Consensus Organizing in Costa Rica!
Next summer, six SDSU undergraduate students will spend five weeks in Costa Rica teaching and practicing Consensus Organizing! As part of the new six-unit study abroad course, called The Costa Rican Organizing Project, students will travel to the Guanacaste region of Costa Rica and volunteer with the nonprofit organization CEPIA (culture, education, and psychology of children and adolescents). In addition to assisting with CEPIA’s daily tasks, students will work with a group of local teenagers to develop a new project at CEPIA to address an issue in their community. COC Program Managers Drew Lautemann will teach the course, and students are currently being recruited from the A.I.M. for Law program and other programs of the COC. We are very excited to expand our work to another region of the world and look forward to seeing the impact it has on our students and in Costa Rica! Stay tuned for updates as the course develops!
Consensus Organizing and Technology
Who would have thought?! Consensus Organizing and technology lines are blurring as the COC takes on a new community based project in partnership with the San Diego Foundation. This fall the COC selected 30 leaders throughout the community to learn more about Consensus Organizing and how to gather the voice of those voices not otherwise heard in community outreach efforts. Equipped with an iPad2 leaders have the task of communicating with at least 250 residents in identified low broadband communities throughout San Diego. Some of these neighborhoods include: City Heights, Linda Vista, El Cajon, Logan Heights (Southeast San Diego), and College Area. Program Managers Jen Henry and Laura Cohen have been working diligently with all leaders for our November 30th launch date and will keep you posted on the exiting merge of technology and organizing!
2011 Graduation
- 2011 Graduation
As our program and SDSU graduations come and go, we are reminded of the hundreds of students, organizations, and businesses we have worked with this year. We have traveled to Atlanta, San Jose, San Francisco, and Los Angeles to work on programs, to give trainings and to share information. Our staff taught in the School of Social Work at SDSU and celebrated with 75 families throughout San Diego as their son or daughter completed their first college class while in high school. Over the summer we will continue to develop strong relationships, celebrate our success and continue to plan for the fall. Please enjoy your summer and check back with our blog in September!
A.I.M. for Law Finds Space on Youtube!
Thank you to Alex Kannan, A.I.M for Law mentor, who created this YouTube video which highlights the accomplishments and participants of the A.I.M. for Law program. Drew Lautemann, program manager, explains the recruitment process and how the support of California Western School of Law, San Diego State University, and the Consensus Organizing Center has made a great impact on the success of the participants. COC staff are so proud and congratulate Drew on all of his hard work this year!
Organizing Year Round
With the end of the spring semester close upon us, many students are planning for their life after graduation. This might include setting up job interviews, networking, or moving out of San Diego. For organizers, the job of cultivating relationships is not cyclical or comes to an end each semester, it is something that is never ending. Cultivating relationships by those who are directly effected and indirectly effected by an identified issue is an essential component to Consensus Organizing. You never know who you are going to meet or how your paths will cross again. Maybe one day a graduating student will be applying for a job from someone you know! Good luck to our graduating students and please take a look at our Facebook for job postings.
Follow the Leader
From time to time we are able to come across someone who embodies the qualities you would like your students t
o sahre and emulate. Tomorrow, the Step-Up students will have a chance to meet and hear from their Councilmember, Todd Gloria. Councilmember Gloria grew up in City Heights, their neighborhood, and worked hard to succeed both in high school and the University of San Diego. He selected this particular day to come as Professor Eichler will be speaking on Education. Listening to the needs of a community and working together to make effective change are essential to any consensus organizer. It just goes to show that there is a consensus organizer in all of us!
Spring 2011 Newsletter Teaser
Here are some topics that we are currently working on!
Todd Gloria Comes to Visit
Teach Consensus Organizing, Will Travel
Lecturer Lautemann and Lecturer Henry
If you are not already set up to receive our Newsletter, please go to our website and update your information by clicking on the box ‘Going Green’ . www.consensus.sdsu.edu
First College Paper
I am not sure if I even remember what my first college paper was about, something to do with a communications class and a persuasive speech comes to mind. Next Wednesday, 23 high school students in the Step-Up Program will be turning in their first college paper. This is no joke! It is double spaced, typed (not font 14), 5-7 pages, and on the community issue of their choice. I had the students announce their topics last week and here are some that they came up with: gangs, teen pregnancy, and drugs. Could have seen those coming, right? But then there was another handful who said distribution of wealth, environmental impact on local parks, and molest. These are youth who are not only exploring the boundaries beyond their own lives but a more global society.
I share this with you because the students in the Step-Up Program are a part of a cohort. A cohort of Hoover High School students who often are the target of stereotypical labeling and negative media coverage. These students in Step-Up, all first generation college students, all bilingual and are learning how to expand their thought process and their views about their neighborhood. For this paper, their thought need to turn into actions. I am looking forward to hearing and reading more about their solutions and will share some with you next week!
Law and Social Work
Yes, it does exist! Current students enrolled at SDSU School of Social Work pursuing their Master’s in Social Work and Cal Western School of Law are out in local San Diego communities analyzing community issues and applying the social work perspective and current law practices to create new program ideas to address issues identified by their partnered agencies. Partnering agencies include:
- City Heights Farmers’ Market
- San Diego Gang Commission
- Employee Rights Center
- Immigration Justice Project
- Dreams for Change
- Village of Promise
Stay tuned for updates on their progress and highlights of their work in our Spring 2011 newsletter.
Every little bit helps
Next Wednesday, February 9th, the Consensus Organizing Center is partnering up with Rockin’ Baja Lobster Cantina in Old Town, San Diego for a ‘Hump Day’ (because it is a Wednesday, aka the middle of the week) fundraiser. Come bring your friends, family, and co workers to celebrate ‘Cheers to Education!’ with us and the Center continues to provide access to college programming, tuition, books, and scholarships for youth throughout San Diego. By celebrating education at Rockin’ Baja on February 9th the Center will receive a percentage of the total sales. No flyer required! Just come between 5:00pm and 10:00pm to 3890 Twiggs Street, San Diego, 92110. Thanks again for your support and hope to see you there!
