Media in Motion

2008-04-03T12:16:00.001-07:00

GOOD MORNING - A Look at High School Seniors

2008-04-03T12:02:00.000-07:00

IN BRIEF - News in Greater Waterbury & Around the World

2008-04-03T11:52:00.001-07:00

CLIMB YOUR OWN TREE

2008-04-03T11:48:00.000-07:00

FINDING THE WAY

2008-04-03T11:26:00.000-07:00

WE ARE THE FUTURE

2008-04-03T11:18:00.000-07:00

Kids are Lazy? Now Isn’t That an Overused Statement? A Generalization?
An Assumption? Welcome to Youth Making a Difference.

Introduction by
Julievette Santiago, Editor-in-Chief
Senior, Waterbury Arts Magnet

In case you didn’t have a chance to read my article, Politically Incorrect, in the previous issue of Young Voices, let me fill you in.

Politician Ralph Nader (former presidential candidate and political activist) came to the Silas Bronson Library on October 6, 2007 to give a lecture and have a book signing for his latest memoir, The Seventeen Traditions.

To me, the lecture seemed more like a “Bash the Youth” meeting. I found it unjust how Nader complained and made negative assumptions about the youth. Yet he was lecturing to an audience of people over the age of forty.

I looked around the room and I felt out of place. I was being stared at, but yet I was there with a press pass clipped to my shirt and doing something positive.

Nader gave a long speech about how children’s values have changed and how the youth have become lazy. His complaints included their ample time spent watching “screens” and their lack of exercise, realistic views, and education. He also complained about their deficiency of solitude, their lack of respect and discipline, and their inability to listen.

Of course, being the strong-minded young woman that I am, I just couldn’t sit around and let people be brainwashed by Nader’s blanket statements. In last issue, I argued that there are plenty of young people out there doing good for society. I researched and found out about over 25 foundations that were started by children as young as four years old.

I learned more about the Free the Children foundation that increases awareness about child poverty and unfair child labor all over the world. This organization was founded by a twelve-year-old boy named Craig Kielburger of Toronto, Canada. Free the Children now has branches in over 35 countries.

This doesn’t sound like laziness to me. In my article, I mentioned that technology is increasing the amount of laziness in the United States. And it is not just the young people who are being affected by this technological age. Older people, like Ralph Nader (who I’m sure owns a computer), are being affected just as well.

The main point in my story was that generalizations are inaccurate. It is unfair to judge an entire group of people based on the actions of a few people in that particular group.

We are off the couch. Don’t think youth are doing positive things, just look at the group that put together Young Voices.

With that said, we present to you the forth issue of Young Voices, and this new feature “Making a Difference”. This feature will counteract the views that were expressed during Nader’s recent visit to Waterbury, and will allow us to spotlight youth doing positive things in Waterbury every issue. I promise you, it will be an inspirational feature in our paper. In the pages that follow, you will read the stories of many young people who are helping to change the world…one small step at a time.

If you know someone that should be featured in this section, please email our publisher at believeinmedia@gmail.com.

MAKING A DIFFERENCE SPECIAL FEATURE

2008-04-03T11:16:00.000-07:00

MAKING A DIFFERENCE SPECIAL FEATURE

2008-04-03T11:15:00.001-07:00

MAKING A DIFFERENCE SPECIAL FEATURE

2008-04-03T11:13:00.000-07:00

MAKING A DIFFERENCE SPECIAL FEATURE

2008-04-03T11:12:00.000-07:00

MAKING A DIFFERENCE SPECIAL FEATURE

2008-04-03T11:11:00.000-07:00

Catherine's Story

2008-04-03T11:07:00.000-07:00

Avery Update

2008-03-05T18:39:00.000-08:00

Avery Doninger was the cover of our third issue of Young Voices. We told you her story about how as a junior in a case of poor judgement and frustration, she called school administrators “douche bags” on her on-line blog. When the school found out, her punishment included apologizing, informing her mother about the unsavory comment and she was barred from running for class secretary during her senior year.

Her case has received national attention.

Lawyers for the Burlington school district told the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in early March 2008 that administrators should be allowed to act if such comments are made on the Web.

Doninger, now a senior and months from graduation, claims the school system violated her free speech rights.

She said in her interview with Young Voices, “Now it is about the application of the Bill of Rights, it is about protecting liberty at the local level.”

Also check out for more information:
http://cooljustice.blogspot.com/2008/03/
hartford-courant-waterbury-rep-am.html

The Road Less Traveled

2007-12-23T08:31:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays.

The last few months have been an up hill battle for Media in Motion and the project that we publish, Young Voices. We have successfully published three issues and we are in the process of our fourth issue, but financially things haven’t been so smooth.

Allow me to give you a bit of a recap. Our first issue was fully paid for, and we also covered the expenses associated with three additional staff members by drumming up advertisement support. Since our first issue things have been a little uncertain. We applied for a few grants, but didn’t want a break in our publishing so we moved forward. Our second issue was produced purely by a volunteer effort. By the time it came to our third issue many of the students were back to being paid by Waterbury Youth Services through Workforce Connection money. But the entire project wasn’t covered, including the costs of printing and my modest part-time salary, and support staff.

We received news in November that several of the grants that we had applied for had been denied. While I was disappointed that we didn’t receive the grants we had applied for, I knew I needed to move forward. This project is very, very important to me and I am desperately making sure that there continues to be a youth newspaper in this city because the youth in this city definitely need a voice and an outlet. I’ve had many meetings with several community leaders, and trying to figure out new partnerships and gaining additional support. I’m not sure what the future of this project will be, but I am aggressively seeking out support from the community in an effort to keep moving forward and publishing.

This project is a $17,000-$24,000 project at bare minimum, and it ultimately seems like it will take a full grassroots effort to raise this money. There may be some restructuring in terms of how often we publish, as things get tight financially. Regardless of what we have to do, rest assured that there will be a youth newspaper in some capacity. I’ve returned to Connecticut and to Waterbury, and I’ve committed to making this project work. There will be a Young Voices in 2008 (by the way our next issue is scheduled to hit the street January 16).

As we stabilize our newspaper project, Media in Motion has some other exciting projects that we want to move forward with in the coming year. My goal through Media in Motion is to introduce communication to youth and to empower them through that process.

If you want to help us in our efforts, please feel free to contact me at 203-500-3891 or qdonnell@msn.com.

Happy Holidays!

-quajay

ENJOYING #3

2007-11-17T18:25:00.000-08:00

Publisher & Editor Note
Welcome to number three. We are very excited about this issue, and the content contained within the next 17 pages. Within this issue we have a story about a youth speaking out for her First Amendment rights, a teenage mother talking about life and teens calling for a youth summit. We also have a story about a young lady that is trying to raise money to spend three weeks working in Vietnam, and we’re revisiting the alternative dress code. I guess you can say we’re living up to what it says on the front cover “Young Voices Shall Be Heard.” We are giving youth a voice to express themselves, and a vehicle for their voices to be heard.

