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Dear Friends of Humanities Amped, We have a treat for you this holiday season! As some of you may know, Dr. Anna West, who began Humanities Amped with Destiny Cooper in 2014, is back in the classroom at Tara High this school year working with Amped students and leading our staff professional learning community. As we head into our 10th year as an organization, I’ve asked Anna to write a series of reflective stories to paint a picture of our work with our wider community. We hope to bring you one each month in 2024, and by doing so, invite you into the circle to think and dream with us. I would not be doing my job if I didn’t also encourage you to donate. We exist because of your generosity. There’s no other way to say it. Thanks for being part of the circle that shows up for youth, educators, and public schools. Sincerely, Dexter Jackson Executive Director “SUEÑO CON UN MUNDO” HOW RELATIONSHIPS BECAME FOOD AT TARA HIGH SCHOOLThe Friday before Thanksgiving I walked up the front steps at Tara High School and was greeted by my friend and collaborator, Elidsabel Martinez, a fiery and big-hearted teacher who teaches ESL Math and advocates constantly for our school’s many immigrant students. She was sitting behind an array of large brown boxes labeled “Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank” with a clipboard and a pen, ready for action. This November, East Baton Rouge Parish School System and the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank celebrated the opening of a Food Pantry at Tara High School. I was excited to see that the pantry had become a reality. Last school year, my colleagues and I often saw Elidsabel in the Humanities Amped office at Tara High during her planning period, huddled with the Amped Community Care Manager, LaChanda Harris, LCSW, making big plans.  Now that the seeds that Elidsabel and LaChanda planted have come to fruition, I asked them if I could sit down with each of them and learn more about the journey to bring a Food Pantry to Tara High School. I’m always interested in understanding more about what motivates people to roll up their sleeves to meet the unmet needs of a community, especially when the path emerges unexpectedly from relationships and experiences that no one saw coming. What are the qualities of those people, relationships, and experiences? How can we better join with others to cultivate those qualities in ourselves and the people around us, ultimately bringing forth a world where social action proliferates from many directions? Those are the inquiries that have always driven the work of Humanities Amped, and it was dawning on me that this would be a good story to tell. I sat down one recent afternoon with Elidsabel and Alejandra Macedo, the paraprofessional who works alongside Elidsabel in their ESL Math class at Tara High. Their classroom is colorful and full, the many flags of Latin American and Middle Eastern countries brightening the room alongside tall stacks of Food Pantry boxes. In just a week’s time, Elidsabel and Alejandra have managed to sign up 28 families to receive boxes of food from the pantry, a list that is growing longer every day. While there is an actual pantry area in the middle of campus, where shelves are now filled with a generous array of canned goods, rice, snacks, bread, and more, the overflow is in this math classroom, where these remarkable women see to it that the food is distributed with fidelity and care.  I ask Elidsabel to tell me how this all came to be. Last fall, she explains, the principal, John Hayman, asked her what she thought was behind the high rate of English Learners who often missed school, or left school altogether. According to the Department of Education, only 35% of English Learners in East Baton Rouge Parish graduated on time in 2022, compared to 75% of the total population. In other words, English Learners were, and still are, more than twice as likely to drop out of school than their peers. According to Elidsabel, “Mr. Hayman was asking me to think about what we can do to keep these kids in school? So I began to ask them, ‘Why are you missing so much school?’ Students were going to work because they needed to get money for their families.” Her worry about food insecurity among her students grew when a student fainted at school, and Elidsbel went with her to the hospital. “I took her home after,” she explained, “and I saw the conditions they were living in. That was when it all started for me.” Not long after, she learned that one of her students’ families was without food, electricity, or any way to pay their rent after their father was injured at work. Soon, Elidsabel was providing critical food resources for three families, using her own resources. First, she dipped into her household food reserves, which she’d set aside in case of a hurricane. “I’m from Puerto Rico,” she explained, “so I am always prepared for hurricanes.” When that food ran out, she began buying basic groceries for the families. “My husband told me, ‘You are opening Pandora’s box!’ I did that for a few months until I was dipping into my savings, and then I realized I couldn’t keep that going. That’s when I reached out to Humanities Amped to ask for help.”
