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Maya Angelou launches Virtual Learning Plan and Campaign in Response to COVID-19

Maya Angelou Schools launch Virtual Plan and Campaign Amid COVID-19

On March 11, 2020, in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19), Mayor Muriel Bowser declared both a state of emergency and a public health emergency. During this unprecedented public health emergency, Maya Angelou Schools remains committed to ensuring the well-being of our students and school communities. Therefore, starting Monday, March 16 through Monday, April 27, MAPCS will modify operations to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in our region.

Read more about our response plan and access helpful resources at www.seeforever.org/coronavirus-notice 

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Maya Fest 2017: A Day of Community

Over 400 community members, students, and staff gathered at the Maya Angelou Learning Center Campus, under blue skies, in celebration of our community!

Ward 7 is home to historical sites, such as the Deanwood neighborhood, Shrimp Boat, and the Nannie Helen Burroughs School, and is considered the greenest ward in DC. For these reasons, and many more, the community in Ward 7 and surrounding Wards deserves to be celebrated, and the 2017 Maya Fest did just that!

Councilmember Vincent Gray, came out to greet all the community members and participate in the festivities. After Vincent Gray addressed the crowd, the flag football game between the students and Metropolitan Police Department started on the field. The football game was the perfect opportunity to help strengthen the relationship between the community and the police as well as break down stereotypes. Many students have only had negative interactions with MPD, but the game was a great opportunity to build positive relationships. The score was close but Maya students prevailed and won by a touchdown in the last minutes.

Tony Redz from WPGC Radio emceed for half the day and introduced student performances – two singing and one dancing. Ayanna Gregory helped our students prepare, and entertained the crowd herself. Between performances, DJ Finesse played popular tunes until the very last minutes of Maya Fest.

Along with the artistic performances and football game, individuals enjoyed a wide variety of food, served by our volunteers, Maya staff, and the Seva Truck, a non-profit committed to serving nutritional vegetarian meals to those in need. The Fire Department, AmeriHealth, and Family and Medical Counselling Service, Inc. partnered with Maya Angelou Schools to provide health screenings, educational materials, and promotional items to attendees.

One Maya Fest favorite was the face-painting station, as adults and children alike waited in line to get their faces painted by skilled volunteers. After the little ones got their faces painted, they ran over to play on the Moon Bounce, the carnival games, or join their friends in dancing on the stage when there were no performances.

During the celebration, students were able to enroll in Maya Angelou Schools with the help of staff. All the students who enrolled that day were included in a raffle to win a 32” flat screen TV.

This year’s Maya Fest was double the size of previous years, and the Maya Angelou Schools and See Forever Foundation expect next year’s to be an even greater success! Special thanks to everyone who came out and joined in the celebration of our community!

See Forever Foundation Co-Founder Releases ‘Locking Up Our Own’

James Forman Jr., co-founder of the See Forever Foundation and former public defender, recently released a new book, Locking Up Our Own: Crime and Punishment in Black America. Featuring Maya students’ personal stories, Locking Up Our Own is a proud accomplishment for the Maya Family as we celebrate the success of our co-founder and advocate for change in the criminal justice system. 

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In his book, Forman explores the sometimes unwitting role African Americans played in disproportionately locking up their own as many African Americans supported the war on crime in 1970s and Black city officials proposed and approved legislation that allowed for longer sentencing and more aggressive police tactics. He also offers valuable lessons about the future of the criminal justice system and race.

After the release of his book, Maya Angelou Schools and See Forever Foundation staff, board members, partners, and other guests gathered together at Busboys and Poets while Forman introduced his book and answered questions from the audience. “Locking Up Our Own” was also highlighted in multiple interviews and articles, including those from The New York Times, NPR, and The Guardian.

You can purchase “Locking Up Our Own: Crime and Punishment in Black America” on Amazon, Powells, or Barnes and Noble.

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20th Anniversary Kickoff Celebration

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20th Anniversary Kickoff Celebration– Maya Angelou Schools and See Forever Foundation 20th Anniversary Kickoff Celebration is a night of cocktails, music, and dancing that raises funds for the Maya Angelou Schools, a network of alternative schools serving at-risk youth in Washington, DC. This event kicks off a year-long celebration that honors the foundation’s 20-year history of transforming the lives of the city’s most vulnerable youth. This year, our goal is to raise $175,000.