Last issue we offered our pages to the 18,000 plus students currently enrolled in Waterbury’s public schools and to the thousands of students who attend Naugatuck Valley Community College, Post and UConn-Waterbury. We re-issue that invitation, and open our publishing door to anyone who is interested in speaking out. While the core of our publication revolves around high school issues, our editorial content isn’t limited to just that. If you’re a young person that wants to write or you know a young person that wants to write, our pages are opened.

We are taking a publishing break during the holiday season. Our next issue will hit the streets mid January, in the meantime please enjoy number three. Please check our blog out, as we will have information available here during the break.

Wishing you the best throughout the holiday season.

Until soon,
Quajay & Chelsea

Silenced from the Freedom to Speak

2007-11-17T18:21:00.000-08:00

Avery Doninger never thought that calling her school administrators a name on her blog would create such an issue, but yet she finds herself at the center of a First Amendment storm.

By Jessica Gaafar
Sophomore, Crosby High School
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press: or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”

For those who haven’t caught on yet, this is the First Amendment in the Constitution, which applies to every citizen in the United States. Basically, as United State citizens we have the right to say what we want as long as we don’t say something that could possibly damage another’s reputation.

Doesn’t this also pertain to students? So why are schools banning students freedom of speech. Students have the right to state their opinion. Students have the right to petition. Students have the right to stand up for what they believe in. Isn’t this what school teaches us? Or is a student’s First Amendment rights checked at the school door?

Avery Doninger was 16 years old and a junior at Lewis Mills High School in Burlington, when she was punished for insulting school officials. She is a pretty good student who gets B’s, challenges herself, and takes AP classes. She had been secretary for 3 years in high school and would have been for the fourth year if it were not for the school not allowing her to run. The school’s reasoning is a little more complicated than you think.

It all began with an annual event called Jamfest (like battle of the bands). The school was under construction, so the students were unable to perform in the auditorium. However, instead of performing at another venue they decided to hold off the annual event until the construction was finished so they would be able to utilize the auditorium. Then, just 2 to 3 days before the event took place the school canceled it. Apparently the person in charge of A/V was unavailable. Even though students had a way around this problem, allegedly the school would not allow the show to go on. Avery and some of her friends sent out an email from school to gain community support. The email stated that if you wanted to support the students, you could call the school.

According to Avery, the principal, Karissa Niehoff, was very angry at what they did. Avery said that the principal officially canceled Jamfest, but denies it in court. She went home and around 9:30 that evening she posted the email on her blog and made a comment about school officials – the comment that would change the course of her remaining time at Lewis Mills and would ultimately create a controversial stir around the state, and even the country.

She wrote in her blog at home among other things, “So Jamefest is canceled due to the douche bags in central office.”

When the school found out what she said, her punishment included apologizing, informing her mother about the unsavory comment, and she was barred from running for secretary.

Avery did the first two but didn’t agree with the third part of the punishment. She was ultimately removed from her elected position by the principal, with the approval of Region 10 Superintendent Paula Schwartz and barred from seeking re-election.

“I could have used more sophisticated language and I will in the future,” said Avery, who is now a senior at Lewis Mills. “On the other hand I had the right to say it.”

Wait, something here just doesn’t make sense. How could the school possibly punish Avery for something that was not done on school grounds? Isn’t the school stepping outside its boundary limits? If Avery was at home when the comment was posted then isn’t it the parents job to do the punishment? Schools only have the right to punish a student for acts that are committed on school grounds. Keep in mind, Avery’s statement posed no threat.

If Avery said this in a class or in the hallway at school, or if she even said it directly to an administrator, their punishment would probably be appropriate. But, can public schools really punish Avery or any other students’ for non-illegal behavior off school campus? If Avery’s case becomes a binding precedent, then the answer will be “yes” and schools will be allowed to reach into your homes.

“She made a general comment,” said Lauren Doninger, Avery’s mom. “I think it’s up to me to punish her at home where it took place.”

Ms. Doninger did not like what her daughter wrote but believes she had the right to do it. She believes that Avery was just trying to make things happen. Ms. Doninger said that it was just a general comment because she didn’t call anyone person a name.

Ms. Doninger said that if the school just called her she would have thanked them and talked to Avery and had her take down the rude comment.

In protest of the decision, Avery wore an R.I.P. Democracy t-shirt while her friends wore t-shirts that said “Team Avery” on the front and “Support LSM freedom of speech” on the back, in the days following to a school event. They were going into the auditorium when the principal saw them. Allegedly she yelled at them, asking them to take off the t-shirts.

According to Avery many students and teachers were supportive and on her side. Even though Avery could not run for secretary students decided to support her through a write in campaign.

Local journalist Andy Thibault filed a freedom of information act and got the ballots. When the write-in-ballots were counted, it was clear that Avery had won re-election. However, the school ignored this, not allowing her the position.

“Holding the position of class officer at Lewis Mills is not a right - it is a privilege,” said Beth Duffy, Chairperson of the Region 10 Board of Education in a press release issued on behalf of the Board. They even spelled out the definitions of both “right” and “privilege”.

Chairperson Duffy stated in the press release, “There are many opportunities at Lewis Mills for an intelligent, passionate, determined young lady like Avery to hone her leadership skills. Class secretary was just one of them. I know that both Ms. Niehoff and Mrs. Schwartz would like nothing better than to find an opportunity for Avery to shine in her senior year. I hope that she opens the door to that opportunity.”

In any election, it is against the law to ignore and push aside votes of the people. Waterbury Mayor Michael Jarjura was re-elected two years ago with a write in campaign. If this happened in a real election there would be serious issues. Isn’t the school setting a bad example for the students?

Ms. Doninger believes that it is an erosion of civil liberties and that the school is wrong because it happened outside the school gate and it was political speech.

Ms. Doninger was praised by a local radio commentator, who called her the mother that told her daughter, “you’re grounded, and we’re going to federal court to file a civil suit.”

Ms. Doninger has said in several interviews that punishment is up to her, especially for something that Avery did at home.

“They can’t reach into my home and punish me,” Avery said. “The next thing you know they’ll be checking to see if I made my bed in the morning.”

Avery understands that what she said was rude but it was her mother’s job to make the call not the school.

According to the school board press release, Avery took her action after Ms. Niehoff had addressed the issue of appropriate behavior of class officers with her that same day. Ms. Niehoff then withdrew her support of Avery’s candidacy only after it was clear that Avery did not understand that her conduct was unbecoming a class officer.

“Our administrators have acted and continue to act in a professional, ethical and responsible manner. We have tried to settle this matter on at least two occasions and have been met with unreasonable demands by the Doningers,” said Chairperson Duffy in the press release. “We will continue to defend the administration as long as necessary. Citing Constitutional rights as protection for bad behavior does that incredible document a grave disservice.”

On Aug. 31, Judge Mark Kravitz ruled in the preliminary ruling that the administration had the right to punish her for her “vulgar and [or] lewd” speech, reasoning that since Doninger wrote something on a website that could be read by people at school, that’s essentially the same as if she’d stood up in class and shouted it. The case is currently on appeal.

