high school teacher

elementary school teacher

school teacher

program aide

assistant director

Harlem Childrens Zone

1Typical day at work: one one one appointments with students from case management list - meetings w/ community transitional college advisors team to discuss weekly team goals. Conduct weekly ETO reports on students progress, setback and or personal challenges related to their academic achievements. Provide necessary intervention with the help of faculty through office chain of command rules. Work with guidance counselors, bursars, and admission counselors, dean of students etc [via email, phone, and scheduled visits] to ensure student meets required GPA to progress each semester. Conduct home visits of students who face academic crisis and or absentee students of the program. Plan monthly community events for program students to boost morale and comraderie among program participants. Weekly Coordinator meetings with other program managers to review program goals, challenges and new initiative methods.

What I've learned: ALOT. I've learned that every youth deserves a fair shot at college education despite their upbringing and or environment. I've learn that patience is key when communicating with youth. Although I was the expert advisor - it was important for me to be an effective listener to my students in order to build trusting and long lasting relationships with them.

As for my co-workers. I've said this during my departure speech - I've met some of the most talented and educated individuals in my lifetime. I've had the pleasure of being working alongside people who graduated from Columbia, NYU, Hartford, Brown University, Pace, UV Madison, George Washington University, etc] As co-workers, were we a family. Although we had different college program departments [ 2yr and 4 yr college advisors, transition, community components,] our workload was very similar and we often collaborated on tasks when meeting overall program goals.

The hardest part of the job; I never found the job to be hard - there was challenging times because there was frequent overturn in employees, and the students who had grown closer with their college advisors in turn would dismissed themselves from the program [without any notice to the program directors] and was reluctant to attending the program and or be assigned to a new college advisor.

I rarely speak to or meet coworkers that enjoy their jobs. I/we are overworked, and the environment is dysfunctional, toxic, and there is A LOT of FAVORITISM. So, if you know the right people, come from the right family, or have come from their pipeline, you too can have a job (potentially earning more than others).  It is an unrealistic environment! 

There is no room for creativity, growth, input, or time to eat lunch. I/we use my personal phones for work.  I/we are not valued, rarely acknowledged, or respected. They have NO idea of the talent that works there. Leadership DOES NOT speak to you. They walk by unbothered that you are there or that they are not acknowledging you and it is OKAY/accepted and perpetuated. There is no day-to-day feedback only rushed mid/end of year evaluations; from which you are told you need to get or be better with no real action plan or opportunity to implement the plan if one is given. There is no professional development, and they have managers that need more training than us!  There are changes without evaluating what worked/didn't work from the last change.  The scholars matter WAY more than their employees, and it is demeaning, at times. 

A lot of leadership changes with no clear, consistent, messaging. People are moved around the organization without rational to those watching (maybe it makes sense to leadership but not to us). One part of the organization doesn't know what the other part of the organization is doing.  

I/we are forced to go to holiday parties, staff appreciation, etc. I/we were forced to walk 50 city blocks for their Peace March with no lunch provided even though we were working since 9:00 am (to march through Harlem & watch/listen to rap music all day without any clear insight on the dilemmas in our community, introduction to the police officers in our neighborhood, how to manage stop/frisk, how or why to register to vote, how to manage a mass shooting or anything else that could have been helpful with a captivated audience).  

Leadership has training, retreats, and receives annual bonuses off the work I/we do, however, I/we barely can pay our bills, can buy the things we need, and find relief from living paycheck to paycheck.   

I could go on, but why...

It is unfortunate to give this place a poor review because the mission is important and it should function better for the benefit of the students.  The students are the ones who lose out the most because a majority of teachers, social workers and counselors leave within a year or two.  There is no work-life balance, as employees are expected to devote all their time and energy to work with little regard for their lives outside of work (i.e., their own families).  The students tend to be out of control in the classroom the older they get, and I believe a big part of this is because there is such a high turnover.  Most of the students know that their teachers and other staff will leave (often before the end of the school year), so they do not trust in investing their emotions into developing a positive relationship with the staff.  This is very sad as there are a lot of great kids with great potential, but they lose out in the classroom because teachers have to spend an enormous amount of time and energy to managing disruptive students.  Teachers are then admonished by the higher ups for not meeting test prep expectations (because test prep is the primary concern) and their efforts are not recognized.  High turnover is not a surprise in this type of unsupportive environment.  