LaChanda Harris is the person that Elidsabel connected with. Nine times out of ten, when someone drops by the room where Humanities Amped staff work at Tara, they are looking for LaChanda, our beloved Community Care Manager. Community care expands the notion of self-care, bringing our attention to the relational, interpersonal, and systemic ways that care generates well-being in both individuals and communities. While everyone at Humanities Amped is invested in community care, LaChanda leads many of our efforts. She works with students in small groups to learn mindfulness skills; she helps people at school access tools and resources to care for themselves and their families when they need it most, and she fosters leadership among students and teachers who want to increase community care around them. We sat down the other evening as the Amped Studio program was wrapping up to talk about LaChanda’s collaboration with Elidsabel. LaChanda explained that when she got involved she saw that the need was greater than providing “a resource, a piece of paper, or a website because most of the time you end up with nothing; the resources are overrun with requests.” LaChanda recognized that access also meant knowledge of how to navigate the resources, “I wanted to walk with them through it, and not just say, hey, here’s a resource, go get the food. I wanted to be a resource as well.” LaChanda realized that immigration status would be a barrier for many families to receive federal and state aid, so she reached out to the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank, where Program Coordinator Ariane Dent provided her with helpful information about the Food Bank’s initiative to create pantries at satellite locations throughout the community. However, the Food Bank’s waiting list was long, and Elidsabel and LaChanda knew that students and families could not wait.  Ariane told them about another Food Bank program that would equip them to send students home on Fridays with backpacks containing snacks. They met with Mr. Hayman to work out the logistics, and as soon as they received the backpacks, distribution began. Elidsabel and Rocio Vargas made sure that 103 Tara High Students, most of them English Learners, got on the list to take home backpacks. Elidsabel explains, “With those backpacks, whole families ate. Four-member families were surviving for a week on the food from those backpacks, which were just a handful of snacks meant for children. I don’t know how they did it, but they did.” In the meantime, LaChanda and Elidsabel visited the Food Pantry at Glen Oaks High School. LaChanda had a relationship with Chef Traci Vincent, a health coach and food educator involved with the Glen Oaks High School Food Bank. They got practical advice on how to run the pantry and got to see what a fully stocked pantry with a refrigerator, a freezer, and perishable items, including fresh produce, could look like. They went back to the Food Bank to see if there was a way to get equipment for perishables, and the Food Bank connected them to the LSU Agricultural Center, who then came on board and applied for a grant. If received, the grant will allow the Food Pantry to add refrigeration and fresh produce to Tara’s Food Pantry. Just as things were getting off the ground last school year, everything came to a temporary halt. The school system needed to ensure that the proper safety procedures were in place. Legal protections and waivers needed to be established. Mr. Hayman, LaChanda, Elidsabel, and the school system administrators worked together to untangle those knots. It was a long process. “At Humanities Amped, we don’t stop at ‘there’s nothing we can do’,” LaChanda explained, “If we don’t know how to get it, we research how we can connect to other entities who do know. We knock on other doors because we know there is a way. And if there is not a way, we are going to try and build it.” I have seen many projects break down at the point when it becomes administratively tricky to move through systems, especially when it is no one’s job in particular and there is no clear guidance on how to move forward. That’s when it becomes about a willingness to persist through those stretches of uncertainty, keeping a moral compass attuned to what is right for youth and families.
As if on cue, Principal John Hayman happened to walk by when LaChanda and I were talking. We asked him for his thoughts, and he told us, “Humanities Amped meets the need. No matter what it is. There doesn’t seem to be a boundary when it comes to helping kids.” He reflected on the role of Humanities Amped at Tara, noting that Amped fills a critical gap by providing “knowledge and coordination of resources. We don’t have that.” This speaks to the importance of school-community partnerships in general, which is something that the school system is working to prioritize alongside Baton Rouge Area Youth Network. BRAYN is building a coordinated network for local youth services that can partner thoughtfully with schools to ensure that young people and families are getting access to community resources in a more consistent and equitable way. In his characteristically humble and warm manner, Mr. Hayman recognized the role that LaChanda and Elidsabel played. “The pantry exists because of Ms. Harris and Ms. Martinez. They are the unsung heroes,” he explains. “But [giving credit] doesn’t really matter, because at the end of the day, it’s my prediction, optimistically, that 150 to 200 families [will access this resource]. Over half of our families already qualify, once they understand that they can save that money, it will open up other opportunities for them.” Mr. Hayman’s insight that “the credit doesn’t matter” is one of the reasons I wanted to write about this. Of course, I want to sing the song of unsung heroes, especially when they are people who I both know and respect, but I also want to shed light on the generosity of everyday people who dive into the often tedious, often invisible, labor of caring for their community. It is a tender thing to convey in a world where the discourses, branding, and a constant vying for visibility seem to get swapped out, mixed up, with the material and grounded realities of everyday community care. Relationships are at the heart of that kind of care. LaChanda explains how important relationships are to the work of Humanities Amped. “It’s all about building a relationship,” she tells me. “That’s how we meet needs. If there is no relationship, then people are not going to be vulnerable enough to tell us what their needs are.” Relationships not only create safety for people to surface their genuine needs they also awaken empathy between people. Elidsabel elaborates on how empathy moved her to action: Let me tell you, I didn’t know anything about any of this when I started. I just saw such a need. I would get home and I’d cry, I’d ask myself, ‘How is this possible?’ I’ve always had the things I needed. You begin to see what it is like for others, and you have to ask yourself, “What are you going to do?” I never thought it would grow to be so big. I just thought this family needs help. And now this family too. It wasn’t something I planned to do. These are things that happen in life, and you have to respond. Because what are you going to do? How are you going to feel if you have food in your house, and you know that your students and their families don’t? You don’t even think about it, you just say, we’re going to share what we have for as long as we can. Elidsabel, Lachanda, and the many others who worked to bring the Food Pantry to Tara High School were moved to action by public commitments that are grounded in love for the people around them. I’m reminded of Cornell West’s words, “Justice is what love looks like in public.” We don’t hear enough stories about the loved-filled relationships that catalyze educators and students in public schools. Indeed, public schools are often frustrating– though rarely boring– public spaces where people can show up in public to care for others. The quality of relationships in public schools are, perhaps, the first building blocks of a viable democracy. Maybe this is why public school board meetings have become the epicenter the more recent culture wars battleground? Something about these relationships and how we will (or won’t) steward them is ground zero of the question, what country do we want to live in? Last school year I was fortunate enough to teach alongside Elidsabel in one of her classes, and last winter, our students studied the Langston Hughes poem, “I Dream a World.” We read and re-read the poem, letting it lead us into conversations about the worlds that we dream of, and what we might do to move closer to those worlds. With the help of Amped board member Kevin McQuarn, we recorded a video of students in several classes reading the poem out loud.  Today, Elidsabel reminds me of the poem, telling me, “Yo sueño con un mundo/I dream a world/ donde la escuela puede ser un refugio/where school can be a sanctuary/por los estudiantes y sus familias/for students and their families. /Sueño con tener bastante comida, uniformes y servicios de la salud mental/I dream of having enough food, uniforms, and mental health care./ Si pudierimos alcanzar esos necisidades/ If we can meet those needs/ los estudiantes estarán en la escuela/ students will be at school.” Who, I wonder, does not want to see a dream like that come true? Our conversation, filled with laughter and tears, soon turned, as it usually does when we talk for any length of time, into a list of next steps to continue turning dreams into realities, one small step at a time. “I have so many ideas, but I am just one person,” she tells me. “I had the idea, but without Humanities Amped it would not have gone anywhere. LaChanda helped me so much. She was the one who connected me to people who moved things forward.” Those relationships between people who are reaching for a greater horizon together, what Martin Luther King called the “Beloved Community” is a source of hope, even when the odds feel quite long. “We need the community to know that we have this here,” Elidsabel tells me, “so that it can keep growing.” Dr. Anna West is an Amped Educator. Over the span of twenty-two years, Anna has been a steward of multiple community youth organizations, including Humanities Amped, that focus on the intersection of literary arts, humanities, and social change.