In the press release Chairperson Duffy said, “this is an issue of standards. We have high standards for our students in Region 10 - good behavior, strong academic achievement, good sportsmanship and civil behavior to one another. Sometimes students make bad decisions because they are young, inexperienced and impulsive. When that happens, we should attempt to help the student learn from his/her mistake. That was done in this case. When a student repeatedly makes the same bad decision, it is the school’s responsibility to impose consequences. That was also done here. But if our school system backed down on a fair and just consequence for bad behavior, then we would be letting down the other 2859 students in our district and our communities as well. Judge Krawitz recognized that in his ruling. We have high standards in Region 10, and I for one am proud we do.”

It has been the general belief that outside of school, a student can do anything from talking rudely of teachers to getting into fights and schools cannot punish you outside of school grounds.

The case between Avery and the school boils down to whether or not she had the right to use the term “douche-bag” on her private and personal website, that she wrote in while at home and not on school grounds.

Her attorney, mother and other supporters think that the case is pretty cut and dry in that the school did not have the right or authority to take the actions that they did to punish her. The case is in the 2nd Circuit to appeal the denial and continue to seek injunctive relief.

The Doningers are seeking – among other remedies – an apology for civil rights violations, recognition of the write-in victory and sharing the secretary position with the administration-backed candidate.

To Avery the case was originally about getting her secretary position back, but now it is about so much more.

“Now it is about the application of the Bill of Rights, it is about protecting liberty at the local level in order to have any chance of maintaining it on the highest levels,” said Avery. “It is about the government, in this situation the school, reaching into our homes and monitoring behavior that is not in school and behavior that the Constitution protects.”

Avery and her case have become a cause for the First Amendment Rights of students. If you were to Google her name, all kinds of things show up, for pages and pages. A simple search will bring up blogs from people who support her to blogs from people who find this to be of no importance. People from all over the country are making comments, stating their opinions, and discussing the case. There are even blogs dedicated to her, and a group on the popular Facebook network. Journalists from all over New England recently held a fundraiser for her legal fund, and her mother has reached out to others via the Internet.

Maybe she’s overexposed, or perhaps the issue isn’t talked about enough. But it does put you into a position where you have to ask yourself, where does a student’s freedom of speech end, and how far can the school system reach into your homes?

However the case shakes, Avery is really making an impact on people. It’s like they say, “Even the smallest people can change the world.”

The Call for a Youth Summit

2007-11-17T18:16:00.000-08:00

By Jessica Gaafar
Sophomore, Crosby High School

Last Fall Mayor Mike Jarjura formed a Blue Ribbon Commission on School Attendance and Truancy from a suggestion from John Theriault, former school principal and a Board of Education Commissioner. The Blue Ribbon Commission was charged with addressing the alarming 40% drop out rate that faced this city of Waterbury.

The Mayor said during the opening ceremony for the committee that it was rare for the Board to ask for help, but the problem had become so serious (not just in Waterbury but across the nation) that he and the Board thought it was a good idea to reach out to the private sector and community.

The Blue Ribbon Commission broke into six committees: Legal, Public Awareness, Vocational Training, Youth Development, Best Practices and Student Interventions. The subcommittees met regularly until taking a summer break, and has since resumed meetings with the beginning of the school year.

While there were some youth involved in this process, there just simply wasn’t enough.

For years students have complained about not being heard. It seemed like no one cared how students felt or what they wanted. What if we could make school officials and board members listen to what we want and how we feel? What if we, as students could some how speak out to them and not be punished for what we said? What if we, the students, could challenge the Board of Education to fix their policies?

During our first editorial meeting this summer, we let loose about the issues in our schools, and how we felt the dress code may be at the center of the storm. Maybe it’s a stretch to say that the dress code is why youth drop out or miss school, but it’s one of the many issues youth said schools focus too much attention on. But it’s not even fair to say that it’s a stretch if no one has even considered looking into the issue, because according to the school system when asked about the dress code, they simply say, “it’s working”.

During an hour-long interview with the current Board of Education President Pat Hayes, offered hope that someone would listen to youth if they organized. He suggested that the staff of Young Voices organize a youth summit. Pat Hayes offered his support to set the meeting, and would call on the Commissioners of the Board of Education and others to attend.

Students want to express their opinions but no one has listened. Well, for all of those who want to speak out and help possibly make a change, the time is now! We are calling for a youth summit. Not only are we calling for it, Young Voices has taken Hayes’ advice and will be primarily responsible for organizing it.

Interesting enough, in the Public Awareness Committee (a subcommittee of the Blue Ribbon Commission), one of the ideas that came from the group was to start a student newspaper, sponsored by a local newspaper. The committee suggested that students should write about the importance of attending school and getting a good education. Ideally they thought that the newspaper should feature success stories and be written entirely by local youth.

I guess it’s fair to say, welcome to Young Voices. In our first issue we began to tackle the issues of the dress code, truancy and students really spoke out on how they feel the rules impact their lives, especially when they aren’t involved in the decision-making. Every student we talked to agreed that there should be some form of dress code, and even developed an alternative (see page 12). We gave youth a voice, and through our youth summit we plan to do continue to do the same and bring up the issues that need to be addressed. Perhaps we can even create change through the dialogue.

We demand for our voices to be heard. We want a seat at the table. The youth of Waterbury deserves the opportunity to discuss change with the decision makers.

In our vision, youth will organize the meeting, which will include setting the agenda and inviting the decisions makers to the table. During this forum, youth will finally have the opportunity to discuss the issues facing the city, in a constructive and well-organized fashion, while helping to develop some solutions to the problems that plague our city and other cities across the nation. It’s important that we put everything out on the table, and come together to discuss possible change.

“I’d love to see some of these kids be involved with their government,” said Hayes. “I’d love to see kids step forward.”

Barbara Lawlor, principal at Crosby High School said, “I think it’s an excellent idea. Absolutely I would like to be a part of it.”

All three Mayoral Candidates during a 90-minute interview with John Murray from Waterbury Observer said that they would support a youth summit.

“My feeling is we do need to have a dress code. But we need to be careful about setting up thousands of rules on every aspect of everything like having the wrong color hair tie. That strikes me as kind of a bizarre thing,” said Denis Odle, the Independent Candidate for Mayor, during the interview with the Observer. “Additionally, we need to periodically look at our policies and see exactly what it is that they are accomplishing.”

The Republican Candidate for Mayor Anthony D’Amelio (a former Commissioner for the Waterbury Board of Education) said during the interview with the Observer, “Maybe teachers can share with you. A teacher might step forward and say the situation is ridiculous, that this is a great a student and it doesn’t matter what color hair tie she has on today. Maybe our teachers are frustrated with the dress code too. We have to ask them and find out what’s really going on in the classrooms. One thing I learned by being on the school board is that we have great educators here in Waterbury. They are very caring and concerned, but we tie their hands in many respects.”

