ALICIA BADEA | RUTH M. KIRK RECREATION CENTER Every day on my way to and from work, I pass by vacant buildings. As I drive down North Fulton avenue, through Sandtown-Winchester and Harlem Park, there seem to be two to three on every block. This is not an exaggeration. Black…
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ALICIA BADEA | RUTH M. KIRK RECREATION CENTER I am beginning to understand what people mean sometimes when they say they are proud. Of their children. Of their students. Of course, I have felt a similar type of pride for my younger brother, but in our relationship I have long…
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ALICIA BADEA | RUTH M. KIRK RECREATION CENTER Name calling, insults, tussles that sometimes threaten to break out into fights-I find myself watching my kids interact and seeing both the familiar and the unfamiliar. Familiar, because although I was never a person to get involved in any of those, with…
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ALICIA BADEA | RUTH M. KIRK RECREATION CENTER Every day, usually in the mornings from 11 to 12, my kids will settle down, sit according to age group, and complete a worksheet. For the first week, each of them except the very littlest, worked on math; the kindergartener and the…
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ALICIA BADEA | RUTH M. KIRK RECREATION CENTER There is a great emphasis placed on work. Although it is a recreation center, the idea of work is never far. The expectation is that few-toddlers, and the very elderly-are exempt from contributing their share, as they can. When it comes to…
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ALICIA BADEA | RUTH M. KIRK RECREATION CENTER I’ve underestimated the importance of physical spaces. Their social importance, that is. Having always had access to places to go and activities to do after and during school-which has remained undeniably true at Hopkins-I’ve taken them for granted. Of course, I could…
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ALICIA BADEA | RUTH M. KIRK RECREATION CENTER Humility, and the ability to listen. And more importantly, putting that ability into action. Out of all that we touched upon at CIIP Orientation, these two themes have affected me most, in a subtle and almost semi-conscious way, embedding themselves in the…
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