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Spring 2023 Community Night: A Night of Untold Stories!The evening of Monday, April 24th, was one for the books as the students from Amped Studio and YALL came together to conclude their spring semester at Humanities Amped Community Night Showcase and Family Table event. With their works centered around the theme of "untold stories," student artists took the stage to present their creative projects. After presenting their works, Students were treated to live performances by poets: Toi Whitney Ann, Flo Darese, and Toi the Poetic Beauty who presented their works and lived experiences also centering the theme of untold stories. Through heartfelt verses and soul-stirring performances, they demonstrated how the power leave a lasting impact . The excitement didn't end there! The students of YALL (Youth Apprentice Leadership League) had something special in store. With a shared mission to amplify student voices, they presented their plan to revive the student government association at Tara High School. Their vision is to create a platform for students to be heard and empowered through collaboration and democratic action. The night was a celebration of artistic expression and student advocacy, weaving together the threads of untold stories and the collective desire for a voice. It was a testament to the power of young minds, their ability to inspire, and their unwavering commitment to making a difference. THS Poetry Slam Team
Poetry is alive at Tara High School! Throughout the month of February, students and faculty were invited to submit their original poetry in response to weekly prompts. Students who submitted poems were invited to share their writing at a school-wide open mic on March 15. Tara students, Tara faculty, and Amped staff all took to the mic to share their words with one another. The event concluded with a brief writing workshop based on Mahogany L. Browne's poem "Black Girl Magic" and a second opportunity to share.  Jannat Almashhadni, Vilma Yulieth Enamorado Guzman, Elijah Cage, Layla Brown, Aja Cummings, Kaden Smith, Cassidy Carey, and Andrick Bonilla were selected as members of Tara High School’s first Slam Poetry Team. Together with Amped teaching artist Kalivyn Marquix, Anna West, and Tara Literacy Coach Paula LaCour, the students met after school to prepare to perform at EBR’s Second Annual District-Wide Poetry Slam. The Tara team presented two group poems and one individual poem, and had the highest representation of any school at the event. On April 5, the Slam Team took their exceptional work on tour around Tara’s campus.  At their final meeting, Kalivyn invited the team to review the goals they had established together on the first day. In response to the questions "What do we want? What do you hope to get out of the Poetry Slam Team?" the students had written respect, being comfortable with each other, help each other with our writing, enhance creativity, have fun, releasing our emotional energy with our words, to grow as a team, creating group experiences, make history, make long lasting friendships, and learn about each other. As Kalivyn read down the list, the team agreed without question: they had met each and every goal. 
At Humanities Amped, we are proud to make creative, supportive spaces accessible to young people. Check out some of the team’s amazing work below! Cold & Hot |
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Since October, Humanities Amped Education Director Dr. Emma Gist and Alumni Program Leader Ms. T. George have been working with Freshman Seminar teacher Mr. Barry Jackson to design and facilitate this classroom project. The students began by sharing their own stories of overcoming challenges and identifying the resources needed in their own experiences. They then reviewed example children's books, collaboratively drafted a rubric for their own books, and presented early drafts of their stories to their classmates for feedback. The team members each chose a project role–author, editor, illustrator, team manager, or print publisher–and took responsibility for their piece of the final project. The teams carefully planned out the flow of their book before drafting, editing and revising, illustrating, and finalizing their work.
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At Family Literacy Night, the students showed off their incredible work and shared their reflections on the process with those who attended. Visitors asked the student teams about their books and also about what they learned, and were invited to share praise with the student teams on notecards. Following the showcase, six students shared what they learned from the project in a brief presentation. The evening concluded with a seafood dinner provided by the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board.
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The success of this Freshman Seminar book project affirms what we at Humanities Amped believe so passionately about project-based learning: students learn best when they’re engaged in creating an actual product for the real world as a way to answer a driving question. As Dr. Gist shared at Family Literacy Night, the exciting outcome of project-based learning is that it results in incredible student products. The truth of project-based learning, however, is that while the final product matters, it’s not actually the most significant part: what matters more is what the students learn throughout the process about collaborative teamwork, time management, editing and revising, persistence, and making adjustments when your plans don’t go your way. Importantly, projects like this one give students an opportunity to learn about themselves, and showcases like Family Literacy Night give them a chance to see themselves as writers and creators, capable of creating work worth celebrating in the world beyond their classroom.
In class and at the event, students shared that engaging in this project has taught them about time management, leadership, and responsibility. The most common outcome of the project that the students have reported is their growth in their ability to effectively collaborate: to be successful in this project, the students were challenged to communicate with each other, resolve conflict, and work through different ideas.
"To create a children's book it takes patience, dedication, and time. Communication as well. Communication truly goes a long way. Especially with me being in a group, it was important to communicate. Through arguments and heated discussions, it was also important to be mature. To let got and focus on what's really important."
