Spring 2010

Snelling Connection Newsletter of the Hancock/Hamline University Collaboration

Upcoming Hamline and Hancock Events:

Hancock and Hamline Give Aid to Help Haiti

April 4th, 2010 Empty Bowls Festival More info on p. 2

April 14th, 2010 Scholarship Fund Benefit Concert More info on p. 3

May 7th, 2010 Earth Day Festival More info on p. 6

May 19th, 2010 Hancock Band and Orchestra Concert Sundin Hall at Hamline University 1:30 and 2:30 p.m.

In This Issue: Hancock/Hamline Give Aid 1 Give Aid Continued...

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Mock Trial, Benefit Concert 3 From the Desk of...

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On the Issues, Volunteers 5 Hancock Husky, Earth Day 6

Volume 13, Issue 2

Mr. Lein’s sixth grade class and Hamline students package meals for the Feed My Starving Children organization

By Madison Hare, Emma Walsh, Lilly Yang, Kiley Bigger, and Tessa Mortenson Student Editors and Editor

T

he earthquake that occurred in Haiti on January 12th, 2010 has affected an estimated three million people in that country.

It took only 35 seconds for this earthquake, which registered 7.3 on the Richter scale, to wreak extensive devastation in a country already identified as being the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere.

In response to the natural

disaster in Haiti, students and faculty at both Hancock Elementary School and Hamline University have been organizing efforts to give aid in this time of need. Health care kits represent an example of this aid effort on the parts of both schools.

Hamline students and staff made 487 health care kits on January 21st. These kits provide basic necessities to people who have been forced to leave their homes because of human conflict or natural disaster.

The kits include a hand towel, washcloth, comb, nail file, soap, toothbrush, toothpaste and plastic bandages. The United

Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) will be sending the health care kits to Haiti.

Sophomore student, Saraya Boghani, helped package health care kits and helped to organize the 30 Hour Famine benefit concert with proceeds going to Haiti relief.

“Hamline is definitely making an effort to show its support for Haiti. This can be seen from student efforts with the 30 Hour Famine Benefit Concert for Haiti, packaging bathroom kits, raising money through button sales, and even looking into future service trips to Haiti,” Boghani said, “Students

Aid to Haiti cont. on page 2 Spring 2010

Hancock and Hamline Give Aid continued...

Hamline students and staff joined together to assemble health care kits to be donated are aware of the impact of disaster and want to do their part.”

The Student Council at Hancock Elementary School has been collecting money for the Haiti earthquake survivors.

On January 28th, Hancock students and staff purchased colorful leis to wear in honor of the earthquake survivors.

Along with cash donations, students at Hancock Elementary School have decided to hold various fundraisers and use the profit to buy solar ovens through the Solar Oven Society.

Each solar oven costs $85.00 and Hancock has collected enough money to purchase four ovens for Haiti. Solar ovens use the sun’s energy to cook food and purify water.

This will help Haitians because they won’t have to gather firewood or coal for their fires, which is very time consuming. Haiti has a severe deforestation problem, so the provision of an alternative fuel source for cooking that is environmentally friendly and suitable to the local climate is especially important. Also, cooking over a smoky fire blackens the insides of their homes and their lungs. Solar ovens are good for people and the earth.

Hamline students and staff have also been collecting donations for Haiti in their “Dollar for Change” campus collection. The $850 raised so far will Page

be matched by the Hamline Student Congress.

“This means we raised $1700 and we are so inspired by the students at Hancock that we decided to donate half the money to UNICEF to help children in Haiti and half of the money to the Solar Oven Society,” said Sharon Jaffe, coordinator of service learning and volunteerism at Hamline.

Hancock will continue to hold various fundraisers to buy additional ovens.

The 6th-grade students at Hancock also made cards to sell at the school science fair and throughout the year.

The money goes to Haiti and to help homelessness in Minnesota. The cards are still available in the 6th-grade for $1.00 each.

Robert Lein’s 6th-grade class took a service learning field trip to a Feed My Starving Children food-packing site in January. All together, the students packed a total of 16,200 meals to be sent to Haiti.

“Watching the students make those meals and doing so with a positive attitude was the best field trip that I have ever taken my students on,” Lein stated, “I was really proud of the way the students took the service project of Haiti to heart.”

On April 8th, the Office of Service Learning and Volunteerism (OSLV) of Hamline University will be hosting its

annual Empty Bowls Festival. It will be a community event open to students, faculty, staff, and the surrounding St. Paul area.

In past years, this event has served as a fundraiser to raise money for hunger.

This year, along with the continuation of this cause, a portion of the proceeds will also be donated to Haiti.

Guest speakers will be discussing hunger specifically in Minnesota and Haiti, as well as on a global scale. There will be music, arts and crafts, and food donated by local restaurants.