See Forever Foundation and Maya Angelou Schools– Our mission is to create learning communities in lower income urban areas where all students can grow academically and socially. At Maya Angelou Schools, the key to our success is rooted in building trusting, respectful, and nurturing relationships with each other. We strive to create spaces where all students, particularly those who have not succeeded in traditional schools, can reach their limitless potential. Our students develop the academic, social, and employment skills they need to build rewarding lives and promote positive change. We achieve this through a demanding academic program and socio-emotional learning support that focus on the whole child. We empower students to grow successfully so they can see forever.

Your Support Can Transform Students’ Lives– Throughout the year, our educators, staff, and partners go beyond the call of duty to ensure all students develop the academic, social, and employment skills they need to build rewarding lives and promote positive change. This wouldn’t be possible without the generous support of our funders and supporters. With you contribution, we can continue to provide wrap-around programs such as:

  • Comprehensive Mental Health and Socio-Emotional Services
  • On and Off-Campus Tutoring
  • Extended Day and Enrichment Programs
  • College and Career Success Programming
  • Workforce Training for young adults
  • Residential housing

Join us in our mission to help students overcome challenges, realize their potential, and go off to college!
Click the link below to purchase tickets or download the pdf here.

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Maya AOHT featured at Summer Youth Employment Launch

DC mayor wants to make teen summer jobs expansion permanent

WASHINGTON — The race is on for teens and young adults who want to be part of the D.C. summer jobs program. 

The Mayor Marion S. Barry Summer Youth Employment Program received more than 6,000 online applications within 20 minutes of the website launching Friday, Mayor Muriel Bowser said.

The program will take applications through Feb. 24, Bowser said, to connect 13,000 young people to meaningful, paid work experiences.

In the program, 14- and 15-year-olds earn $5.25 an hour; 16- through 21 year-olds earn $8.25 an hour; and 22- through 24-year-olds earn $11.50 an hour.

The program cutoff used to be 21 but was expanded to include ages 22-24 starting in 2015. 

Bowser has asked the D.C. Council to make that expansion permanent. 

Applicant Andre Jones said he’s excited by the prospect of getting a summer job through the program. 

“I want to work,” the 15-year-old sophomore said. “I would love to get a job in the hospitality business — it seems fun.”

Jones, whose father died a few years ago, said he is eager to buy his own phone and contribute to the household income of his mom and two siblings.

“It’s very empowering,” said Akoshia Yoba, director of the Career Academy at the Maya Angelou Public Charter School that Jones attends. 

“I think it’s a wonderful way to establish a work ethic, to get students and young people acclimated to the world of work and how they may serve in it,” Yoba said.

Jones will prepare for a summer job at Yoba’s Academy of Hospitality and Tourism. As for his future beyond high school, Jones said he would like to get into information technology or cyber security.

“If that doesn’t really work out, or even if it does, I would like to get a trade in mechanics and have that as a side job to bring in even more income,” Jones said.

Teens and young adults can apply for the Mayor Marion S. Barry Summer Youth Employment Program on the program’s website.

 
 

 

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Updates from MAA Summer 16

Hello from Maya Angelou Academy! Our summer school program got off to a great start. Our interns along with our staff led our Harambee assembly. This activity was designed to build and strengthen our school community. Also, our amazing teachers worked collaboratively with our interns and support staff to create highly engaging lessons and activities. The collaborative approach led to high student engagement and achievement.

During our summer school program, our scholars participated in various computer coding activities and projects, led by our community partner, Code in the Schools. During the program, our scholars were taught computer programming and gaming. They also developed problem-solving skills associated with computer programming.

In addition, our scholars were also hard at work in their other classes. They worked on various graphic design projects in art class, completed their research paper in English and  conducted lab experiments on water pollution, genetics, and animal dissections in science. Academically, this summer was truly a great experience for our scholars!

Finally, several visitors from different organizations visited our school namely the Children’s Defense Fund and the U.S. Department of Education. Our visitors participated in our Harambee assemblies and classroom activities. Our scholars were inspired by their work and role in the community. We are eternally grateful to our visitors from the Children’s Defense Fund and the U.S Department of Education for supporting our scholars. To that end, we look forward to a great 2016-2017 school year.

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