Stories from Hartford, CT
St. Martin de Porres Academy is one ‘great story’ in the making, and the partnership with Notre Dame Mission Volunteers AmeriCorps adds another layer of greatness to the story.
The school opened its doors in 2006 to provide a private school education to low-income students. This year with Grades 5 and 6, boys and girls, and an extended school day—7:30am to 7pm on most days—St. Martin de Porres Academy signed on three NDA members. Two of them served as intern teachers: Ben Dillion taught English and Social Studies and Jason Zhang taught Science.
When I visited Ben’s class on a Tuesday, I was taken by the students and their caring teacher. I was reminded of the movie, “To Sir With Love,” in reverse. Ben had just completed his Master’s degree and is now helping students from New Haven to learn and grow.
The content of the geography lesion that Ben was teaching incorporated themes of place and location, environment and people. Students were being encouraged to read, explore concepts, think about their environment all within the respectful insistence of the teacher that the students listen, learn, and respect each other. This is a serious commitment; to teach middle school in the city over the course of a year.
Another great story is Jason Zhang. He graduated from Yale and is taught Science at St. Martin de Porres Academy. When I visited Mr. Zhang’s Grade 5 class, the girls were being lead to think about ‘commonalities of all living things’ and address the properties of use of energy and such, common to all living beings. It was exciting to watch the students grapple with this new concept.
As the NDMVA program coordinator, I was so impressed by these two young men. Their energy and zest for teaching created an immediate bond with the students that left me with the certainty that a rich year lies ahead. The principal and the other teacher I spoke with confirmed my observation.
~ Sr. Ann Howard, SND, former Hartford Site Director
Hartford.
Notre Dame Mission Volunteers - Americorps
403 Markland Ave.
Baltimore, MD 21212
Phone:(410) 532-6864 - Fax: (410) 532-2418