Both Hamline and Hancock have provided opportunities for students to make a variety of bowls that will be given away to each person who attends the event.

For example, Robert Lein’s 6thgrade class made bowls in March.

Daniel Campbell, a graduate student at Hamline, taught students how to make pinch pots and slab bowls.

Alongside Campbell, Lisa Fralish, a sophomore student at Hamline, taught students about hunger and helping people.

This event will be held at the Hamline United Methodist Church at 1541 Englewood in the community room from 5-7 p.m. on Thursday, April 8th. A suggested donation is $15 and the minimum donation is $5.

Sharon Jaffe has been organizing the Empth Bowls Festival.

Jaffe said, “People are invited to stop by for a community feast, music, and take home a bowl as a reminder to help fill all the empty bowls in the world.”

For more information visit: www. hamline.edu/oslv.

Snelling Connection

Hancock Students Visit Hamline for Mock Trial

By Hser Eh Htoo and Lilly Yang Student Editors

it was getting close to the time we had to start practicing for the Mock Trial, very year HanI got really nervous cock 5th-gradbecause I thought I ers participate in was going to mess the Mock Trial academup!” ic pairing program at Ms. Saari’s 5thHamline University to grade class, includlearn about the United ing Kiley, experiStates legal system. enced a “hung jury” Each student is given outcome. This is a part in a mock trial. when the jury can’t They are either on the decide if the defenprosecution team, the dant is guilty or not defense team, or the guilty. jury. The jury decides, Phounsith Yangh, from their notes, if the another student defendant is guilty or in Ms. Saari’s class not guilty.

Fifth grade students partake in a mock trial. Above: The prosecution team prepares their side. said, “I liked it The most important during the trial. when the judges part of Mock Trial is to see the legal Maya Winter, a student in Ms. Saa- called the witnesses because I like to process in action and to continue our ri’s 5th-grade class said, “We all pracask questions and listen to the other grade-level partnership with Hamline ticed as if we were in court, at Hamline side.”

University. and at Hancock, in order to get used The 5th-grade and Hamline Law Ramla Abdiwali Dhamuke, a stu- to everything. One or two Hamline School continue to foster a strong partdent from Ms. Smith’s 5th-grade class, Law students came to Hancock to help nership through the use of the mock felt the best part of Mock Trial was, us.” trial setting to give students hands on “going up there and talking [at the poLast year Hser Eh Htoo, now a 6th- experiences with courtroom proceeddium] because you feel like a profes- grade student, participated in a Mock ings. sional Attorney.”

Trial as a lawyer. She learned how to Winter reflected on Mock Trial sayTo prepare for their cases, students question witnesses and argue a case. ing, “I learned that you have to make a study and practice their parts with the This year marked the first time Kiley convincing impact on the jury so they help of Hamline Law School students. Bigger, a 5th-grade student, particiwill side with you. In order to do that For example, students learn how to pated in the Mock Trial. Upon reflectyou have to ask very specific questions. raise an objection, phrase questions for ing about her feelings before Mock If you win or lose, you have to have witnesses, stay calm, and keep track Trial occurred, Kiley stated, “When good sportsmanship about it.”

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2nd Annual Scholarship Fund Benefit Concert The 2nd Annual Scholarship Fund Benefit Concert and Silent Auction will occur on April 14th, from 4:00-9:00 p.m. at O’Gara’s Garage located at 164 Snelling Avenue N in St. Paul. At this year’s benefit we will enjoy an eclectic group of bands including Daniel Rumsey, a teacher at Hancock; Before, a band of Hamline professors; Ibaba, a band of Hamline professors, staff, and students; and Sugar Buzz, a band from the Hamline-Midway neighborhood. We will also have a silent auction with a wide variety of items to bid on. This year’s benefit is particularly exciting because we are within reach of attaining our goal of $20,000 and for this year we anticipate we will go “over the top!” Once we reach our goal we can begin offering a scholarship to Hancock students who attend Hamline. –Megan Anderson, Hancock-Hamline Collaboration Coordinator.

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Sebastian A lfonso

From the Desk of...

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Presley Martin HI! I am the Associate Dean of the College of Liberal Arts at Hamline, and since last fall I have been the Faculty Liaison to the Hancock-Hamline Collaboration. I work with the Advisory Board and the Executive Committee of the Collaboration to plan and carry out all of the activities of the Collaboration. One of the things I enjoy most about this position is that I get to work with many Hancock and Hamline teachers, staff and students on projects that help students and build a stronger community. One of our projects is the production of the Snelling Connection newsletter, and I enjoyed my recent visit to Hancock for a meeting of all the Hancock students who were working on articles for it. I also teach biology at Hamline, and I am hoping that someday the students I met at Hancock will be in my biology class at Hamline. One of the projects the Collaboration is working on is creating a scholarship that will help Hancock students go to Hamline!

