Tray Chic - Bravo!

On Monday, July 27, 2009, I had the privilege of witnessing heartfelt advocacy at the Montgomery County Board of Education meeting.

The evening's public comment session and most of the energy came from the Young Activist Club, from Piney Branch Elementary School. As mentioned in an earlier post, these kids want to pilot reusable lunchroom trays at their school, and came to the BOE to request approval of their plan.

I never met these kids or their parents before, but their flyer caught my attention. I recalled my first public testimony before the Board of Education, and, although I am a trained advocate, I remembered how reassuring I found those folks who guided me that night, and I went thinking that perhaps I could see if the kids from Piney Branch needed anything.

I arrived at Carver, and saw the group assembled at the picnic benches, with their signs and prepared speeches. Elementary school kids can get restless, but these kids were ready to go. We talked a bit, and they impressed me with their organization and passion. This was from the kids, from their hearts, and all the adults, including several parents, were really just extras - this was the kids project.

We talked about who would be at the Board meeting, and I had them look at the cars in the assigned spaces to see who was present. They already knew that their Board member, Chris Barclay, was out of town, and they were nonplussed.

They also didn't seem fazed by the two security cars parked in front of the entrance to Carver. Someone commented, isn't it great that the BOE is concerned about the kids safety; I didn't want to tell them that the illegally parked security detail is a relatively new and prominent addition to the Carver landscape, and that in all my years of attending meetings at Carver, the first time I saw security personnel was at another student led demonstration in April 2008. I wondered silently, did the Carver folks think these kids were a risk?

The meeting, delayed from its usual starting time of 6 pm by a half hour, did not actually begin until well after 7 pm. The kids made good use of their time. Additional students signed up to testify. Several of the group spoke with a reporter from WAMU, while others spoke to the new Washington Post reporter. They came in to the Board room with more energy than the room has seen in a long time.

And, the Young Activists owned room. The usual administrators from MCPS were joined by students from other schools who wanted to support their efforts. The PB Young Activists also entranced the Joseph children, who were at the meeting to support their father who was promoted to a position in the Office of School Performance.

The testimony? You can see it for yourself right here. Its in three sections, because the PC Tech Team hasn't quite figured out how to make clips longer than 10 minutes. Nine kids and two adults testified, and did a great job of telling their story, staying on the facts, and dispelling the myths about the costs and benefits of their proposed project.
Part 1:

Part 2:

Part 3 (includes BOE discussion)

The Board's reaction? Not quite silence, but almost. Even the Board members who usually ask good questions just smiled and said, good job kids - much like the parents who cheer on the soccer teams on weekends. Did they pay attention or even understand that this was not a purely academic exercise? Only Phil Kaufman followed up with meaningful questions on topic. This is not the first time the Board of Education has heard a request to get rid of styrofoam trays - just this past May 26, 2009, Aiden Chambers from Walt Whitman High School testified in support of her request to get rid of the trays at all schools in the county. Her testimony is on the BOE webpage - go to minute 15.55 of the meeting webcast to hear for yourself.

Thanks, Piney Branch Young Activists, for taking time out of your summer to come over to Rockville and show the folks in Carver what you have to offer. You've shown them the best of what our school system can do - but don't let the Carver folks off yet. Even as many of you move on to middle schools this fall, keep putting the pressure on the folks in the Central Office to implement your pilot. After all, we have a lot of elementary schools in the county, and we should be encouraging innovation and politically correct environmental lessons. Learning comes in all sorts of forms. Sometimes, we need to remind the adults that success is measured in more than multiple choice and short essay exams.