Help the Lewis Family Rebuild

Earlier this month, tragedy struck Citizen Schools' Henderson Campus in North Carolina. Abria Lewis, a charter participant in Citizen Schools' programs at Henderson, was killed along with her younger brother in a house fire. We are also collecting donations for the family. If you would like to contribute, we are accepting gifts as small as $1.We will notify you once we have the donation link set up.

Angelo Cross, Campus Director at Henderson:

They told us this job was going to be hard. They told us our days would be filled with challenges and frustrations. We knew what we were getting into. What they didn’t tell us is that our students would become our children, our co-workers would become our sisters and brothers, and our students’ families would become our cousins. Their successes would become ours; their tragedies would become ours, and we would have to step up and mobilize when we were called.

On Nov. 9, 2009, we got the call. One of our charter members at Henderson Middle School, Abria Lewis, was killed with her younger brother during a fire. Her mother, the bookkeeper at the school, was a supporter of Citizen Schools who referred other students after being satisfied with her own daughter’s involvement.

Abria was an exceptional young woman who had an infectious, positive personality. She embodied all the values Citizen Schools tries to relay to its students in and out of program: perseverance, teamwork, courage, leadership, to name a few. She would even deserve the star you can’t cut out: “remarkable.”

The relationships that Citizen Schools builds with its students go beyond academics. We want to reach out to the larger Citizen Schools family and help the Lewis’ begin the rebuilding process by showing the type of support that Citizen Schools can give to members of its community.

Our collective gifts of $1 or $2 can help this family through their roughest time with not only financial support but a concrete understanding of how Citizen Schools is much more than an after school program.

We would like to present the family with a check at the WOW! December 9th where Abria’s Citizen Schools colleagues will pay tribute to her.

.... and when you get on the floor...... Throw dem Horns!!!

If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same:
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,
And stoop and build'em up with wornout tools; - Rudyard Kipling

So as I embark on my 2nd year as a Campus Director, I'm haunted by the struggles that I endured my first year. Hitting the student enrollment mark, getting teacher and school buy-in. As we planned our Registration Nights, there is a thought in the back of my head that that keeps repeating itself....
"We have got to get those kids into this program, no ifs, ands, or buts!!"

As my staff and I began planning Registration Nights and Recruitment Strategy, I spilled my soul to my teaching fellows...
my drive and motivation were due to both being about helping a large population of students improve attitudes and belief regarding academic success
-and-
Fear- What would happen if I was unable to hit my goals in this second year. I saw a campus closed in its first year after not hitting enrollment goals... While I was fortunate to be relocated to North Carolina, I doubt fate will have that in store for me

I didn't want to be in a position where I would have to find out the answer to the question that my second source of motivation presented.

My Teaching Fellows didn't really need much motivation although I tried to give them a pep talk, they got down to business. Si, Se Peude!

The went into Classrooms and gave presentations, made phone calls to parents and students. Their determination unrelenting and their goal... to fill our students spot and have 85 students enter Opening Circle on September 21st....

As of 9.9.09 we are 87 completed applications along the way..... and are creating a waiting list

I promised my staff that if we had 85 student attend the first day of program, I would take the staff out to dinner!

We have 1 week and three days before program starts!!!

This year feels different and I don't know why, but I'm excited and I hope to be able to shared with you all more good news as the semester kicks off and program is underway!!!

Doing Road Work

Its Monday and it’s 6:00 a.m. It’s the beginning of the working week and the end of the weekend.

The road is calling me! Its been calling me for quite some time, but for some reason, I hear it clearly. Its calling to me sounds more fluent than normal. Maybe I was ignoring it….. actually I was ignoring it.

But today you and I are going to hang for 5k. We are going to talk, I’m going to use our time together to think about life, to over-analyze stuff, to gripe, and to celebrate. In return, you will just listen. Your unbiased silence is all that I need in return.