Snelling Connection

On the Issues: Bullying in School A Bully is someone who teases, threatens, picks on, or hurts people. There are different ways of teasing. Some are good: like teasing to communicate, or teasing to get someone that is shy to talk to you. However, a bully is someone who hurts others. Just about everyone gets teased or bullied at some time or another, so we thought we’d ask for your advice on how to help each other and your comments about bullying in general.

Why do you think bullies “bully” people?

How do you think you could stop people from “bullying”?

“Bullies want to belong and feel important.

They hurt others to get even when they think others don’t like them. They don’t know how to get the respect and caring that they need.” –Ms. Abrams, Hancock Principal.

“Ask them to stop and if that doesn’t work, tell a teacher.” –Luke Whiting, 1st-grade student.

“Bullies take their anger out on other people because they don’t know other ways to deal with it.” –Rola Alkatout, Hamline Sophomore student.

“I think bullies ‘bully’ because they have not practiced positive ways to make friends. They might want the attention of others but use negative behavior to get the attention.” –Vicki Sagert, K-3 Literacy Coach.

“I think that bullies bully people because they maybe want to impress someone or make them[selves] look cool.” –Tommy Mao, 5thgrade student.

“Make sure I treat people as I would like to be treated. Try not to respond to taunts from bullies.” –Mary Verdeja, Hancock School Secretary.

“You could stop bullies from bullying people by talking to them when they are not near their friends.” –Kiley Bigger, 5th-grade student.

“How to stop a bully: Ignore it, then walk away.” –Hoda, 2nd-grade student.

“I think you could stop people from bullying by sticking up for those who are getting bullied.” –Kaitlin Webster, Hamline First Year student and Hancock Tutor.

Sixth Grade Class Volunteers for Homeless Hello! A few months ago Mrs. Susan’s sixth grade class worked with some Hamline students to brainstorm ideas on how they can help prevent homelessness. They came up with fourteen ideas, made a vote and then narrowed the ideas down to three. The final three were: Blanket making, making sandwiches, and putting together gift baskets. At the end they had made 200 sandwiches which they donated to a “sandwich man” who gives them to the homeless. They made an assortment of blankets which were donated to the Listening House, a local day and evening shelter and community center in St. Paul. A group of students choen from Mrs. Susan’s class had a field trip to the Listening House and made gift baskets which included vaseline, lotion, and a pair of socks. -Alexis Lynch, student editor Page

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Dear Hancock Huskies, I feel like I can’t come to school because someone in my class is bullying me. I feel uncomfortable when I’m in class. This person gives me mean looks and teases me and my friends.

I am also kind of scared that this person will tease and make fun of me even more if I try to stick up for my friends. Do you have any suggestions?

Sincerely, I. M. Bullied Dear I. M. Bullied, This person is a bully. Bullies are nothing to envy.

Usually their self-esteem is low and they are bullied by others. This person may seem happy and cool because they put other people down.

If you want to get rid of a bully, here is what you should do: First, just walk away. If that doesn’t work, then tell them to stop. If nothing else works, tell an adult.

-Hanock Huskies

You are invited to the 12th annual Hancock and Hamline Collaborative Earth Day Festival!

Friday, May 7th 10:00 A.M. to 3:00 P.M. on Hamline’s Old Main Lawn Participate in hands-on activities created by Hancock “Earth Savers” to learn about the five R’s: “Reduce, Reuse, React, and Recycle”.

Visit the Festival and enjoy a Sno Kone! All Hancock and Hamline students and staff are invited.

You may also provide an activity or exhibit for the Festival or work side-by-side with Hancock students to supervise a game or activity. Sign up at the Volunteer Tent.

For more information contact Glynis Grostephan at glynis.grostephan@spps.org or 651-293-8715.

Meet the Hancock Student Editors Alexis Lynch

Emma Walsh

Madison Hare

Hser Eh Htoo

Jesse LeClaire

Lilly Yang

Kiley Bigger

Sebastian Alfonso

Snelling Connection Contacts:

Editor: Tessa Mortenson, Collaboration Assistant, Hamline University student tmortenson01@hamline.edu Hamline Liaison: Pres Martin, Associate Dean, CLA and Professor of Biology pmartin@gw.hamline.edu 651-523-2290 Hancock Liaison: Deborah Shipp, Hancock/Hamline University Collaborative Magnet School deborah.shipp@spps.org 651-293-8715 Hancock Student Advisor: Glynis Grostephan, Hancock/Hamline University Collaborative Magnet School glynis.grostephan@spps.org 651-293-8715 Page

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