The newly re-elected Mayor Jarjura boldly said during the interview “If that plays out to be correct, that draconian dress code enforcement is breaking the spirit of marginal students, this is something the school board should be brought up to speed on and there should be some adjustments. But we must recognize that the concept of a dress code or some type of standards is important.”

Considering alterning the dress code is something that school officials were against when interviewed in our first issue. The only person that said that he would consider it was Board President Hayes. Everyone else said “it’s here to stay.”

“I’m never one who draws a line in the sand. We have to be receptive and hear all aspects of an argument. The pro side, the negative side, and that’s how you make good informed decisions. You get all the facts. You get all of the arguments behind the policies, and then you make an informed decision,” said Mayor Jarjura in his 90-minute interview with the Observer. “Clearly that would be the way to go. A youth summit seems like something exciting. It could be more than just the dress code. It could be a way for us to invigorate the spirit of learning.”

So, now that the November elections are over, it’s time to move forward. We will hold our Mayor accountable to supporting the youth summit.

Principals, teachers, and students should all want to take part in this once in a lifetime opportunity.

“Go in prepared, with evidence and facts,” said James Butler, AP World History teacher at Crosby High School. “Treat it like a conversation and don’t make accusations and trust people.”

In the past, these arguments have not succeeded because students wouldn’t actually take action, stand up and fight back. Many youth complained and talked, but not many would actually try to do something about it because they felt powerless. Many students still believe even with a youth summit that the decision makers would never listen to “kids”.

But still we are committed to taking the chance. The youth summit will be our opportunity for students to speak out and be heard. The Mayor supports the idea, and the Board of Education is on board, at least under its current leadership, so it’s time to challenge the decision makers.

No one has really succeeded in changing something like the dress code, but at least we must speak up.

Students waited for so long and now they just might be able to make a difference. The time is definitely now. We are mobilizing and ready to get this summit together. This meeting will give the decision makers of our city an insight into what the students are thinking.

We are planning for a spring date to bring all parties to the table. There is a lot of work to be done, and we are up to the challenge. The staff of Young Voices is moving forward, and we encourage anyone who would like to be involved to contact us.

We want to include as many youth as possible in the process because the more youth involved the bigger voice we will have to make a difference. Adults are welcomed to join the process.

Hayes said he is looking forward to hearing what students have to say about school policies and rules, so let’s not disappoint him.

“Absolutely, this is what this is about,” said Hayes.

Students can make a positive change by getting involved.

“We look forward to addressing these concerns, give us some suggestions,” said Hayes.

We will continue to explore the youth summit in our next issue, and will have an update for you then.

If you are interested in helping organize the event, either contact the publisher of Young Voices, Quajay Donnell at 203-500-3891 or email Jessica Gaafar at jessicayoungvoices@gmail.com.

I guess it’s time to rock the boat.

Catherine’s Story: The Life of A Teenage Mother

2007-11-17T18:04:00.000-08:00

Introduction by Quajay Donnell
I met Catherine this summer and she had a smile that could light up a room. She was full of life, and had a baby on the way. She was one of the young journalists this summer that worked on creating Young Voices. After having her baby, I asked her to come back and rejoin our staff. She agreed.

She has allowed us access into her life as a teenage mother. Rarely do you have the unique opportunity to have access to the life of a 15-year-old teenage mom, however the family trusts me to tell the story. I will not write this story for her. She will write it with my help and the help of her peers, and she will tell her story. Very little will be edited. This first piece is more of a Q&A. The staff of Young Voices came up with the questions, and she spent days writing in her journal the answers with specific instructions to be as detailed as possible. As the year goes on, the format will change and we will work to develop her as a writer, and ultimately this will be a learning experience for her.

The story will not be glorified. I thought that it was very important to share her story, but it is equally important to share her reality. I thought that following the life of a teenage mother would be an educational experience, and perhaps an enlightening one for all. We aren’t endorsing being a teenage mother, but as she says it in her story, she’s one now and she’s going to do the best job she can do. I will support her in that, and her family is supporting her daily.

Teenage pregnancy is a reality, while the birthrates have declined over the years, within the next twelve months 1 million teenagers will become pregnant, and 95% of those pregnancies will be unintended, and almost one third will end in abortion. Less than 25% of births to teens occur within wedlock. Some of the statistics are staggering. The United States of America has doubled the adolescent pregnancy and birth rates of any other industrialized country, and the highest teenage pregnancy rate of all developed countries according to studies. Approximately 40% of young women become pregnant before the time they are 20 years old. The same studies show that the poorer the woman, the more likely she will become pregnant and that almost half of all teen mothers will end up on welfare, and less than one third of teens who have babies before the age of 18 finish high school. It’s a grim reality.

The odds are against her, and yet she stays optimistic. Many people pass judgment on teenage mothers, and maybe Catherine can share a little bit of what’s going on in her life, and that will open your mind. Regardless, we will follow her journey as a mother over the next year, and what we learn I assure you will be interesting and perhaps sometimes sad.

This is Catherine’s story, unedited.

By Catherine Claudio
Sophomore, Crosby High School

Hi. My name is Catherine Claudio and I’m a 15-year-old mother who attends Wilby High School. I’m in the 10th grade now and this is my second year at Wilby. I love it there, and I get along with everyone – both students and teachers. I think it’s a great school.

I want to be a great mom and I also want to be a nurse because my mother was a nurse and I like it. It’s a great thing to do and I also think about being a math teacher because I love math and all of my math teachers were my best teachers.

When I was 4 months they told me I was having a girl. My boyfriend and I were excited. My boyfriend’s name is Juan and he loves my daughter Priscilla and I very much. Priscilla, who is just two months old, is a very pretty and good girl. She’s so small and cute. The way I picked her name was when I was little all my dolls were named Priscilla. For some reason I really loved that name. I had forgotten about the name, but then a friend gave me a book of baby names, and while looking through it I saw the name Priscilla. I fell in love with the name again, so that’s how I decided that would be her name. She and Juan are my family.

Well, my family besides my mother and siblings. My mother Diana is 35 years old and has seven kids. My brother Billy is 14-years-old in 9th grade, Mark is 11-years-old in 5th grade, Christopher is 6-years-old, Rafael is 1-years-old and Carlos is only a month old (he was born the day before Priscilla). I also have a sister Crystal who is 3-years-old. She is very pretty, bad and at times a good girl. There is also my stepfather Rafael.

I think it is important to have a big family so that you’re never by yourself. I think with a big family you’re always doing something fun, always playing and doing crazy things like playing hide and seek. My family is very happy to be together and I never want us to be apart.

This is my family. Watch us grow.

When did you first find out that you were pregnant?
Catherine: I first found out in December 2006 with a home pregnancy test. I didn’t go to the clinic for the first time until mid January 2007. I took one there and it came out positive. So they started giving me WIC and sending me to the clinic every 4 weeks.