- Freshman Seminar Student
- Freshman Seminar Student
When asked about the most challenging part of this project, one student said, "Communication." She reflected on a conflict her team had, and then added, "Later on we agreed--we worked together and decided to put that stuff behind us." Another student shared with his class, "What I learned in the process of this project was collaboration and mind blowing techniques of brainstorming. And how essentially we all came together and finished our project using teamwork and respecting each other." When asked about his response to the project’s driving question, What do young people need to know about how to overcome a challenge?, one student responded "Don't let petty things get in the way of what you want for your life."
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We at Humanities Amped are incredibly grateful for our partnership with Tara High School and for the privilege of doing this work alongside the teachers, administrators, and students here. Freshman Seminar is only one piece of the Amped Ecosystem, and we look forward to sharing more program celebrations with you!
Hello Amped Community,
It is the season of giving thanks, and our family at Humanities Amped is filled with gratitude for the generosity of your support. Thank you for believing in the talent, creativity, and value of our youth.
As 2022 is rapidly drawing to a close, we are excited to share with all of you some of our highlights from this past year. With many of our programs in full swing at Tara High School, we also want to share an overview of our programs and some of the successes we’ve achieved. While there have been many challenges over this past year, great things happen when youth voices are elevated! Please check out the impact and programming report here to learn about what we’ve been up to.
Thank you for being on this journey with us, and we hope that we can continue to count on your support this Giving Tuesday!
Sincerely,
The Team at Humanities Amped
It is the season of giving thanks, and our family at Humanities Amped is filled with gratitude for the generosity of your support. Thank you for believing in the talent, creativity, and value of our youth.
As 2022 is rapidly drawing to a close, we are excited to share with all of you some of our highlights from this past year. With many of our programs in full swing at Tara High School, we also want to share an overview of our programs and some of the successes we’ve achieved. While there have been many challenges over this past year, great things happen when youth voices are elevated! Please check out the impact and programming report here to learn about what we’ve been up to.
Thank you for being on this journey with us, and we hope that we can continue to count on your support this Giving Tuesday!
Sincerely,
The Team at Humanities Amped
Humanities Amped Impact and Programming Report
The Humanities Amped mission is to model and share transformative educational practices that result in people’s power to shape their world. Our vision is to create a dynamic community of life-long learners and innovative civic leaders.
Humanities Amped provides high school classrooms, after school, and lunchtime programs with research-based practices that help youth experience belonging, well-being, and the power of their own voices. When youth have guided opportunities to practice community-engaged writing, research, and arts, they are able to aspire and amplify possibilities for themselves and the people around them.
Humanities Amped provides high school classrooms, after school, and lunchtime programs with research-based practices that help youth experience belonging, well-being, and the power of their own voices. When youth have guided opportunities to practice community-engaged writing, research, and arts, they are able to aspire and amplify possibilities for themselves and the people around them.
"Humanities Amped put me in rooms I never thought I’d be in, and gave me the tools to make the difference in the world that I never thought I’d be the one to make, tools that I still use to this day.” -Amped Alum
"I love Humanities Amped soo much, like it's the reason why I be excited to come to school." -Amped Student
Financial Report
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Humanities Amped By the Numbers
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- 300 students participated in twelve sections of Amplified ELA Classes
- 224 students attended Amped Lunches
- 60 students enrolled in Amped Studio Afterschool/Summer Programs
- 51 community care conferences supported students with unique needs
- 15 students received leadership and restorative practices training
Program Profiles
AMPED AFTERSCHOOL, SUMMER, AND LUNCHTIME PROGRAMS
"Humanities Amped teaches us how to use our voice and get out of our comfort zone [while] respecting other people’s differences, [we learn] how to use our minds to create solutions to major problems.” -YALL Member
Humanities Amped was like the hole in my life that was finally filled. I am a very anxious person. Humanities Amped encouraged communication in a way that was not at all forceful. This made me wanna talk to people, and surprisingly I made friends.” -Amped Studio Participant
Amped Studio
Students participate in an arts and civic engagement club where they research a civic issue they are passionate about and use the recording arts, visual arts, or performing/literary arts to raise their voices for social change.
Amplified Lunches
Students participate in activities during school lunches that promote joy, connection, and a sense of belonging on campus.
Youth Apprentice Leadrship League (YALL)
Student leaders receive training in restorative practices and implement peer-to-peer programming, resulting in positive impacts on school climate and culture.
Program Spotlight
Arts-Based Civic Engagement Project: "I Am Not My Mental Health"
Students that participated in the 2022 Amped Summer program were able to identify communities they are a part of, issues that harm that community, and research possible solutions to eliminate those issues. They then worked on an art project to present in front of a public audience.
Amped students Maia, Trinity, and Tristan tackled the lack of access to mental health care by conducting research on the stigma that comes with acknowledging mental health challenges. They adapted their research into a video that consisted of peer interviews, dramatic skits, and poetry readings.
Their work to remind us that we are “not our mental health” has impacted not only our family and friends at Humanities Amped, but many others.
Mental Health Awareness at Together Baton Rouge Following our summer program, Tristan interned at Together Baton Rouge while participating in the Mayor’s Youth Workforce Experience and was able to take the project he co-created to the next level by presenting it to the Baton Rouge community.
Amped students Maia, Trinity, and Tristan tackled the lack of access to mental health care by conducting research on the stigma that comes with acknowledging mental health challenges. They adapted their research into a video that consisted of peer interviews, dramatic skits, and poetry readings.
Their work to remind us that we are “not our mental health” has impacted not only our family and friends at Humanities Amped, but many others.
