Each spring, as our LearnServe students prepare to pitch the social ventures they have been cultivating all year, there is a moment when I find myself wishing that they were the ones driving our country’s civic and political agenda. Their creativity, empathy, passion, and vision stand in sharp contrast to the headlines I read each day, most dominated by tragedy and misunderstanding. Our students give me hope that we may one day be able to write a future different than our present.
- I fervently believe that Black Lives Matter, yet too often feel personally powerless when it comes to tackling the prejudice that taints police-civilian interactions, reinforces education disparities, and limits professional opportunities. So I applaud the efforts of Chris and Desmond to mainstream African American history in DC schools; of Nick and Alexis to cultivate understanding between law enforcement officials and minority youth; and our alumni who have joined Operation Understanding DC to fight racism and discrimination in all its forms.
- After celebrating months of groundbreaking wins for the LGBT community, culminating in nation-wide recognition of marriage equality, I have followed with concern the vocal surge in transphobia, with public bathrooms as the latest proving ground. So I commend Will for launching Your Queerstions Answered, a podcast for high school students designed to demystify the transgender community.
- I have watched in disappointment as political leaders have peddled fear and misinformation to paint sweeping generalizations and distrust of immigrants and Islam, undermining the values of diversity, respect, and understanding we work so hard to ingrain in our students. So I stand by Alejandra as she fights the stigma of being an ELL student through her anti-bullying campaign; Val as she humanizes the Syrian refugee community by sharing their stories and cuisine; and Davy as he bridges Muslim and Jewish teens.
I believe in LearnServe because I believe in the future that our students are working so fearlessly to build.
The students introduced above represent just a handful of the nearly 300 LearnServe Fellows, Incubator participants, Abroad travelers, and Seeding Social Innovation students championing social change in their schools and communities over the past year.
Looking back over the past 12 months I am grateful to have worked with the:
- 56 LearnServe Fellows who showcased their ventures at our 2016 Panels and Venture Fair. Madison Than won the overall 2016 Innovation Award for her work to bring coding to immigrant youth through Cardboard Coders.
- 14 LearnServe Incubator students who pitched projects at Microsoft’s Innovation and Policy Center. Rohan Suri won with his app kTrace, which uses Bluetooth technology to track the spread of infectious disease. (He was also selected winner of the 2015 LearnServe Innovation Award.) Saeviona Garrett, featured in an email earlier this month, won an Audience Choice award for her women’s empowerment program.
- 40 LearnServe Abroad travelers to Zambia, Paraguay, and Jamaica who led entrepreneurial design workshops in each country, co-creating action projects with their host communities. Here are blogs posts with highlights from their travels!
- Nearly 200 Seeding Social Innovation students participating in our school-based social entrepreneurship courses — including 3 middle schools using our brand-new curriculum.
- Mary, Jessica, and Matthew Sun, LearnServe alumni recognized with our Entrepreneurship Award at our 2016 LearnServe Gala. You can learn more about the Sun siblings and their impressive accomplishments here.
This is just the start. Through our strategic planning process earlier this year we outlined our plans to scale LearnServe within DC, offering students a continuum of social entrepreneurship opportunities for 6th – 12th grades. Through programming in school, across schools, and with corporate partners we are working to build a region where every student may learn the skills of social innovation, and every student has the opportunity to create a social impact.
To our supporters: Thank you for making all of this possible! We look forward to working with you over the coming year to bring new opportunities to life.
To our students: Hurry up and lead! Thank you for all the impact you have already made — and know that LearnServe will be right there with you as you continue to shape a new future for our country and the world.
Scott Rechler, Director and CEO, LearnServe International