How did you first feel when you found out that you were pregnant?
Catherine: I was scared to tell my mother but I had to because she was the only one who could help me and take me to the clinic. When I told her she was mad at first because I was 14 years old going on 15 and she wanted me to finish school first. But then she got over it because I was having her first grandchild.

Who was the first person you told?
Catherine: The first person I told that I was pregnant was my boyfriend Juan. He was very happy because we were having a baby. It was both of our first baby and we knew she was going to be cute.

How long did it take for you to tell others?
Catherine: It took at least two days for me to tell my friends and family. Since I don’t live with my dad I found out where he was and called him. I didn’t tell him until I was 7 and a half months.

How did your boyfriend feel? What was his immediate reaction?
Catherine: Well my boyfriend was so happy for me or I guess you can say both of us. His most immediate reaction was crying because it was his first baby with the girl that he says he really loves.

How did your family feel? What was their immediate reaction?
Catherine: Well they were happy but some were sad. Many of them told me that now I’ll know how it feels to be a mom. Some said that I would have new responsibilities and will learn all of the things that I have to do (in order to be a parent).

Initially what did you think the biggest change in your life would be based on being a teenage mom?
Catherine: Well not being able to go to parties and out whenever I want. No more breaking night because I have a baby to attend to now and she means the world to my boyfriend and I. We love her with all our heart. That’s our baby girl.

How did you feel received in school when it was noticeable that you were pregnant?
Catherine: Well I don’t mind what people say or what people think. You know why? It’s because I’m myself. I was born one. People can say whatever they want, but it doesn’t matter to me. I care about what I think about myself and not what others think. So when they noticed it didn’t bother me.

How much and what planning did you do in preparation for your baby?
Catherine: Well I did a lot of planning for my baby. I planned a baby shower and then planning for the baby to come ahead of time. I was doing a lot of walking with my mother and it was good for me. Before my pregnancy I was lazy, but walking helped me out a lot. I ate a lot of food, at least five or six times a day. I had to drink vitamins for the baby and I to keep us healthy and strong. I also had to take pills for iron because my iron was low.

How did the process of child labor feel? What was the process leading up to your final month?
Catherine: When I was 8 months about to turn 9 months, I had to go to the clinic every 2 weeks until. Then one day the doctor checked me and I was 1 cm and he said I had to be on bed rest. The following week, he checked me again and I was 2 cm. The next week when he checked me again, I was 4 to 5 cm. He wanted to leave me in the hospital, but it was too full so he asked me to come back the next day.

So I went the next day and they admitted me. I got there around 7 am. They took blood, and then checked me again and I was 5 cm. They called the doctor to come in and he broke my water. They then started bringing in things for the baby and I started getting really bad contractions. They were like every 2 minutes. When they checked me 5 minutes later, I was already 8 to 9 cm.

So they called the doctor again because he was across the street working in the clinic. He came running in and checked me again and I was 10 cm. So he told me to start pushing. I was pushing for less than 10 minutes and the baby’s head didn’t want to come out. So he had to cut me. Then I pushed and the baby finally came out and she cut me more and I need to get 10 stitches. I didn’t really feel when the doctor stitched me up. What do you think about that? Well, the cramps you get after having a baby did hurt a lot. They hurt more than menstrual cramps. God blessed me with a pretty little girl though, even with all the pain.

Do you feel like a statistic now that you’ve had a baby?
Catherine: Yes I do. Not in a bad way. In a way that, yes I was young but I’m a mom now and there’s nothing you can do about it. So you have to understand that.

It’s a very big deal that you’re 15 and a teenage mother. The odds are against you. What do you think life will be like in 6 months once the reality of being a mom really sets in?
Catherine: I think in 6 months I will be doing a lot of things with my life. I will be working and still trying to be a great mom all at the same time. I will also be going to school. It’s okay with me because I knew all of this would be coming since I am a mom. I don’t think that it’s taking anything away from my life. It’s actually putting in everything I want in life and so much more with a baby in my life now.

What was your first thought when you held your daughter for the first time?
Catherine: My first thought when I held my baby was thank you God I finally have my little one with me to take great care. I thought she is my first, but not my last because I want 3 kids but I won’t try again until I’m in my 20’s.

In the first few days what were some of the things that you daughter did that you were amazed by?
Catherine: Well, her just being there right besides me was amazing! Her moving her feet and hands for the first time was really cute. Her crying the first night, me bringing her home, feeding her and changing her pampers. Mostly watching her sleep is amazing and dressing her up to go places too.

What would you tell your daughter when she asks about her first few weeks of life?
Catherine: Well, that she was a very pretty baby girl. That she was really small and was always drinking milk and sleeping. That she was 18 inches long, 5lb and 12oz. That I love her and that she’s my little girl.

What do you think about being a mom?
Catherine: Well I love my daughter and I’ll do anything for Priscilla. So I think being a mom isn’t a bad job. It’s a great opportunity to be a parent. Now I know how it feels like to take care of your own child.

What do you think being a mom is all about?
Catherine: Well, I think it’s taking great care of your child and making sure you’re always there for them. Loving them and treating them with the respect they need that.

What are some of your new responsibilities?
Catherine: Well making sure I’m always there for my daughter is the biggest responsibility. Making sure she’s okay, and making sure her milk is always ready when she gets hungry and making sure that she eats. Always making sure her clothes are clean and her pampers are changed. I also have to take her to the doctor. Those are my big responsibilities.

What pressures do you feel as a teenage mother?
Catherine: When I have to do more than one thing at a time for the baby, but I do it because it’s my baby and I don’t mind doing a lot of things for her. I have to wake up at 2 in the morning and sometimes around 6:30 am. I try to sleep when she is because that the only times I have to rest because I’m always up with her.

What was one thing you expected about motherhood?
Catherine: Well the one thing I had already expected was to be busy. That’s my nickname now because I’m busy all the time always doing something for the baby. There are times that I’m busy and I can’t go anywhere because the baby is sick or she doesn’t feel good. Sometimes I don’t go to my own appointments because she has to go to one or I have to do something for my daughter. I’ve been very busy.

What is the biggest surprise about motherhood?
Catherine: That now you’re expected to do everything for your self and baby and you are treated like an adult because you’re a mom and not a kid anymore, so don’t think that you’re going to be treated like one. Everyone treats me like an adult – my family, my aunts and cousins and even my boyfriend and father. They don’t treat me like a little girl anymore. My brothers use to pick on me and hit me, but after I became pregnant their attitude changed and they treat me differently now.

What’s the biggest challenge you’ve faced as a teenage mother at this point?
Catherine: Trying to do everything at once, and knowing I can’t but I don’t want to give up sometimes. I try and most of the time I manage. I ask for help. I sometimes ask God for help. I say, “God help me get through this. God help me get over all the kids looking at me saying that I’m crazy for having a baby at 15.” I asked my boyfriend for help to. When I was pregnant and felt sick, he would always get me something to eat or drink.

Do you think that the system wants you to fail or expects that you fail now because you are a teenage mom?
Catherine: They probably want or expect me to fail, but if they only knew that I am doing all of the needed paperwork to get the schoolwork that I missed from the first couple of weeks, they will see that I care.