The alarm clock is going off… and as easy as it would be for me to just reset to 7a.m., this is has to become habit for me. I look forward to our talks! I’ll be out in a couple of minutes……

On the Road Again!!!!!

So about two weeks ago, my father and I boldly packed up all my things in Houston… and headed out on an 18 hour-drive to Durham, North Carolina. Obviously, 18 hours in a budget truck isn’t ideal, but I had to do it. If I had to do it with anyone, I’m glad I got to do it with my Father. We don’t really get talk freely about life that often. I’m very seldom home for long enough to have that time with him. While 18 hours didn’t make up for the three years I spent away from Chicago and home, I did get a chance to learn a lot about my dad, and him with me. Its so funny, because he tells me that he’s proud that I turn out differently than him in some aspects, and I tell him I wish I was more like him!!!
A Photo of my father, my Aunt, and I.




We drove through Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. As we got out trip started out of Houston… shizzle began to hit the fan! The battery in our Budget Truck died! That threw a little bit of a wrench in our plans… We had to jump start the Budget Truck from my Jeep. Once that finished we were set and on our way!

3 A.M. – Saturday August 15th -Somewhere in Alabama

So after driving most of the night, my father and were delirious and exhausted, yet we didn’t want to stay in a hotel. We were trying to make it to Durham so that I could move on Saturday. With that, we pulled into this truck stop area in Alabama to sleep for a few hours in the truck. That didn’t really happen. We were both paranoid about area were in. We slept for five minutes and got back on the road for another hour or so. We eventually made it to Georgia were we stopped for three or four hours before continuing our journey.
While on my way to North Carolina, I received a phone call from the Apartment Complex I was living in. About a week ago they had confirmed that I was approved to move in, but then called me as I was en route to NC to tell me that they had not heard back from my apt references. Sounds like some bullshit right?? What was I suppose to do in a Budget Truck in Atlanta Georgia huh??? So I had to find phone numbers to my old landlords and call them… Luckily, Ms. Hansel, my landlord in Boston was really supportive and excited to lend a hand to help me out. She call the place and gave them an amazing recommendation for me. I’m not really feeling this apartment complex at the moment.

7:30 P.M. Saturday, August 15th, Durham, NC

We arrived late in Durham, NC, but nonetheless, we finally made it. We had to stay at the Red Roof Inn because the Apartment complex was closed and wouldn’t be open until Monday (that’s another story and some B.S. to it)

Don't stay at the Red Roof Inn in Durham... they make you pay for internet!!! But the desk woman was nice to my dad and I and gave us the hook up at the Texas Roadhouse restaurant! So I guess that cancel out paying 7 bucks for internet.

500 Days of Summer

So during all this craziness I managed to check this movie out. It stars Joseph Gordon- Leavitt, and Zoey Deschanel. It about a boy (Tom) and girl(Summer) whom meet and have different expectations on what their current romantic situation is. The Guy- believes that he has meet "the girl" and The Girl, is not really looking for anything serious, and doesn't believe in "love", but enjoys her time with Tom.

Tom spends the entire movie... living in this relationship both in his head and on Summer's Terms.

The Movie teaches several really hard lessons about relationships, love, and life. While some of these aren't my thoughts and I'll give credit to people whom I've had conversation with about the movie, here are what those lesson could be.

1.Communication is so key, in expressing feelings and there is no substitution for that! Even with the blog..this is after having these thoughts and reflection in my head.

2. Loving someone means being honest and upfront!

3. Love yourself, hold yourself in high regard.. don't let the idea of love force you to compromise you or your expectations.

4. There is a difference between that sick and crazy love that you experience and the real love.

5. You'll meet people whom could be the one, and they could not be... its a crap shoot! Regardless, you'll learn from each and that learning is so invaluable!

6. Meet people that make you want to improve aspects of your life that you struggle in, that's where person growth happen.

That's all I have at the moment, if others have ideas or comments please post or write a comment.

I'm not a Romantic Comedy person, but enjoyed that the movie provided this thinking for me and others.