When I worked here it was common to see teachers crying and running into the bathroom to compose themselves.  Quality teachers were not valued and the most disruptive students seemed to get preferential treatment.  HCZ likes to put on a show for big name donors with lots of money, but once the visitors leave it is back to chaos.  I left for the sake of my own physical and mental health, and so I could have a normal life where work was not my entire existence.  

On the plus side, the salary and benefits are great.  I learned that money is not everything.  I make a lot less money now but I am much happier, more productive, and I still get to help students every day.

I would not recommend this organization to educators or school leaders seeking a healthy, sustainable work environment.

The workload is excessive, expectations are often unrealistic, and there is little regard for employee well-being. Despite the organization's public focus on student success, there is insufficient investment in developing and supporting the adults responsible for that success. Professional growth opportunities for teachers and leaders are limited, and much of the work feels reactive rather than strategic.

One of the most challenging aspects of the culture is the lack of respect for professional boundaries. Weekend communication is frequent and often creates the expectation that staff remain accessible outside of normal work hours. Emails, texts, and work-related requests regularly extend into evenings, weekends, and personal time, making it difficult to disconnect and maintain a healthy work-life balance. Over time, this contributes significantly to burnout.

The culture is highly top-down, with decisions frequently made without meaningful input from those closest to the work. Innovation, collaboration, and professional expertise are not consistently valued in ways that empower educators and leaders. Compliance often takes precedence over authentic instructional improvement and leadership development.

Staff are expected to carry increasingly heavy responsibilities without a corresponding level of support. As a result, turnover can be high, morale suffers, and many talented educators leave the organization despite their commitment to students.

While the mission is admirable, the day-to-day experience does not always reflect the values of respect, trust, and sustainability that are necessary to retain strong educators and leaders.

To discribe a typical day at work, it would start with a check in from either the Director or Assistant Director and us sitting to create a things to do list. As the list was completed one would then work on inputting data into the data base. As the day would progress one would then check in with co- workers, to make sure all materials and program necessities were made available. Upon completing these task one would then report to the afterschool site, doing role call to make sure everyone was accounted for. Then checking in with interns to make sure everyone was fully aware of there task for the day. When that was complete as the Supervisor I would then touch base with either the Principle or Assistant Principle to have a brief walk through and get updates on activities covered over the hours of day school. Communicating any new finds with interns so they would now how to professional deal with any matters. Wheen the day was completed I would have a quick hundle with my co-workers and interns to find out if anything developed that I needed to be aware of and then I would call the Assistant Director or director to report in the completion of the day. I learnt how to mange my time in completing both administrative and program oriented task. I also became better with assisting interns with reaching their individual goals and interaction with students. I do believe that I was very well supported by my management team and learnt that they are their for support and assistance. I will say the hardest part of my job was loosing students to gang violence and having to attend funerals. However it was rewarding to see students graduate from middle school to high school and see the smile on their faces for the achievement they have accomplished.

I had high hopes when joining this school, but unfortunately, my experience didn’t align with those expectations. While the mission of the school is admirable, there seems to be a disconnect between the administration and the day-to-day realities faced by staff. Support systems for teachers could be improved, as it often feels like there is a lack of follow-through when it comes to promised accommodations.
While there are opportunities for growth, the environment can sometimes feel overly micromanaged, which may not suit everyone’s preferred working style. 

Additionally, there appears to be a significant gap in recognition and compensation, with some staff members receiving more support and rewards than others, creating a sense of imbalance.

Teacher retention is also a concern. Many staff members, myself included, have found it difficult to stay long-term, and teachers often leave at various points throughout the year. This turnover contributes to instability and adds extra stress on remaining staff.

One of the biggest challenges, however, is the classroom environment. Managing student behavior can be extremely difficult, with incidents of physical altercations and disruptions happening more frequently than expected. The stress of maintaining order while trying to provide a meaningful educational experience is a tough combination, and it often feels like there is little backup for staff facing these challenges.

Overall, while the school has a lot of potential, there are areas in need of significant improvement in terms of communication, support, and resources to help both staff and students succeed.

December 10, 2012                                                                                                                    Teacher:  Ms. Ashanti

 

Group:     Diamonds____                              Rubies_____                 Sapphires_____                     Emeralds_____                      Jades_____

 

 
Theme: Trucks- Making a child-sized Truck (Trailer)

 

 
Goal: To encourage children to use their creativity and imagination

 

 
Objectives: The children will use a cardboard box to create a trailer

 

Activity:

 
·       Teacher will  show the children pictures of trucks while concentrating on the trailer (book mega trucks)

 

 
·       Teacher will tell children the importance of the trailer to the truck

 

 
·       Teacher will explain to the children that they will make a truck throughout the course of the week starting with the trailer 

 
 

Instructions 

 

 
1. Cut off the four flaps from the opening at the top of the cardboard box using scissors

 

 
2. Paint the cardboard box the color you would like for your cardboard truck  . Use acrylic paint and a paint brush

 

 
3. Do not paint your truck white or blue as this will make your windows or bumper invisible. Let the paint dry

 

 
4. 