Mental Health Awareness at Together Baton Rouge Following our summer program, Tristan interned at Together Baton Rouge while participating in the Mayor’s Youth Workforce Experience and was able to take the project he co-created to the next level by presenting it to the Baton Rouge community.
Excerpt From "I Am Not My Mental Health"
No I am not my mental health
The bed was calling my name for multiple days in a row People would ask what’s wrong and
I’d reply I don’t know
But deep down in my soul
I knew something was wrong...
-Maia
The bed was calling my name for multiple days in a row People would ask what’s wrong and
I’d reply I don’t know
But deep down in my soul
I knew something was wrong...
-Maia
Amplified English Language ARts Classrooms
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“It's not about what we learned, it was about how we learned and how we did different things and how we use those techniques later in life. Every single thing that I learned in Amped I'm using at [my job], I'm using in life." -Amped Classroom Alum
100% of Spanish-speaking student participants agreed or strongly agreed that Humanities Amped volunteers “helped class to feel like a place where everyone can learn.”
Amplified Classroom Residencies
Amped resident educators partner within high school class sections to offer regular planning and co-teaching support that models effective strategies for trauma-informed student engagement, project-based learning, and culturally responsive teaching.
Educator Professional Development
In addition to embedding professional development by modeling strategies directly with students in classrooms, Amped offers coaching to support teachers with a cycle of reflection, planning, and implementation.
ADELANTE VOLUNTEERS: SUPPORT FOR ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS
Amped coordinates Spanish speaking volunteers to offer small group assistance to English language learners in ELA classrooms. Volunteers and educators are trained to create a welcoming, warm space for English Learners to achieve new social and academic horizons.
Community Engagement
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"[The current youth are] seeing us do these things. Being close in age with them, and they're like ‘I can do that too.’ It shows all the possibilities that they have, especially as us being young Black women in the classroom full of like faces. I definitely see the influence that we have on them.” -Amped Alumni
“After leaving some Humanities Amped events, it made me, as an adult, change my way of thinking. I saw that I didn’t have to think in the same way that people before me was thinking.” -Amped Parent
Amped Alumni Scholarships
Amped employs two college-aged alumni as part- time program staff to support classroom and afterschool programs. In addition to working at Humanities Amped, these staff receive an annual merit-based scholarship of $5,000 to assist with living expenses while in college.
Amped Extended Family
This community-based group provides a gathering ground for youth and alumni to build connections and ask, “how can we create well-being in our community?” This peer and near-peer group receives training in research-based strategies and re-delivers what they learn to their networks.
Family Table Gatherings
Amped sets the table every other month for family, community, youth, and partners to gather and share food, connection, and the spirit of fellowship with one another.
Together, we embody the spirit of Ubuntu, “I am because we are.”
Thank YOU for supporting the next generation of community leaders!
What's New at Humanities Amped
Adelante Volunteer Sign Up!
We are looking for dual-language (Spanish or Arabic) volunteers to support English learners during the spring semester at Tara High School. Sign up here!
We are looking for dual-language (Spanish or Arabic) volunteers to support English learners during the spring semester at Tara High School. Sign up here!
Humanities Amped is excited to announce that we are searching for an Executive Director to nurture our organization’s growth into the future.
Dr. Anna West, who co-founded Humanities Amped in 2014, plans to step down from her role as Executive Director in February 2023 so that she may return to her passions as an educator and writer. She explains her perspective on the transition:
“I am amazed at how the journey we set out on in a single classroom nine years ago has connected to so many people’s desire to create critically engaging, humanized learning communities. What started as a small project has grown into a full fledged organization with multiple programs. We have been holding so much abundance and learning. Personally, I am looking forward to having some space to reflect, write, and amplify our mission as an advocate. I hope that our next Executive Director can bring new energy, skillfulness and determination to steward our growth to the next level.”
Dr. Anna West, who co-founded Humanities Amped in 2014, plans to step down from her role as Executive Director in February 2023 so that she may return to her passions as an educator and writer. She explains her perspective on the transition:
“I am amazed at how the journey we set out on in a single classroom nine years ago has connected to so many people’s desire to create critically engaging, humanized learning communities. What started as a small project has grown into a full fledged organization with multiple programs. We have been holding so much abundance and learning. Personally, I am looking forward to having some space to reflect, write, and amplify our mission as an advocate. I hope that our next Executive Director can bring new energy, skillfulness and determination to steward our growth to the next level.”
The Humanities Amped Board of Directors has embarked on a strategic planning process to define our goals and crystalize what we need from our next Executive Director. We are asking for your help in spreading the word to potential applicants. See the Call for Applications below.
Board President, Dr. Alex Torres encourages community support: “The Board of Directors is excited to find, welcome, and support Amped’s new leader. We are hopeful that Humanities Amped’s powerful mission will resonate with applicants, and we invite the community to share the job call far and wide.”
As we look ahead to this leadership transition, we are excited to share that we are moving full steam ahead in a robust partnership with Tara High School. Classroom-based programming has been rolling out in phases, including the Adelante Initiative to provide classroom support for English language learners as well as Amped classroom residencies in which HA staff provide development and hands-on support in ELA, ESL, and Freshman Seminar classes. Amped Studio, an arts-based civic engagement afterschool program, begins next Wednesday, October 12th. If you know a Tara High School student, please invite them to apply at the link below. We are so thankful for the welcoming environment we’ve found at Tara High School. Together, we are working to transform outcomes for young people and our community.
As always, the Amped mission only moves when our community shows up. If you are able, become a donor at any level to help us to move the work forward!