North Carolina- C'mon and Raise Up

So from now on, whenever I post my blogs I am going to post 10 songs that I feel go along with the mode of the particular post. So you should, listen to these as you read the blog.
I wish I could find some way to link the audio tracks to my blog.. I am working on that anyhow here they are:

1. Petey Pablo "Raise Up" -
2. Drake, Trey Songz, Lil Wayne - "Successful"
3. Ginuwine- "Last Chance"
4. Summer Time - Dead Prez
5. Regina Spektor - Us
6. The Smiths - Please,Please, Let me get what I want!
7. U2 - Magnificent
8. Cold Play - Viva La Vida
9. Human Nature- Michael Jackson
10. Stevie Wonder- As

So after hearing the news during summer Institute about program closing at Fleming, I was forced to contemplate the possibility of finding another job outside of Citizen Schools and assess my current living situation. While one should always keep their head on a swivel and look at opportunities that may arise, I was a bit narrow-minded, solely focusing on trying to lay down the foundation for this program in Houston. If I’ve learned anything during this last month, it’s been that the term “job security” doesn’t mean much any more. So after returning to Houston after Boston, I found myself back on a plane 48 hours later to look at an opportunity to continue work as a Campus Director, in Henderson North Carolina.

The Trip to North Carolina was both exciting and a good experience. I got to hang out with Tracy Gilbert, whom is fellow graduate of the National Teaching Fellowship with me and Campus Director. I got to do some apt hunting and have an honest and important conversation about work, life, and Citizen Schools with Erik Turner, who would be my future boss, in North Carolina. The trip allowed me to make North Carolina a more realistic and viable option for both future employment and residency.(I sound like a nerd! Don’t I ).

“My head is spinning, What am I to do? I’m suppose to know what to do, and I’m suppose to make the right decision, what is that?”


I wasn’t given much time to make the decision… so I had to think ummmmm short and hard about a choice that would change my life. ( I don’t consider myself a drama king by any means, but this is kinda fucking ridiculous huh?)
So after three days of meditation on the choices that I needed to make… I chose to accept the position in North Carolina. I felt that after having a crazy year in Houston, I wanted to really dive deep into the position and needed a second year to prove to myself that I could successfully handle this position. I don’t plan on taking positions below this one again, so I either needed to man up or get out the game! !
So that left me with 14 days to prepare myself for Departure from Houston to head to North Carolina

Boston Photos Continued

More Boston Photos To Come!

I still have more photos of Boston and folk I hung with... More to come soon!

Boston- “Hey, Remember Me, Will from Kindergarten!”

“Cause it's a bittersweet symphony, this life, Try to make ends meet!
You're a slave to money then you die. I'll take you down the only road I've ever been down
You know the one that takes you to the places where all the veins meet yeah,” – The Verve

For those of you that don’t know, Boston, MA, is where I spent two years in the National Teaching Fellowship with Citizen Schools. It was my first major job right out of undergrad. It provided me an opportunity to continue my national service tour and work with students in an after-school sector. The Fellowship provided me with a network of friends and colleagues that helped me grow to enjoy Boston. I accomplished a lot during my years and learned quite a bit. While I was growing professionally, I was becoming a social degenerate. I wasn’t really growing or maturing as a person, nor was I being pushed to do so. While the fellowship provided me a sense of growth and accomplishment in one area of my life.. it hindered me in other parts. I tell folks that I meet that my time Boston was one of wild and craziness, as if college never-ended. During Boston, I was in and out of several relationships and could not figure out why… if it was due to my lack of interest, or if I was waiting for the that “crazy” love feeling that you get the first time you meet someone whom you have strong feelings for, or was I just not ready to be in a committed relationship.... probably all of those!!!

Anyhow, after the fellowship I moved down to Houston where I begin my tenure as a Campus Director. It has been a year since I left. I was excited to get back to reconnect with folks, until I was informed that my program in Houston was not going to be funded for this upcoming school year (WTF!!!).