What does school mean now?
Catherine: Well school means everything to me. I am going back to school once the doctor says that I can go back. I miss school. I miss my friends. I miss everything that school has to offer to me.

What’s your school plan to make sure that you don’t fall behind?
Catherine: My plan is to try and get the work that I miss so that my grades don’t fall behind because I’m a great student in school and my grades were good (last year) and I know that I’m a mom now, but I don’t want my grades to change.

Is dropping out of school an option for you if you fall to far behind?
Catherine: No! Dropping out is not an option and will never be an option for me. I will never quit or leave school. It’s bad for you. I know that I make bad choices from time to time, but leaving school will never be a choice that crosses my mind. You will see me at the end – 18 years old in 12th grade getting ready to graduate and leave school.

Why is having an education important to your daughter and to your future?
Catherine: I think it’s important that I have an education and finish school. It’s important that one day she will say, “my mommy is smart”. She will be proud that I’m a nurse or math teacher. She’ll also say that I’m the best mom ever because I finished school even though I had a child. She will say something like that, I know she will, and that’s why it’s important for me to finish my education.

Do you think that you’re being naïve about your future?
Catherine: I don’t think that I am being naïve about my future. There are a lot of people who had children when they were young, so they can’t say anything about me because I’m the same age as many people when they had their first child. I have heard people talking about if their kids were to have a baby that early they would kick them out. They’re talking all this mess. But it’s the same people who had kids at young ages. Some say that it’s bad to have a baby young and that makes me a bad person. No! I’m a good person and I care about myself and about others, and my baby. I’m a teen mom and it doesn’t bother me, so it shouldn’t bother you. It’s going to be hardwork, and I’m okay with that.

To be continued next issue...

YOUNG VOICES IS BACK!!!! Issue Two

2007-10-04T07:50:00.000-07:00

The newest issue of Young Voices hit the streets of Waterbury, October 3, 2007, just 6 weeks after the first issue. With a smaller youth staff, the crew cranked out 24 pages with a cover story on the Police Activity League. Thank you to Waterbury Youth Services, The Waterbury Observer, the YMCA and The Waterbury Arts Magnet School for continued support of the newspaper project.

Managing Editor Chelsea Murray's words below sum up everything appropriately. Here are some of the images from Issue 2.

For more information as always you can contact Quajay Donnell, publisher at believeinmedia@gmail.com or 203-500-3891.

THE PROMISE
By Chelsea Murray
Managing Editor, Young Voices

It was hard to wipe the smile off my face that hot day in August when the first issue of ‘Young Voices’ hit the streets. I knew the second our green Ford Explorer pulled into the printer that we had started something that had the potential to make a huge difference in the City of Waterbury. I have personally been in the belly of a budding newspaper since I was five years old. I have seen the inner workings of the Observer. I have written for the Observer, but never experienced the full feeling of accomplishment that I did on that day when I saw the first issue of ‘Young Voices’ sitting on the skid.

Even though we talked about producing a youth newspaper all summer it didn’t seem real until the second the twelve young journalists set their eyes on it for the first time. They all opened the paper and soaked up each page in disbelief. The reality of what we had talked about all summer had actually come to life. These young peoples lives are often rife with hollow promises and they seriously did not believe that we would get this done. And they definitely did not believe that it would be distributed all over the city for the populous to view. They didn’t quite grasp what kind of potentially huge impact this newspaper would make on the city.

Over the course of ten minutes their emotions changed from disbelief, embarrassment, excitement, and overall they were bubbling over with pride.

That day they went around handing the papers out to business people and patrons of downtown Waterbury with huge smiles plastered on their faces. They felt rejected and upset when some passers by refused to take the paper, but that only seemed to give them more juice to work harder to get the next person to show interest and pick it up.

These twelve young people that we had worked so closely with all summer had finally produced a unique and refreshing voice in the city of Waterbury. It was hard to imagine what the final result would turn out to be, but it surpassed all our expectations. All the hours of hard work in the sweltering, smelly office paid off when the powerful, jam packed issue came out. Each story in the paper meant business. They addressed huge problems that face the youth in Waterbury and these young journalists worked hard to professionally put the stories out there in a coherent manner for all to see. They weren’t just young people screaming and whining about the injustices and problems facing youth. They took a very mature and professional approach at addressing the issues.

This summer opened up a new door for the youth of Waterbury. They now have a respected media outlet in which to express their opinions and spread youth news to the city and to those in power positions. With the upcoming election it’s important for the candidates and voters to realize that there are many issues in Waterbury that pertain to youth that should be looked at closer.

The staff of “Young Voices” put together a great first issue to show Waterbury what they are made of and it continues to pack a punch with the second issue.

"Live to Learn, Learn to Live" Back to School Rally in August

THE PLEDGE
POLICE ACTIVITY LEAGUE Provides Opportunities for "Today's Youth, Tomorrow's Leaders"

International Day of Peace at Arts Magnet School

NEXT ISSUE COMING SOON!

2007-08-27T18:03:00.000-07:00

The next issue of Young Voices will be out late September! Thank you for your support over the summer, and we hope that you continue to support our project.

If you are interested in writing for Young Voices or obtaining more information, please feel free to email me at believeinmedia@gmail.com.

Thanks,
Quajay Donnell
Publisher

THE FINAL DAY ... OF THE SUMMER!

2007-08-16T17:38:00.000-07:00

Today was the last day of our summer program, and the staff of Young Voices gathered at John's house for a cookout. Instead of eating pizza in our downtown Waterbury office, we decided a change of scenery would be relaxing on the last day. Over four hours the group played freeze tag, hide-and-seek, ate an amazing lunch and just enjoyed each other's company. Here are a few pictures from the day, and some of their final journal entries.

“8/16/07
From the moment I walked into the Waterbury Observer office, I knew this experience would be worthwhile. However, I didn’t know that I was going to even stay and be there every day throughout the summer. Quajay, John and Chelsea found a way to pay three of us to work everyday. Not only did I get to be a part of the newspaper, but I was also named editor-in-chief. There were times when I felt stressed because I didn’t know how to organize all of my information in my story.

I gained a very close friend, Catherine. I also found that Chelsea and I have grown closer and she is a great friend. Quajay and John are great mentors, even though Quajay always steals my snacks (that’s okay, because I got some of his Gatorade).

I am so proud of this newspaper and I’m sad that today is our last day of work for the summer. However, I know that I will continue to write and work towards my goal. I can’t wait for the next issue.”

***********
“My summer went a lot better than I expected. I always thought that I was a great writer because I did very well in school with English and Civics when we had to write essays. Working here I think I could have put in a lot more effort than I did when it was time to write my story for our newspaper. I was overwhelmed with responsibility to contribute to getting our voices. I wasn’t completely satisfied with my end product, but I did get positive feedback so it was reassuring for me to have some support from my peers. I didn’t think I would enjoy this job as much as I did and now it’s coming to an end. We were a good team and worked well together. It’s kind of sad to know that we’re not going to be working together anymore. To me it has been a great experience and knowing that I contributed to making our newspaper makes it a lot better! I hope I will be able to apply what I learned here in my everyday life.”