With Gratitude,
The Humanities Amped Team
Amped family, we are thrilled to introduce to you the newest member of the Amped team, LaChanda Harris! LaChanda Harris is Humanities Amped's Community Care Manager. She holds a Master of Social Work from Louisiana State University and has extensive experience working with diverse populations, using a blend of treatment modalities in her practice, including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Motivational Interviewing (MI), and Solution-Focused Therapy.
 | Her practice focuses on assisting both individuals and families in developing more flexible ways of being in order to live their most authentic life. She strives to instill hope, and help individuals learn to challenge and replace irrational thoughts, beliefs, and attitudes, in order to be free to experience change and freely choose to do what matters in their lives. Most enthusiastic about being a part of an organization that assists young people in realizing their full potential, Ms. Harris believes that when youth feel safe, are engaged, have access to higher learning, and are empowered, their family and community thrives. That is, when the youth, family, and community thrive, the world is changed. |
What are you looking forward to in your new role at Humanities Amped?
I am looking forward to assisting in the work of getting ahead of the curve, providing young people with social emotional tools and systems of support they require and deserve to have flourishing mental/ emotional well-being.
Why does the mission of Humanities Amped matter to you?
Humanities Amped's mission and vision focuses on the whole person, it's a practice. It's not only taught, but lived.
As Community Care Manager, Ms. Harris will plan and implement initiatives to provide social and emotional learning and restorative supports, as well as dynamic leadership opportunities, to the students we serve.
I am looking forward to assisting in the work of getting ahead of the curve, providing young people with social emotional tools and systems of support they require and deserve to have flourishing mental/ emotional well-being.
Why does the mission of Humanities Amped matter to you?
Humanities Amped's mission and vision focuses on the whole person, it's a practice. It's not only taught, but lived.
As Community Care Manager, Ms. Harris will plan and implement initiatives to provide social and emotional learning and restorative supports, as well as dynamic leadership opportunities, to the students we serve.
Our New Home
With great excitement, we would like to share that Tara High School is our new school home. Our district partners have decided that our resources, programs, and expertise will be a strong fit for the needs at Tara High, and we are currently working with the administration to get our programming underway. We have had many wonderfully collaborative and productive meetings with the administrators and teachers at Tara High, and we look forward to continuing our innovative lab school ecosystem at this new site.
On Saturday, September 17th, we onboarded a group of thoughtful and compassionate multilingual volunteers who will be supporting English language learners at Tara, which has the second highest population of English learners in the district. In addition to learning their way around the school campus and practicing trauma-informed responses to various student needs, the new volunteers explored the idea of accompaniment as a grounding approach to their work with students and teachers. “To accompany someone,” writes Staughton Lynd, “is to go somewhere with [them…], to be present on a journey.” Humanities Amped places volunteers in classrooms to come alongside English Language Learners, some of whom are newcomers to the United States, to build trusting relationships and offer academic support. We are calling this project the Adelante Initiative, and we excited for our volunteers to begin this forward-moving work with students in classrooms in the coming weeks!
On Saturday, September 17th, we onboarded a group of thoughtful and compassionate multilingual volunteers who will be supporting English language learners at Tara, which has the second highest population of English learners in the district. In addition to learning their way around the school campus and practicing trauma-informed responses to various student needs, the new volunteers explored the idea of accompaniment as a grounding approach to their work with students and teachers. “To accompany someone,” writes Staughton Lynd, “is to go somewhere with [them…], to be present on a journey.” Humanities Amped places volunteers in classrooms to come alongside English Language Learners, some of whom are newcomers to the United States, to build trusting relationships and offer academic support. We are calling this project the Adelante Initiative, and we excited for our volunteers to begin this forward-moving work with students in classrooms in the coming weeks!
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It is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to Broadmoor, where we have spent the last year building beloved community with our Amped students and teachers. Our goal is to continue these relationships even as we transition to a new campus, and we have ongoing plans to introduce community programming that will serve our entire Amped community moving forward. In the coming months, we will keep all of you updated as we roll out new programs and initiatives at Tara High and in the wider Baton Rouge community, and, as always, we thank you for your support as we embark on this new partnership together.
Tara High School is excited to announce its partnership with Humanities Amped, a community organization with a proven history of improving outcomes for students in East Baton Rouge — Humanities Amped will provide much-needed ESL support for our growing population of English language learners. This partnership is mutually beneficial, but students will benefit the most. Additional resources and support staff will create equity for our students. After school programming will increase, and Humanities Amped will ensure that students on the outer edges of our attendance zone have transportation after school each day. This will afford students opportunities not previously possible.
John Hayman
Principal
Tara High School
John Hayman
Principal
Tara High School
Volunteer to Assist with our Move
We need volunteers to help us move our larger furniture and many books from Broadmoor High School to Tara High School on Wednesday, Sept. 21st.
If you are interested in helping lift heavy things, please sign up at the link. We will meet in the Broadmoor High School parking lot at 2pm on that Wednesday to load the U-Haul. Then, we will drive to Tara High School to unload! We expect to be done no later than 5pm.
Please sign up if you can be available for the whole time (2pm-5pm).
If you are interested in helping lift heavy things, please sign up at the link. We will meet in the Broadmoor High School parking lot at 2pm on that Wednesday to load the U-Haul. Then, we will drive to Tara High School to unload! We expect to be done no later than 5pm.
Please sign up if you can be available for the whole time (2pm-5pm).
What's New at Humanities Amped
Are you part of the Amped Extended family? This includes youth who have been in amped program, friends, and Alumni! Sign up for the Amped Extended Family Fall 2022 Programming here!
At Humanities Amped, youth are working year round to amplify healing justice, radical imagination, and beloved community in their school and communities!
This summer, we hosted a three week long summer program centered around this year's driving question "What does my community need?" Students were encouraged to think of a specific community they belonged to and an important need of that community, engaging in research to learn more. Combining their personal stories, research, and guidance from a teaching artist specializing in their chosen discipline, students then were able to create art pieces, such as songs, informational videos, poems, sculptures, and more, to represent their answer to the driving question.
