Kutztown High School began a collaborative program with the Hill Freedman Academy in North Philadelphia.
A select group of students from each school visited one another on April 20 and 21.
The exchange was the start of a friendship between the two groups of students. The collaborative experience will continue with student-conducted research, student-produced video and a student-produced book. The multi-disciplinary, inquiry-based community learning project will investigate the history, values, assets, problems and possible solutions of their respective communities, according to the program’s description.
“The better we understand the world, the better we understand ourselves; the better we understand ourselves, the better we understand the world,” said Kutztown High School Assistant Principal Ed Myers. “There’s always that reflection on both ends so that’s the point of bringing the (Hill Freedman Academy) in Philadelphia into this.”
Students from Hill Freedman Academy spent a day with the Kutztown students at Kutztown High School and the Kutztown students spent a day with the Academy students at their school.
“It was cultural awareness. There were some team building activities to get them engaged together. It was background awareness. Where are you from? What do you like to do? Just sharing some things about each other,” said Myers.
According to the program description, “Through this project, students will hone their inquiry and problem solving skills while coming to better understand their community’s history, culture, interests and needs. Student creativity, critical thinking, research and writing will drive the project.”
Myers said visiting students looked at how the other school operates compared to their own. Each school shared music from their music program, including Kutztown’s rock band. When the academy visited Kutztown, they played a cooperative game and visited the agriculture lab, including animals.
At the end of the second day of the exchange, the two groups of students did not want to leave each other, said Myers.
“They were hugging and just had so much appreciation. In talking to their teacher and our students… what they said to us was their reality versus their perception was so different that they were overwhelmed with it.”
“We literally had students who said they were scared to go… they didn’t know what to expect and what they expected was very different from the reality,” said Myers. “They kept saying how nice the students were and how many similarities they found among themselves even though they were so different.”
The Academy students and the Kutztown students are keeping in touch, texting and on social media.
“We want to get more kids involved in the future,” he said, noting that the initial group of sophomores and juniors were selected based on academic standing and interest. “The question is how do we engage more students.”
Myers said they’d like to take a whole bus full of students to the Academy, maybe include music performances as part of the experience.
Students will be conducting research about their schools and create a book. There will also be a student-produced video about the collaborative experience.
The collaborative program is one part of the Leadership & Personal Development Program which is funded by what Myers called the Cougar Power grant. LPD includes a Community and Business Leadership Collaborative, Leadership Camps & Conference; 9th through 12th grade curriculum, Student Assistance Program, Student Council, Athletics and clubs and extra-curriculuars, and Adult & Peer Coaching and Mentoring.
“Everything’s connected. That’s how we see it,” said Myers. “Pulling these subjects together and doing different things with these projects.”
He explained the purpose of LPD.
“How do we build people? How do we build students? How do we create leaders and thinkers and people who are going to go out and make good decisions and help other people make good decisions?” said Myers.
“So no matter what project it is, whether it’s SADD or one of these other programs, it’s all aiming to do the same thing. It’s all aiming to build students who are leaders who make good decisions, who understand the world and engage in the world and who can be members of society who build society … to have the knowledge, skills and values that are necessary to go out into the world and do great things, positive things.”
