TEL 410: Journal Entries

Erica Roberts

Arizona State University

Journal Entry #1:

The issue I selected is educational inequality because I see this very issue in my community of
Oakland. I am an advocate and ally for the black American community and want to teach in this
community. I am excited to embark and research an issue that is not often addressed or talked
about but has a significant mark on this country. This project will help me obtain the tools I need
to be the best advocate and partner in the education of my fellow community members. I
celebrated the fact that there are organizations that are fighting for all children to have excellent
and equal education available to them. The set back that I encountered in my introduction to my
signature assignment is that I had a lot of feelings about this issue and so much to say but did not
want to lose my reader. An unexpected outcome was that I realized something can be done and
that the time to act is now. So far I have just completed the introduction to my advocacy topic
and detailed how important this issue is not just to me but to the improvement of our society and
country. I look forward to where this project leads and taking this to the real world and not just
leave it as an assignment.

Journal Entry #2:

My advocacy plan is dealing with a very complex issue, even though it may seem daunting I
believe that any additional voice that is added to the cause and fight for change is needed no
matter how small. I do wonder how much of an impact I can make, as I am on the outside of this
issue and have no prior connection to racial segregation in public schools. These thoughts just
make me want to work harder to reach my goals, as this could be the beginning of long term
advocacy in this area. I feel my project is developing at a rapid rate and giving me a better read
of how I can better understand the community I want to help. I can do this by meeting with
leaders and talking directly about this issue. I now have goals and actions to take now that I have
identified the education issue that I think needs most addressed. This is an issue that will have
long term detrimental effects for everyone, as this will erode the social and economic well-being
of our country if we continue to ignore it. I think there are a great many people who are
addressing this but for it to no longer be an issue, many more people need to confront the issue to
enact the changes necessary. When I started brainstorming about education issues that I would
want to advocate for, racial segregation in education came out as a leader amongst other issues I
worry about. When I narrowed it down and recognized that this issue bothered me most, it
seemed like the most appropriate topic to address. Once I came up with advocacy goals, which
are but a dent in the issue, I felt overwhelmed. As it is such a complex problem that is evident in
every aspect of our lives, racial inequality is overwhelming, and I am not black. I am of Latin
decent but I have fair skin, so I recognize my privileged. With that privilege comes a
responsibility to our fellow neighbors, communities, and people of all backgrounds to fight for
equality. This statement is both a celebration and a setback. A celebration because I have the
privilege and right to stand up for what I believe in but also a setback because (right now I feel
as) I do not know if I will see the equality this country deserves in my lifetime.
The progress I have made on my advocacy project is writing out three goals and several actions
to attain my goals. I have talked to someone who has worked in education endeavors for a
corporation and talked about some of my concerns. The concerns covered feelings of inadequacy
and that it is normal to feel overwhelmed by large issues. I decided to take these feelings and
channel them into my advocacy, as a sense of urgency and demand are parts of what makes goals
successful.
Journal Entry #3:

My leadership style will assist me in developing this project because I am a servant leader and
work to serve others which is necessary to be a part of such a large issue. To properly develop
this project, I am reaching out to organizations and know that I follow the lead of those who are
working to make changes everyday. With what I learn I can take my own understanding and lead
an advocacy group within my own community or network. Servant leadership relates to my plan
by providing the groundwork for how an advocate should behave. In order to advocate for
change, a leader needs to work with others and know that their mission serves their community. I
feel like this is a very important topic but it is very complex, so I do struggle with how and
where to start. The remaining parts to my project will make this feel less so I believe, because the
development has been steady and informative. I also feel like I am gaining more of an
understanding of how I can actually help, whereas before I felt so passionately about racial
inequality but thought that is all I could do, have conversations and hope things change one day.
I now know that as an educator and an advocate I can actually go out and be a part of actual
changes. My celebrations include feeling more confident in my leadership and advocacy abilities
but my challenge includes narrowing down all of the information I am reading and writing to a
more digestible and doable action. I encountered unexpected outcomes when I realized I can be a
leader in an area that I previously would have felt I did not have the experience or expertise in.
The progress I have made includes understanding my leadership abilities in developing this
project and writing a literature review where I examined a large number of resources to better
understand how others are researching and acting to make changes in education and racial
inequality. In this literature review I discussed leadership style and how the leaders in education
were researching this issue and what they are doing with that knowledge.

Journal Entry #4:

I feel like I was able to relay the information in my Elevator Pitch that I wanted to bring to the
general public. I do not think that the average American who is not in the black community
knows that our schools are so racially segregated. There is so much to unpack that I felt like a
minute was impossible, therefore I went just over which was disappointing but I felt compelled
to leave the information as is. After the feedback I received, I feel like I could have a better plan
of action and have thought of more ideas since. Overall, I felt like I delivered a pitch that was
informative and well-thought out. Interviewing someone for my project is both exciting and
nerve-racking. Contacting organizations was not easy, I was worried about what to say and how I
would come off. I am not a parent or a teacher yet, and even though I am in education studies
and doing a project I guess I felt like I would need to explain why this is important to me. I am of
Hispanic heritage on my mothers side but my father is white and I pass in this world with
privilege. I grew up going to government schools and public schools near military bases because
my parents were military, so I always had access to quality education. So a part of me wonders if
I have to explain why this is important to me, I know that it should be important to everyone, so I
also know that no one is actually questioning why I care. I celebrated the fact that I made contact
with two organizations in preparation for the interview assignment because this means that I
have contacts that I can continue to connect with to help my community. Moving to Oakland
from San Francisco was a hard decision because my partner and I would be moving into a new
apartment development and worried about how our choices would impact the local housing
crisis. The move was necessary for job location and we love Oakland so I made a pledge to give
back to the community in a real and meaningful way. I also want to teach in the Oakland Unified
School District and making these connections early means I will learn far more than had I not
done this project. The setbacks and unexpected outcomes include technical difficulties when
loading my video and not hearing back from one of the organizations I contacted. The progress I
have made on my project includes a video I created for my advocacy idea, contacting local
community and education organizations, preparing for an interview and getting the basics started
for a website that is required later this session. I feel like aside from the progress I have made
with the assignments given that I have also made progress in learning more about my community
and about what my place is in it.

Journal Entry #5:

Advocacy Focus- As a large number of schools in America today are racially segregated, in what
way can advocacy help make policy changes that could begin to remedy this issue?

I had a great interview with Go Public Schools Oakland. Ja’nee has been working there for a
short time but she was able to provide me with the answers to my questions. I gained a greater
insight into the community they serve and for my project. I also learned more about how I could
get involved with my community and with this organization. The most valuable aspect of the
interview was the connection I made and the insight I gained on how to utilize and recognize my
privilege. Finding communities of practice was challenging, since most of the information you
find on this topic are actual organizations. Luckily I found communities of practice linked to
these organizations. I celebrated the fact that I got an interview with the organization that I was
hoping to. I initially did not hear back from them so I did not think I would be able to speak to
anyone. This week I got in touch with someone and had a chance to talk for quite some time
even after the interview. An unexpected outcome was that there is a networking event coming up
that I was invited to and will be attending on December 5. The progress I have made on my
advocacy project is that I have almost finished my website but I still have edits to make and
adding more information from the weeks assignments. I have also conducted an interview which
I recorded and added the transcripts. The interview was informative and went well, I made a
good connection with the organization.