I have a difficult time expressing my feelings and emotions. I was told that when I was a baby, the doctor had to make me cry in order to know if I was okay when my mom gave birth to me. So I guess from that point on I’ve been somewhat of an introvert!!My point is that I didn't know how to react to the ridiculous and asinine news. It took a couple of days for it to sink and hit home to me. I know its was shitty news, and I wish I could of truly went off on the deep end so I wouldn't be constantly thinking about it now.

Sometime I feel as though I'm like momentarily desensitized to things when they immediately happen and then after the case I react to them... like getting punched in the face and then five hours later screaming OUCH!!!! (LOL, an extreme example)

I’ve deviated from my thought…… Hearing news that could driving a person MAD! Citizen Schools was my life in Houston, and the sole reason why I even moved down to Texas. To put your heart and soul into something and then see it fail… does wonders for the heart and the human psyche! My staff and I built that program with our bare hands, and I feel as though at the end of the day, no one really cared that much about our the hard work. The late nights I spent at Fleming, or the early morning at the school, the struggles of my staff members, the families we support, the children we loved and taught.

My principal didn’t even have the professional courtesy to inform me that we would not be returning until after I arrived in Boston for my annual Summer Institute Conference. Even then she did it via email….

So, I was in Boston for Summer Institute. I could barely focus on the content that was being presented and struggled to remain positive. At points I wanted to scream out… “Why am I here?” “Or how do I incorporate the program Scorecard, during unemployment. I had some decisions to make! While I it was a rough week and a half, I did manage to enjoy my time and the company of friends in Boston, Below are pictures from Summer Institute.

Sweet Home Chicago

So after Summer Program was finished, I finally managed to make my way back to my home town of Chicago, Ill. I spent a little over a week there. There were so many folks that I wanted to see and didn't get a chance to do so. If any of you are reading the blog, I'm so sorry and do hope to make some more visits home in the near future... ( I should probably invest in a planner for trips so that I can make time to see everyone one. Chicago, I feel is where I'm more than likely going to settle down at. I get the yearning to come home a lot, but there is so much for me to explore and its that sense of adventure that keeps me traveling. The folks below are people whom I was able to catch up with! Each one of them represents a different part of my life ( except the little boy in pictures 1 and 5, he ain't mine LMAO!!!) I haven't posted in so long so please excuse the shortness of this post..

Tribute to Michael Jackson

" And no message could have Been any clearer! If you wanna make the world a better place, Take a look at yourself and then make a change!"





It is really crazy to hear that Michael Jackson passed away. Being a baby of the 80's, I grew up on MJ. I remember my father and I use to stay up late on Friday nights to watch Music Videos. I use to get pumped to see the latest MJ video.

Michael transcended race!! I believe that he was the very first artist to do so. I told many folks before that no matter where you travel in this world, if a Michael Jackson song came on... every single person around you would know the song, and it would be okay if everyone was singing it, no matter how ridiculous they looked doing it. That's because Michael had a certain sense of swagger and style about him. From his feminine-tops, his jheri-curl, his high water pants and white socks.. he made that look good.. so good people (including myself would try it with no success).

After Michael begin to fade from the pop scene... Pop music died!!! It just became annoying and just another way for radio station to take up air space.. Some of the best Michael Jackson songs made you think and hit your heart in some way... (if you don't believe me.. listen to Human Nature)

I was on You Tube for the past couple of days looking up videos and I found a Concert in Berlin and Michael "packed" this stadium abroad. He had folks fainting, passing out, screaming their lungs out, crying. How does a "black man" get to this status? Michael Jackson was the most dangerous black man on the planet. We will never see concerts and performance like that again.. Even while groups like U2 and Coldplay come close, I just don't know of an artist or band that comes close to the popularity of MJ. Even with the recent Election and Barack Obama, we kind of saw a faint similarity of transcending of race... but it was unmatched!

