Learn to Beat the Odds (Baltimore, MD)
Author: Ashley G.
Day Three
Living Classroom was truly incredible. We started the day
off with the students who were in the “Fresh Start” program, designed to
provide an alternative route for high school to young men who have found
themselves in some type of trouble. This program focuses on teaching students
specific skills such as carpentry and wood working. At first I was slightly
nervous as I really didn’t know what to expect. I quickly found, however, that
the staff and students were all warm and welcoming and truly happy to have us
there. We were separated into two groups, one organizing materials from a STEM
lab and the other demolishing the STEM lab to be redone. As someone who doesn’t
do much handy-work, participating in the demolition was a very fun and unique
experience. The staff members were sweet and patiently taught us exactly what
to do. Afterwards, we walked over to the Frederick Douglass- Isaac Myers
Maritime Park museum where we got to read up on the history and foundation of
Living Classroom as well as view some powerful art pieces. This entire
experience was an amazing way to start our work with Living Classroom, as we
were able to grasp the history of the organization we will volunteer with for
the rest of the week. 
Working with the BUGS after school care program was something I will never forget. The children were so vibrant and excited to be there. We were divided into small groups and were able to sit in on cooking, gardening, art, and STEM activities. While there, we worked individually with the students, helping them with both homework and the lessons planned for that day. After that, we were able to go outside and play with them and eat dinner together. We had so much fun feeling like children again ourselves playing freeze tag and running around. We left feeling so impacted by the resilience and joy all of the children embodied.
Day Four
We started our day by working with Project Serve: an
organization run within Living Classroom. Project Serve is a job training
service to aid those who cannot find work or need help reintegrating into
society after being incarcerated. We split our time up and half of our group
worked with the men and women cleaning up vacant lots. The other half the team
stayed in the office working with the administrators and the case workers
learning about how an organization like this is possible. This really provided
a well rounded view of the logistics and the passion behind this program. Many
of the staff members explained to us that they too went through the program
while they were reintegrating into society after prison. This broke down the
stereotypes one may hold about people who have been to prison or committed a
crime. This whole experience gave us the opportunity to humanize incarcerated
people, and allowed us to see the struggles they face when having to
reintegrate in society afterwards. One staff member told us that after being
released from prison, he did not know how to pay for the subway or the bus
using the new transportation cards. The stories that were shared with us
represent the harsh reality of the prison system in America and the emotional
hardships that come with the reintegration process. After working at Project
Serve for the majority of the day, we headed back to the BUGS after school care
program and sent some more time with the kids—a nice way to end such an
eye-opening day.
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