The UPS Store
TM
TRUST the UPS STORE PACK & SHIP WITH CONFIDENCE 184 S. Livingston Ave (at East Cedar Street)
LIVINGSTON (973) 992-3339 store3667@theupsstore.com theupsstore.com/3667
No. 19 Vol. 9
www.mypaperonline.com
Sepetmber 2021
See our ad on page 15
Humanitarian Livingston Teens Teaching4Charity
A
Special Offer: $
59 Introductory Rate
176 Columbia Turnpike, Florham Park, NJ 07932 973-765-9500 modacu.com/nj001
By Jillian Risberg fter seeing the immeasurable impact COVID has had in every corner, especially disadvantaged communities, some Livingston High School students (11 almost sophomores and an eighth-graderto-be from Heritage Middle School) wanted to do something the best way they knew how, and Teaching4Charity was born. “I am extremely excited for this opportunity to work with my friends and not only teach younger students subjects we are passionate about, but also make a positive impact on the other side of the world,” says Jonathan Hong, one of the founders. The student-created and student-run non-profit pledges to donate all profit to Cambodian and Ugandan charities, where it will be invested in children’s education, teaching parents technical skills and supporting thousands of struggling, poverty-stricken families. These skilled students got right to it this summer, kicking off their online weekly course offerings — teaching young minds in the community a variety of subjects from academics to STEM and the arts. Their related passion and experience enabled the team members to design the curriculum. Hong and Faizan Ghaznavi are teaching public speaking, William
Wang, Daniel Liang and Alex Wu (math), Tyler Ferreira and Sean Qin (computer programming), Naomi Wei, Hannah He and Celina Jia (English) and Grace Wang and Katie Li (digital art). According to Hong, each course is taught in a daily session; typically Monday to Friday for an hour and a half. There’s nothing better than helping someone else. Even before Teaching4Charity, the students were no strangers to giving back. “Many of us have volunteered at local soup kitchens, food banks, retirement homes, YMCA youth activities, senior homes, (children’s) daycare centers and those were all great experiences for us,” says Hong. They remain committed to sharing their knowledge locally and with those struggling worldwide. “I’ve seen and experienced how education shapes a student’s character, building connections with others, among personal interests and within subjects, and creates a sense of personal identity,” Hannah He says. “I’m driven by the transformation education creates in students and committed to helping students experience it too.” To get in on this… Hong says sign up for their sessions and spread the word about the organization. With such selfless spirits, the group hopes to expand their operations for
next summer, and has plans for new projects later this year, so stay tuned. “I find this opportunity very rewarding since it gives me the chance to teach others about something I’m passionate about,” Li says, adding that it means a lot to participate in a program that has influence beyond just Livingston. As high schoolers, many of the 12 are still exploring interests and fields they might want to pursue, with Teaching4Charity a fantastic experience to gain insight into the responsibilities that some jobs entail. “For example, Tyler Ferreira, one of our programming instructors is extremely passionate about computers, coding, robotics, artificial intelligence, and he has been doing a wonderful job of managing our website and other technological resources,” Hong says. At the end of the day, it’s a win-win situation knowing they are each making a difference. Wei enjoys interacting with students and the sense of accomplishment that follows a successful class. “The students are all very interesting and teaching them creates a bond between student and teacher,” she says. For more information or to register for a course, visit mwww.teaching4charity.org. See photo on page 5