It has been a while since I last posted. I was on a sabbatical from school for a year due to work related issues and needing time to get my Administrative Certification. Not going to let anyone treat a teacher as I was for two years!!! During the sabbatical I learned that I made a difference for many of my students and people in the community that I call "home" for the last 25 years. My students on Facebook have grown in large numbers to ALMOST 1000!!!
THEY KEPT ME "AFLOAT" :)
This blog was a saving grace for me as I needed to read the comments many times over to feel "whole" again. ( Read the first entry to see what happened during 2007-2009)
I am still intending to build a school, but for now I am "building the community" through a non-profit organization I am developing called C-STEP - Community Science and Technology Education Project. School is going OK and the new principal at Edison is tremendous...intelligent, very responsible and caring of the students, staff and community!!! Thanks M.P.
ME????
I am renting space at G and Erie Avenues in an Art Center and plan to hold workshops for people of all ages in computers, electronics, technology and of course ROBOTICS.
FIRST Robotics ( www.usfirst.org) has been my "love" for the past 10 years. And now I am fulfilling one of my many dreams of forming a "Multi-school" FIRST Robotics Team.
My first FIRST ( lol) team was at Edison Fareira High School , where the administration ( they know who they are) supported me the best that they were able along with School District policy, and Edison's EARTH ( Edison Achieving Real Technological Heights) Squad became known for its GLOBAL DETERMINATION ( Judges Award 2004) and ENTHUSIASM FOR ENGINEERING ( Judges Award 2005) at the Regional Competitions in Philadelphia. The students at Edison proved to be gracious professionals and very resourceful. Most of the kids nowadays use the word "ghetto", but Pedro, a student on the team stated " We are resourceful when we can make something out of nothing" . It stuck and it's TRUE!!!
EARTH Squad represented EFHS well at the competitions ( 2001-2007) and we obtained money donations from FIRST, the community, various Universities and friends to help us to buy supplies, eat during building( which was sometimes 8 hours at a time), travel expenses to the National Competitions in Florida, Houston and Atlanta. During those seven years, I obtained grants to send eight of the team members to an engineering camp for a full week in the summer at Widener University!! They lived on their own and learned no only to understand more about engineering..They learned that they were "OK" no matter who they were or where they were from. :)
My goal has always been to empower students to reach out of their comfort zone and see that THEY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THEIR LIVES AND DO WHATEVER THEY WANT TO DO FOR THEMSELVES...
Now it 2011 and CSTEP will soon be a REAL Reality. Our FIRST Team #3629, a new rookie team of about 10 students from Edison Fariera, Frankford, Central ( my son), Northeast HS, Community Academy High School and Cherry Hill High School are on our journey to play "LOGOMOTION" at this year's Philadelphia Regional Event to be held at Temple University on April 7-9!!!
It is almost two weeks into the building phase and we have worked weekends, snow days and even on MLK Day, a school holiday. Who says that teenagers are lazy, egotistical and don't care!!!
PACE Robotics ( Philly All City Engineers) is "movin' on up" and will welcome any support.
Come to visit ( email me at Pacerobotics@gmail.com) donate some tools, bring us dinner, come and cheer, join us to build...COME TO THE REGIONAL IN APRIL!!!!
Thank you to Julio Ayala 25, an EFHS graduate and four year member of EARTH Squad and co-coach with me on this project. Chris Garcia, Jamuel Diaz, Domingo Sauris, Edwin Vellon and many former members have "stopped in" and offered support and assistance!!!
Thanks to Mr. Ed Bujak ( Software expert!!) for mentoring us and supporting the project every step of the way!!!
Most of all THANK YOU, TO THE PARENTS FOR ALLOWING YOUR CHILDREN TO BE PART OF THIS INCREDIBLE EXPERIENCE WHICH WILL TEACH THEM SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, TEAMWORK, DETERMINATION AND A POSITIVE SENSE OF SELF ACCOMPLISHMENT...Scholarship money helps too.
Let me know if you want to help!! email me soon. I'm starting to feel whole again ...:)
THEY KEPT ME "AFLOAT" :)
This blog was a saving grace for me as I needed to read the comments many times over to feel "whole" again. ( Read the first entry to see what happened during 2007-2009)
I am still intending to build a school, but for now I am "building the community" through a non-profit organization I am developing called C-STEP - Community Science and Technology Education Project. School is going OK and the new principal at Edison is tremendous...intelligent, very responsible and caring of the students, staff and community!!! Thanks M.P.
ME????
I am renting space at G and Erie Avenues in an Art Center and plan to hold workshops for people of all ages in computers, electronics, technology and of course ROBOTICS.
FIRST Robotics ( www.usfirst.org) has been my "love" for the past 10 years. And now I am fulfilling one of my many dreams of forming a "Multi-school" FIRST Robotics Team.
My first FIRST ( lol) team was at Edison Fareira High School , where the administration ( they know who they are) supported me the best that they were able along with School District policy, and Edison's EARTH ( Edison Achieving Real Technological Heights) Squad became known for its GLOBAL DETERMINATION ( Judges Award 2004) and ENTHUSIASM FOR ENGINEERING ( Judges Award 2005) at the Regional Competitions in Philadelphia. The students at Edison proved to be gracious professionals and very resourceful. Most of the kids nowadays use the word "ghetto", but Pedro, a student on the team stated " We are resourceful when we can make something out of nothing" . It stuck and it's TRUE!!!
EARTH Squad represented EFHS well at the competitions ( 2001-2007) and we obtained money donations from FIRST, the community, various Universities and friends to help us to buy supplies, eat during building( which was sometimes 8 hours at a time), travel expenses to the National Competitions in Florida, Houston and Atlanta. During those seven years, I obtained grants to send eight of the team members to an engineering camp for a full week in the summer at Widener University!! They lived on their own and learned no only to understand more about engineering..They learned that they were "OK" no matter who they were or where they were from. :)
My goal has always been to empower students to reach out of their comfort zone and see that THEY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THEIR LIVES AND DO WHATEVER THEY WANT TO DO FOR THEMSELVES...
Now it 2011 and CSTEP will soon be a REAL Reality. Our FIRST Team #3629, a new rookie team of about 10 students from Edison Fariera, Frankford, Central ( my son), Northeast HS, Community Academy High School and Cherry Hill High School are on our journey to play "LOGOMOTION" at this year's Philadelphia Regional Event to be held at Temple University on April 7-9!!!
It is almost two weeks into the building phase and we have worked weekends, snow days and even on MLK Day, a school holiday. Who says that teenagers are lazy, egotistical and don't care!!!
PACE Robotics ( Philly All City Engineers) is "movin' on up" and will welcome any support.
Come to visit ( email me at Pacerobotics@gmail.com) donate some tools, bring us dinner, come and cheer, join us to build...COME TO THE REGIONAL IN APRIL!!!!
Thank you to Julio Ayala 25, an EFHS graduate and four year member of EARTH Squad and co-coach with me on this project. Chris Garcia, Jamuel Diaz, Domingo Sauris, Edwin Vellon and many former members have "stopped in" and offered support and assistance!!!
Thanks to Mr. Ed Bujak ( Software expert!!) for mentoring us and supporting the project every step of the way!!!
Most of all THANK YOU, TO THE PARENTS FOR ALLOWING YOUR CHILDREN TO BE PART OF THIS INCREDIBLE EXPERIENCE WHICH WILL TEACH THEM SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, TEAMWORK, DETERMINATION AND A POSITIVE SENSE OF SELF ACCOMPLISHMENT...Scholarship money helps too.
Let me know if you want to help!! email me soon. I'm starting to feel whole again ...:)