 

Materials Needed

 

1.  Book, Mega Trucks                     2. Card board box                         3. paint(children will vote)                   4.sciccors

 

Reflections/Comments______________________________________________________________________

This is a lesson I did with my students. 
A typical day Uptown Harlem Gems will be story time with the kids, they enjoy the animation of my reading the different voices I portray. The children get to turn and talk to each other about the story.
 My co-workers are nice people , working with 5 people in the classroom does help with differentiated instruction especially when you have quality teachers. 
 However there is no room for growth. 
I love working with the children, they teach me something everyday.

During this time with the Harlem children's Zone I was a participant. We as participants were given the chance to apply for summer youth jobs and be paid for summer, winter, or spring sessions while school was out. This prepared me for Learning how to gain work, handling work skills or work interest at an earlier age and at short spurts of time. I was the type of participant that made sure to take in all information about the biggest thing this program provides OPPORTUNITY!. After building what was a resume to build on even today we were taught mock interviews. what I learned in hindsight this program was less instructional about the way it is to apply for a job in program life our experience "looking for work" was slightly handed to us because of our participation status. I would have liked to see some teaching tweaks that disclose: rigorous job searching, trade skills to aquire, or Navigating profiles for job searching,  but I've since moved from the area. A typical day was aimed at discussion for sorting social stressors or college preparation. I learned how to think of my future college and work life options, this was a place for students and welcome to family that was the most appreciated. Harlem Children's Zone impacted my life in ways I'm still learning today 10 years later. I wish I could include myself in the flourish of this Company now that it has proven a free given establishment to change in the intercity communities.

Animosity and ego prevent teamwork across sites even if it is encouraged on the surface. Advocates are encouraged to think outside the box but when they actually present out of the box ideas, these are often shut down or the red tape and chain of command makes initiatives get lost. Then advocates are in the hot seat for why things weren’t done. Accountability is only placed on advocates and not on higher management who are the ones often creating obstacles to progress.

Some Admin gets threatened by good work from advocates. 

Advocates have large meetings where they are berated on their inability to write good case notes, but there is no follow up with templates or guidance. 

Too much yelling at students. 

Low pay and it feels like employees are not trusted to work from home even on days they don’t have any reason to be in the office for. 

Too much or disingenuous focus on external presentations of professionalism with dress code and not enough emphasis on actual professionalism (which involves not yelling at kids, not rolling eyes at staff(!), working collaboratively, being prepared, taking ownership of mistakes, not watching tv while working, being communicative). 

Communication is nonexistent with us finding out about meetings, important events and days off at the last minute. This makes it hard to plan professionally and personally. 

Low pay and little real overtime opportunities because overtime work is often scheduled for weeks when there is a holiday so they don’t have to pay us overtime rate because we didn’t work 40 hours that week. 

Not enough communication with parents. 

Working at Harlem Children's Zone, I would start my day at 2:45pm and would end either 7pm or 9pm. I would assit children with their homework, have the children participate in an hour of excercise, give them snack and then would teach my music class. Working at Harlem Childrens Zone, I learned how to be an effective leader. I was able to hone in on how to teach a class effectiviely. Being put in charge of shows; having to be the director of every part of it allowed me to grow in leadership while empowering the youth to be everything that they can be. I was Challenged to step out and co direct a community vocal academy where we were able to inspire and teach individuals from the community  the basics of singing technique. 
My Co-workers were good people to work with. We encouraged eachother and supported eachother which made the job fun to be around. The hardest part of this job was sometimes being pushed in uncomfortable positions reguarding teaching. However, it caused me to grow for the better. I use to be very afraid of working in my field of music because of the fear of messing someone up. However, I learned that experience sometimes is the best teacher. The most enjoyable part of the job was seeing the children flourish. Seeing how you have the ability to affect change in their lives and influence them to be better then what they see in their neighborhood.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
High school teacher 31 salaries reported	$97,398 per year
Elementary school teacher 37 salaries reported	$92,728 per year
School teacher 22 salaries reported	$93,449 per year
Program aide 19 salaries reported	$20.00 per hour
Assistant director 12 salaries reported	$81,042 per year

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