“ The End…
Today is the end of most of our summer. It’s like once you start something and it’s fun, you just don’t want to stop. That is how I feel right now. I hope this paper will go on for a very long time because this was a very eye opening experience for many of us. I really don’t know much about what we are doing right now, but hey I’m glad I went for this ride because I love it. I really do plan on staying longer than we are supposed to.”

“The Work Days…
I love this job! When I was in the hospital and the doctor said, “you can’t go to work”. I was so sad it even made me mad. But a few days later I was able to come and work with my friend and my great bosses (Quajay and Chelsea). They are the best. They care about me and how I’m doing. THE QUAJAY – There was one time when I could not walk a lot and my mom told him to keep me sitting down and he wouldn’t even let me go to the front of the office. Great times with Mr. Quajay Donnell (aka the food thief).”

“Last Day…
Today is the last day at this job! I loved being here and having many different experiences. I have always loved writing and reading. My dream has been to write a fiction young adult book. Every time I finish a good book, I get inspired to write my own. I usually think about it, but I can never get past the first sentence of my book, so my dream usually stops there.

Last year, during 10th grade, was the best English/language arts year of my life. I learned a new way to write and to read. I found out what to look for when reading and what to write about, and how to write it. That is when I finally discovered my true passion for writing.

This job as a journalist was something else. There were times when I just wanted to give up entirely and call it a day. But every time that thought crossed my mind I would think of what I was actually doing. I was writing something – not for school, not because a teacher told me to, and not because it would help me get into a better college. I was writing because the topic or issue was something that concerned me and how I felt. I let my pen scratch across the paper, not only because I was writing, but because in the end my writing would be published. Yes, I know writing for a newspaper is different than writing an actual book. Writing in a newspaper allowed me to write something, anything, that in the end everyone would see.

Writing isn’t just opinions or facts. When you write, you are giving someone a part of yourself, even if you’re writing about teachers or First Lady Laura Bush. It’s an awesome message to send out to the people who think one thing, to give them another perspective. And for people who think the same way as the writer, they can finally relax knowing that someone out there is spreading the word, or feel at peace because someone out there can relate to them.

I won’t lie and say being a journalist is my new goal, however I will continue to write for this newspaper voluntarily. I believe that with every story that I write, I will be able to not be so conscious of my writing. I hope that I will write a few books when I’m older and I want all the experience here and the ones to come, to help me accomplish all my dreams and more.”

“Time went by so fast. I remember our first day as if it was yesterday. I went to work that first day not knowing what to expect. There are so many memories to look back on this summer. Wow!

I started this summer doing nothing and being bored to getting a job and having so much fun. I had a great time this summer and it’s something I will never forget. Now I will always have this newspaper to remember this summer.
Here we are on this last day of work just hanging back and resting from all the work we put into this paper. Looking back to the beginning I remember how nervous I was. I never in my life expected to be doing something like this. I was nervous that my writing wouldn’t be that good. I always thought that I could never write well enough for my stories to be featured in a newspaper. I guess my writing isn’t that bad after all (haha). I will never forget all of the people that I interviewed, the stories that I wrote and our wonderful creation!

I remember when we first started I thought that ‘who in the world would read our newspaper?’ I thought ‘who is going to want to hear what a bunch of kids have to say.’ However, once I saw people taking an interest and reading our paper, I was excited! People were actually reading what I wrote! It was the happiest feeling yesterday. I remember sitting at lunch when I saw someone actually reading our paper. It was exciting!

This whole experience has really made me interested in writing and journalism. I can’t wait for our next issue. Maybe our paper will be just as popular as the Observer or even the Republican-American. I guess only time will tell.”

IT'S A NEWSPAPER!!! .01lbs & 28 pages

2007-08-15T18:52:00.000-07:00

After seven long weeks of training, research, interviewing, writing, sales, photography and design, we finally made it to the point of distribution! Young Voices officially arrived in Waterbury today at 11:06 a.m. The paper was picked up from Trumbull, Connecticut early this morning by John Murray (Publisher of the Waterbury Observer), Chelsea Murray (Observer and Young Voices) and Quajay Donnell (Publisher of Young Voices).

The young journalists eagerly awaited the arrival of their newspaper at the Bank Street office downtown Waterbury. They immediately helped unload and quickly jumped into the pages. They sat in silence for 10 minutes while they flipped through the pages, and then slowly began to comment on their work. Many of them were in disbelief and didn't think that this moment would ever arrive. After talking for a moment, they hit the streets and started to put their newspaper in the hands of Waterbury citizens. Below are some quotes and pictures from the day.

If you would like to get a copy of Young Voices sent to you, please email us your address at believeinmedia@gmail.com

"I never thought about being a journalist. My family is proud of me." - Carlos

"I love it!" - Julivette

"This is our child and I know people will want our paper." - Debra

"I like it a lot!" - Samantha

"I just want to say one thing ... we have to clap it up for ourselves. This paper was all of us. It was a group effort. It wasn't just me." - Josh

GIVING BACK

2007-08-14T13:53:00.001-07:00

The paper was sent off to the printer Sunday evening. We took Monday off to rest, and today we did a little giving back and spent a part of our day at a camp with kids 3-13 years old. Here’s some pictures from our day.

“Today we had the privilege of passing on our talents to younger kids at a camp. They each received a piece of construction paper and they had to draw a picture, write a story, and give their “newspaper” a name. Reading some of their stories was heartbreaking, but it was great that they all had a story to tell.

It feels good to know that we put a smile on their faces today. The communication skills that we have learned really helped us today. There was a small girl taking pictures of Chelsea as I was writing this. She was frowning until she pressed the shutter, and then her face transformed into a humongous smile.

This is how we know that we’ve made a difference.”

-Julievette, Editor-in-Chief

One of the kids was so excited to meet our group of journalists that he wrote a story about us inside of his “newspaper”.

“Journalists Visit Camp…

“Journalists visited our camp and have all the children there write stories. I enjoy writing stories. I might be a journalist when I get older. Plus as soon as the journalists came my day got better.”

Seems like we have a future journalist on our hands, and he may be a part of Young Voices one day.

UPGRADE

2007-08-06T08:18:00.000-07:00

We recently received a grant from The Newspaper Association of America Foundation. The Student/Newspaper Partnership Grant is awarded annually by the foundation to help establish or revive student newspapers. Grants are awarded to partnership proposals to stabilize or strengthen struggling student newspapers or to create a newspaper where non exists. With a portion of the grant we purchased a brand new IMac. The new computer will be the command central for the layout of the publication. Below Diamond and Debbie explores the features of the computer.

APPROACHING THE FINISH LINE

2007-08-02T15:15:00.000-07:00

Young Voices is expected to go to print on August 13, 2007. In preparation for that day, a lot has been going on in our offices downtown Waterbury. We've recently purchased a new computer through a technology grant we received from the Newspaper Association of America Foundation, and we've borrowed a few laptops so that we have enough computers for our young reporters to process their stories.