This summer, we hosted a three week long summer program centered around this year's driving question "What does my community need?" Students were encouraged to think of a specific community they belonged to and an important need of that community, engaging in research to learn more. Combining their personal stories, research, and guidance from a teaching artist specializing in their chosen discipline, students then were able to create art pieces, such as songs, informational videos, poems, sculptures, and more, to represent their answer to the driving question.
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Teaching artists Celeste Payne (visual arts), Brittany Marshall (performing arts), and Ryan Murray & Andrew Kuo (musical arts), and Amped alumni volunteer, Taylen Roberts, worked with our student-artists to draft a plan and offer support in bringing their ideas for their art projects to life!
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"Heal the World/Heal Yourself" Mini-Conference
Midway through the first two weeks of the summer program, students participated in a mini-conference. At the "Heal Yourself, Heal the World" mini-conference, students attended workshops on mindfulness, emotional awareness, and self-management strategies led by Wanda Kuo, Tonja Myles, and Emanuel Boo Milton. The day ended with a featured poetry set of both student and staff poets, followed by a poetry workshop and readback. Students and staff wrote about what they envision and imagine for our communities and our world.
ARTS-BASED CIVIC ENGAGEMENT SHOWCASE
The big premiere has finally arrived! Community members, family, and friends were invited to witness the amazing work that the Amped youth worked on addressing needs of their communities!
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To end off the celebration, Ms. George led us in our closing, Family Table, where we sat together, ate pizza, reflected on the program, and praised one another!
YALL Week featuring Tyler E. Brewster of Peer Connect!
During the third and final week of our summer program, YALL (Youth Apprentice Leadership League) students participated in activities to imagine what leadership looks like on their campus and create a plan to showcase their leadership in and outside of the Amped space!
Restorative Justice educator and practitioner Tyler E. Brewster of Peer Connect joined us during this week to help us explore the heart of restorative justice. In our time with Tyler we deepened our community connections, expanded our understanding of restorative justice, and reflected both on places where we are successfully using restorative justice practices as well as where we can continue to grow. The training provided students with new tools that can be utilized as they step into their new academic school year as leaders!
Restorative Justice educator and practitioner Tyler E. Brewster of Peer Connect joined us during this week to help us explore the heart of restorative justice. In our time with Tyler we deepened our community connections, expanded our understanding of restorative justice, and reflected both on places where we are successfully using restorative justice practices as well as where we can continue to grow. The training provided students with new tools that can be utilized as they step into their new academic school year as leaders!
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About Amped Summer Studio one student shared, "This was one of the best experiences I've ever had. I've never had such a strong connection to a group of people." Another student shared, "Humanities Amped was like the hole in my life that was finally filled. I am a very anxious person. Humanities Amped encouraged communication in a way that was not at all forceful. This made me wanna talk to people, and surprisingly I made friends."
At Humanities Amped, we believe that young people are problem solvers, not problems to be solved. When we give students space and permission to ask big questions about issues that matters to them inside of a supportive and uplifting community, they see themselves as the powerful change agents they are. We celebrate the work and learning of our young people this summer, and look forward to what's next! ●
At Humanities Amped, we believe that young people are problem solvers, not problems to be solved. When we give students space and permission to ask big questions about issues that matters to them inside of a supportive and uplifting community, they see themselves as the powerful change agents they are. We celebrate the work and learning of our young people this summer, and look forward to what's next! ●
As we do every year, we are taking a shared hiatus from June 30th - July 27th.
Our team at Humanities Amped is invested in long-term, sustainable care. And we know that begins right where we are, in our own lives. Showing up for ourselves means being intentional about slowing down and resting. It’s how we re-ground ourselves and build our capacity to show up for the long run.
It’s never an easy choice to care for ourselves. There is always so much to do, and for those of us whose work is caring for our community, we often feel like it is never enough. And yet we know that if we want to show up wholeheartedly, we must invest in our own restoration.
We hope to come back to you filled with energy, insight, and imagination. You, dear ones, deserve nothing less than our best selves!
See you in late July. :)
Love,
The Amped Team
Our team at Humanities Amped is invested in long-term, sustainable care. And we know that begins right where we are, in our own lives. Showing up for ourselves means being intentional about slowing down and resting. It’s how we re-ground ourselves and build our capacity to show up for the long run.
It’s never an easy choice to care for ourselves. There is always so much to do, and for those of us whose work is caring for our community, we often feel like it is never enough. And yet we know that if we want to show up wholeheartedly, we must invest in our own restoration.
We hope to come back to you filled with energy, insight, and imagination. You, dear ones, deserve nothing less than our best selves!
See you in late July. :)
Love,
The Amped Team
What a beautiful time we spent together at our first Community Night at Broadmoor High School! On the evening of May 3rd, the students of Amped Studio Afterschool were joined by friends, family, and community members for a celebratory showcase of their work and accomplishments.
The evening began with an awards ceremony to uplift members of the Amped community for their remarkable dedication and service. For her collaborative support of the Amplified ELA Classrooms project, BHS English teacher Mrs. Candita Sims was awarded the Susan Weinstein Greenhouse Award. Amped staff member and alum Tareil George was awarded the Bobby Thompson Humble Hero of Social Justice award. George’s heart for the students at Broadmoor is on full display in all her work, whether she’s leading culture keeping after school or facilitating poetry workshops in classrooms. Finally, the Kaiya Smith True Blue Senior Award went to Amped Studio student and YALL member Quynn Lewis. Quynn has demonstrated a deep love for the Amped community this year, which he pairs with a practical commitment to problem-solving. Quynn has been an integral member of YALL (the Youth Apprentice Leadership League), always willing to jump in to meet a need even when it means trying something new.
