by giving students an opportunity to build community among themselves, by showing that an August pre-orientation was possible to pull off, by introducing young people to a full spread of community partners and programs they can join, and by previewing some of the challenges they might face through workshop content and real conversations about the transition. One 9th grade teacher involved commented that “this is something 9th graders have been needing for forever.”  Another noted that, “Students are so receptive and ready for this now, versus the first days of school when they are already overwhelmed.” Our community partners, who spent the majority of time with young people over the orientation, said they enjoyed the opportunity to get to know students and give them a little taste of what their programs can offer, as well as the chance to contribute their very real expertise to a large community event at CRLS. 

The effort was certainly worth it - and a team effort it was. Many thanks to all the folks who helped to make this pipe dream a reality, at the many stages of the process: 

  • Nadia Davila, for endless planning, problem solving and coordinating skills & support
  • Khari Milner and Shawn Proctor, Agenda for Children OST, for advising, supporting and envisioning at every stage of the process
  • Sharon Lozada and the army of upperclassmen who ran tours, carried things around, set up, cleaned up and answered questions
  • To Emily Beaulieu for voicing her pipe dreams, guiding the way and working with us all summer 
  • To Rogette Solomon, for joining on literally her first few days on the job, with energy, kindness and an open mind
  • The team at OWD and the Mayor’s Program, for providing skilled, energized leadership as Team Captains (as well as offering to pay students and volunteers!)
  • Dr. Nicole Gittens for spending the time to listen and understand, then make this possible
  • Zakkiyyah Witherspoon for problem solving with me in the weeks leading up the orientation, and for smiles and a warm place to work 
  • Damon Smith and CRLS Deans for jumping in and lending support
  • Robbie Cataldo and the CRLS Custodial team for working around us during this crucial week of the summer 
  • Cambridge Public Library for being gracious, flexible hosts as we figured out what we needed, in the months and the days before (and for helping me carry heavy stuff)
  • Jack O’Hearn and the Community Arts Center team for always being in - leading multiple activities, designing and thinking through projects and coming through for workshops
  • Gigi Laurent & Jess Scarano from Margaret Fuller House for identifying early on that they wanted to be a part of this and continually adapting to what we needed (including reading raffle tickets!)
  • Marie Matheiu from Cambridge Public Library for modeling to 9th graders that you don’t have to be extroverted to find your people :) 
  • Kwame Dance and Capryce Brown from Cambridge Community Center for bringing energy and structure and thoughtfulness to scenarios we knew were real & important 
  • To Helen Hailemariam, Grace Clemente and Adelina Escamilla-Salomon for modeling creative & responsible student leadership 
  • To Sosa Samura and Sharnia Cardoso Dottin for jumping in last minute and creating great content on stress that students will remember for a long time (rocks vs. play doh)
  • To Evan Milstein-Greengart, Megan Laskarzewski, Quenna Lalonde, Ross Benson,  Jariana Olukoga and Elaine Wen for giving up precious time in your last week of summer vacation to be part of something new
  • To Chef Darryl Morris for schooling me on food costs, working out a plan and keeping up with the paperwork 
  • To Cambridge Youth Programs Staff, for coming out strong to register students at the BBQ
  • To Tom Arria and CRLS Coaching staff for representing CRLS athletics at the BBQ
  • To CPS School Safety team and Cambridge Police Youth Resource Officers for coming out to make connections with students  
  • To volunteers from all parts of the community who showed up ready to go and help however needed throughout the three days: Tashima Pont du Jour, Will Adams, Kini Uduvicki, Debbie Bonilla, Ayesha Wilson, Will Sutton, Melina O’Grady, Ellie Richards, Saul Granados & Kyrk Morris 
  • ​and everyone else! ​Never underestimate what a group of committed community members can do! 
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