Maybe its because the media broke MJ down so fast that his influence and "power" were overlooked. From his race and identity being questioned, to alleged charges, and to his own choices, we forgot how Big MJ was.

While I haven't really listened to much of MJ's newer music besides, Butterflies and You Rock My World, that just shows you the power of his music and his influence over a generation, his songs will forever remain in jukeboxes, karaoke song selection books, and be played around with songs like Don't stop believing, Jukebox Hero, We will rock you, Livin on a Prayer, and etc!

In Jackson's last interview, he said and I'm pretty sure that I'm paraphrasing but that he wanted to live on forever. I hope his music does. I can't wait to show Thriller or moonwalk for my kids.. or tell them to hurry their asses up and "Cha'mon" them!!!

Michael may you rest in Peace!!

The Dog Days of Summer Program

i seem to recognize your face haunting, familiar, yet i can't seem to place it cannot find the candle of thought to light your name lifetimes are catching up with me all these changes taking place, i wish i'd seen the place but no one's ever taken me hearts and thoughts they fade, fade away...

-Pearl Jam "Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town"

Even though I've only posted two or three time since my return from blog sabbatical, I feel as though I should step away for a sec to let you all in on what I do for a living. I am a Director of an After-School program for a non-profit organization called Citizen Schools (www.citizenschools.org).

The purpose of the program is to provide students in low-income and under performing districts with access and equal opportunity to resources and introduce them to caring and mentoring adults who will help them to develop leadership and other social skills. We help students develop study skills along with the 21st century new basic skills such as:
* Data Analysis
* Written Communication
* Technology
* Teamwork
* Oral Communication

Here are a couple of pictures of campus along with pictures my summer program and the field trip we went on today. It was Hot as Hell outside. You may have experience hot summers, but I don't think you have every felt Texas Heat, its a bit ridiculous!

<- This clip is of one of my students hugging me soak and wet, I had the camera in my hand and the only thing I could do was give out a weird shriek!

Hot Town Cool City DAY 3

"I've been everywhere, man, I've been everywhere, man
Crossed the deserts bare, man,
I've breatherd the mountain air, man.
Travel - I've had my share, man.
I've been everywhere!" - Johnny Cash

So I tried my hand at photography.... as you can see my skills are unmatched and the quality is clearly professional at worst!! The Sunglasses are becoming a trademark for me. They are Locs Glasses. I got them on a trip to Volente beach, because students are constantly messing my stunner shades up. I just found out that my "Locs" glasses are Tony Loc ( Funky Cold Medina) HAHAHAHA!!!!

Anyhow thanks to all that have been keeping track with my Blog... This is becoming way too addictive. Exploring is fun... and I am meeting people and just enjoying the experience!!
I may need to figure out another income source to fund this parade, because hitting up town is expensive!!!!

BE SURE TO POST COMMENTS ABOUT THE BLOG AND IDEAS FOR WAYS TO MAKE THIS YOUR "WINDOW TO THE WORLD" and by world I mean Houston!!!

Places I've visited this week:

The Hobbit Cafe (Sunday)
Ruggles Green (Thursday)


The Hobbit Cafe
2243 Richmond Ave. 713.526.5460





" Mr. Frodo! Mr. Frodo!" So this is a Restaurant themed after the J.R. Tolkien trilogy and Multi-million Dollar movies " The Lord of the Rings." This is a very cool little nook for lunch and dinner. The inside of the restaurant is decorated the Poster, and other Lord of the Rings merchandise. The Sandwiches are all themed and are pretty big sized. There is a cool outside patio and the ice tea is very good. This was my second time going to the Hobbit Cafe. If you are over near Rice Village or on Kirby near Richmond during lunch, you should definitely check this place out.


Next Post will featuring my visit to Ruggles Green. If you know of a cool place that I should visit... please comment and I will go and post pictures!

"Until then Get out, be bold, and feed your Soul!"- Oh Shit that's the my new sign off line!!!

"Stay Classy San Diego!!" Muahahahaha!!

Mellow Yellow