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Following the awards ceremony, the community night attendants chose between two youth-led civic engagement workshops: What is Consent? and Conflict Prevention and Resolution. The workshops were followed by presentations and interactive workshops led by students in the art-engagement groups.
Students in the visual arts group, who worked with teaching artist Celeste Payne, showed off their drawing and digital design work. Jamal Smith led a drawing workshop in which participants practiced drawing a human face.
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Students in the music group, led by Ryan Murray, showcased songs they had written and performed and hosted a jam session.
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Students in the performance group, led by Anna Campbell, reflected on their experience working on a student-drafted play during the semester. They also presented an improv performance in the courtyard.
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In true Amped fashion, the evening ended in reflection. Students shared gratitude for each other and for those who gathered to celebrate their work. Amped supporter Boo Milton reflected on Amped’s history, saying that what was once only a dream has become a reality. “I feel like I’m in the future,” he said. “I’m inside the dream.”
Thank you for living this dream with us! We are so thankful for our dedicated partners at Broadmoor High School, EBRPSS, and throughout the community. Our work with students at Broadmoor High School is only possible because of your support. As we close out this school year, we are looking ahead with gratefulness and joyful anticipation for what’s next.
 | Join us in welcoming the newest member of our Amped staff, Ashanta Gleason. Ashanta, or Ms. G as she's known to the students in Amped Studio After School, may have just joined our staff this semester, but as a Humanities Amped and McKinley Senior High School alumn, her connection to this community runs deep. During her time with Humanities Amped as a student, she developed a passion for civic and community engagement, public speaking, and empowering youth. You may remember her outstanding research and action project from 2019, Bringing Black Male Teachers to Education. |
Ashanta now serves as one of our Alumni Program Leaders who works in our classrooms and the after school Amped Studio, assisting current students reach their goals through the culture and teachings of the program. Ashanta accredits the Amped program as she believes it is a primary factor that inspired her to start a community service organization, Filled with Love Project, that is devoted to connecting and providing assistance to the community, and has motivated her to work with many organizations geared towards the upward development of the youth community in Baton Rouge. She thanks the program for all it has done and for giving her and all of her peers the tools needed to grow beyond high school. In addition to working as an Amped Alumni Program Leader, Ashanta now studies History at Southern University and A&M College.
What do you most enjoy about your role at Humanities Amped, and what are you looking forward to?
I am constantly looking forward to seeing myself in youth that I come across and giving them the exact encouragement I craved when I was in their shoes. The ability to be able to be there and lift them up during their personal, professional, and academic endeavors is what brings me the most joy in my role at Humanities Amped.
I am constantly looking forward to seeing myself in youth that I come across and giving them the exact encouragement I craved when I was in their shoes. The ability to be able to be there and lift them up during their personal, professional, and academic endeavors is what brings me the most joy in my role at Humanities Amped.
Why does the mission of Humanities Amped matter to you?
The mission of Humanities Amped is so valuable to me as it highlights the main things that I recognize that youth are hindered from in “normal” spaces in society. After experiencing this mission as a student of the program, I realize how much of a powerful impact it has on a growing child as it grants experiences that youth may have never witnessed. This empowers students to welcome and accept that radical imagination, beloved community, and healing justice are things that are possible even beyond the walls of Humanities Amped.
The mission of Humanities Amped is so valuable to me as it highlights the main things that I recognize that youth are hindered from in “normal” spaces in society. After experiencing this mission as a student of the program, I realize how much of a powerful impact it has on a growing child as it grants experiences that youth may have never witnessed. This empowers students to welcome and accept that radical imagination, beloved community, and healing justice are things that are possible even beyond the walls of Humanities Amped.
At Humanities Amped, our work to amplify healing justice, radical imagination, and beloved community in public schools and youth organizations is only possible because of your support. You, dear Amped family, are bringing transformative possibilities to life for students in the East Baton Rouge Parish Public School System.
Because of your support, we are amplifying an ecosystem of hope at Broadmoor High School. As of this school year,
A recent survey of youth in Amped Studio Afterschool shows that 96% feel very supported by the adults in Humanities Amped, and 90% strongly agree that if they have a problem they can go to Humanities Amped for support.
- Amped staff and volunteers support student learning and wellbeing in 21 classrooms, reaching 525 students. Broadmoor students, with an emphasis on English Learners, are able to receive more individual and small group support during class time.
- 41 students have taken part in Amped Studio Afterschool arts and civic engagement activities, where they have been able to work on self-portrait art projects, compose music using digital technology, write original performance pieces, and delve into discussion and action project planning to address social issues that students care about, including ending street violence, healing interpersonal relationships, and addressing sexism.
- 66 students have participated in Amped tutoring and/or college and career planning sessions.
- We have facilitated 58 Amped Community Care conferences, connecting individual youth to wellbeing and restorative resources when they need it most.
A recent survey of youth in Amped Studio Afterschool shows that 96% feel very supported by the adults in Humanities Amped, and 90% strongly agree that if they have a problem they can go to Humanities Amped for support.
When asked what three words they would use to describe Humanities Amped, our students offered inclusive, welcoming, warm, fun, and safe, among other equally powerful descriptors. One student shared with us, “I’ve gotten a lot better at expressing what I feel and not being afraid to ask for help.” Another said that at Amped Studio, “It feels like I'm actually being heard.”
Amped family, thank you for pouring into the youth of Baton Rouge. We are proud to be in this work with you.
Amped family, thank you for pouring into the youth of Baton Rouge. We are proud to be in this work with you.
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