Maureen's description of her experience as a writer coach goes to the heart of what we do. It's her one-on-one connection with this student, and her skills in developing that connection, that will yield results.

Thanks for the comment, Joyce. Alfredo is so right. I don't know anyone who has ever coached in this program who doesn't have breakthrough stories like this, some small, some not so small. But not all of us can tell them the way Alfredo can!

Yep, make no mistake: our coaches treasure these expressions of sentiment from students. We all know that students will say only what they mean. If only all adults were like that!

You're so right that spreading the impact of WriterCoach Connection in Oakland classrooms requires constant effort to be visible, to tell the story about how this individual coaching helps students improve their writing and critical thinking skills. We're at public events all over town, at Neighborhood Crime Prevention Council meetings, talking with the faith-based community, anything we can think of. The response in the Oakland community has been astonishing -- our first year in Oakland, four years ago, we were overrun with volunteers, and the flood has continued every year since then. As we expand the program in Oakland, and elsewhere, we'll need even more volunteers, of course. And funding for the program, to pay for all the organization it takes to find and train volunteers, organize and supervise them,and assess the program every year, is a constant challenge.

TypePad HTML Email I agree with Maureen. Everything about this program is rewarding, including working with the 450 (!) dedicated community volunteers who make up our coach contingent.

To Mr. Miley: No, it's not the same person in Lake Havasu to whom you refer, and there's certainly no reason for the Jeff Wyneken who has served our literacy program with such dedication to change his good name.

These comments come from the mother of Sahib-Amar Khalsa, the WCC site coordinator at Berkeley High: "Thanks so much for that coach experience. It makes me think how much rich material there is in these experiences for a good short story. It also gives me the feeling of how sad and complicated are the lives of these students. "On the other hand I think back to my students. Their lives were filled with problems, too, of a different nature, of course- but just as profound and unsettling to them as the greatest challenges. "What I know is helpful to them is the opportunity to write about them--get it out of their systems."

Jesse's point is a really good one and reflects a view of Oakland students (and teachers) that I know is shared by all of us who work in WCC with students at Media and Mandela high schools. We're continually inspired by the bright minds and stimulating potential we have found in Oakland classrooms. Alfredo's comments may be more reflective of the alarming disparity of resources we encounter in Oakland schools as compared to schools in other districts.

Last word in above comment should have been "not." I need an editor!

Alfredo's devotion to coaching, and his connection with his students, are so clear here. And so is is heartfelt evocation of another truth about working with these kids: you don't always know whether you're making a difference, and epiphanies about what's going on at a given coaching session can come at you right out of the blue. Above all, Alfredo keeps returning to work with his students, no matter what. And over the years, we've learned that this consistency makes an impact on our students, whether they show it overtly or night.

Lisa is in a great position to really understand the impact of WCC at our Fremont Federation schools, Media and Mandela, since she was one of the original WriterCoach Connection site coordinators when we expanded to Oakland for the first time three years ago. Her words are a powerful evocation of what inspires all of us in this program. Bob Menzimer