Some of our older computers, many of which date back at least 20 years, have been holding up and we've only had one system completely crash due to the stress. Every available outlet has been used this week, and the staff are either working at a computer, off taking pictures or reviewing each others work.

Today was the first draft due date for most stories. The stories look really good. Next week the staff of Young Voices will work on finalizing their stories and doing last minute interviews.

The staff have also been working on bringing in more sponsors to help underwrite the production, and salary of three of the staffers.

Below you can find a sampling of some of the stories, and some pictures from our busy newsroom.

From a story about the absence policy:
“There are 1,606 students that will have to repeat a grade after missing more that 18 days of school. Baffled at the amount of students being left back, the school board and school officials are now left trying to figure how to solve this problem … The numbers of students held back add up to 1224 in 1998-1999, 1435 in 1999-2000, 1374 in 2000-2001, 615 in 2001-2002, 1030 in 2002-2003, and 955 in 2003-2004.”

From a story about the dress code:
“Ten years ago, thousands of students’ lives were drastically changed. The Board of Education began to enforce a uniform and dress code policy for all Waterbury public schools. The dress code policy was established to create a better and safer environment for students. According to Roger Damerow, the former Superintendent of schools, the dress code helps kids concentrate on their schoolwork.”

From a story about dropouts and what they’re doing:
“He said if he would of stayed in school he probably would of tried to be a baseball player, a boxer, or a fireman. He regrets leaving school and doesn’t know if he wants to go back. He does admit that he is very happy the way his life turned out.”

From a story about local rapper and motivational speaker “Picasso”:
“The songs on this album talk about his experiences and send a message to inner city youth that problems can't be solved by violence. Like in his song "A Mother's Cry" which talks about how the way he was living his life didn't only affect him but the people around him. In his song "Back 2 Class" he says that dropping out of school is suicide. The song tells kids to stay in school because education is important in order to gain success in life.”

From a story looking at districts without dress code
“Freedom! Is this what it is like going to a school with a non strict dress code? If we step outside of the Waterbury school district you will find schools with little rules and more freedom. These schools show that a school can actually function without a dress code. What makes us so different?”

From a story about a youth web design program
“When you think of a summer job, what do you think of? Picking up garbage? Sweeping floors? Well, what about web design? It's a job that allows you to have fun while learning new skills. In this new program, Technology Web Design, participants learn how to make powerpoint presentations and promote buisnesses through designing web pages. Web designing is about being creative and making your own page. Instead of sitting at home and doing nothing, a group of eleven kids were chosen to be in a program that will educate them further in life.”

FREE WRITE

2007-07-31T17:06:00.001-07:00

From a free write session

Why Love
“Why must we love and never be loved back? Why do some women fall for the strangest boys? Why must we love if we’re gonna feel bad about it? Why must we love if we’re gonna regret it? For what? What’s the purpose? Why love if you feel it’s not real? Why love if you can’t get an appeal? Why love?!?! Why? Because it might just be real.”

Work as a second home
"I miss my job. You’re allowed to have an opinion there without it being shot down or stifled by parental outlooks. I’m aggravated right now. My hair glue is taking forever to come out. Right now it feels like I’m on Alcatraz punishment. Hopefully my knight in shinning armor will come rescue me and take me driving, out to eat and to see a movie. I wouldn’t mind. That’s cool, but I really need my hair done. I need it washed, blow dried and cut. I’m going short hopefully, if I don’t punk out. Maybe like Rihanna but less extreme (sigh). Ultra bored and tired. It’s nap time."

THE SUPER

2007-07-31T16:59:00.000-07:00

A week ago several Young Voices reporters had the opportunity to sit down with Superintendent of Waterbury Public Schools, Dr. David Snead. They interviewed him for an hour and half about the dress code, truancy, the 2000 students who are repeating the same grade and the drop out rate in Waterbury. Those stories will be featured in the first issue of Young Voices due out early August. The picture above was taken the day before that meeting just after the First Lady visited Driggs School in Waterbury. The Superintendent is pictured with Debra and Josh. Below the Superintendent with the reporters in his boardroom at Waterbury Public School's headquarters in the Chase Building downtown.

On the Move

2007-07-24T18:15:00.000-07:00

Young Voices is due out early August, giving the staff approximately 10 days to seek out sponsors, complete stories and layout their first newspaper. With the production deadline looming, everyone is really excited, and the energy in the office has increased a great deal over the last few days. Here's what's going on in the busy newsroom of Young Voices.

Young Voices Publisher Quajay answers questions during mock press conference.

Several students work at the "big table" on various stories that will be included in the first issue.

Harley and Carlos work on inputting interviews into the computer.

Debra works hard on inputting material into the computer, as assistant director and editor Chelsea talks with editor-in-chief Julievette about details of her story.

Samantha goes over the details of her story on the alarming drop out rate in Waterbury.

Josh, Debra and assistant director and editor Chelsea sit in the press pool during First Lady Laura Bush's visit to Driggs School in Waterbury.

Josh, Chelsea and Debra after the First Lady's visit at Driggs

WHAT ABOUT THE GOOD?

2007-07-23T17:58:00.000-07:00

"Did you ever notice how people tend to notice the bad things before they notice the good? It’s like when a nice article is written about someone but the only thing that the person notices is that their name has been misspelled. Or if someone meets a member of the opposite sex that they really like but because something is physically wrong with the other person, this person wouldn’t even think about asking the other one out. Another example is when a teenage girl is pregnant. She could be the valedictorian of her class but just because she is pregnant people see her differently and think bad things about her. People should stop only seeing the bad and focus on seeing the good."

FIRST SPONSOR

2007-07-23T17:56:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend (during her time off) Julievette signed up our first sponsor. She proudly displays the business card ad that will be featured in our first paper due out early August.

AS SEEN IN THE WATERBURY OBSERVER

2007-07-20T17:12:00.000-07:00

John Murray, publisher of The Waterbury Observer, was kind enough to include an article about Young Voices and Media in Motion in the July issue of The Observer. We would realy like to keep these young people employed, and to continue to publish a newspaper monthly. We do however need the support of our community. Below is the story as it appeared in the Observer.

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"YOUNG VOICES" SHALL BE HEARD
By John Murray

Twelve high school students representing Kennedy, Wilby, Crosby, the Waterbury Magnet Arts School, Kaynor Tech and the Enlightenment School, have joined forces with Media In Motion, Waterbury Youth Services and the Waterbury Observer to launch a youth newspaper in the Brass City.

The monthly newspaper will be called “Young Voices” and will hit the streets in early August.

The summer youth program was funded through Youth Services for six weeks and the aim was to produce one or two issues of the paper.

Things have changed.

The kids don’t want the newspaper to stop. All twelve have committed themselves to creating a year round youth newspaper in the Brass City. The kids want to keep it going and we want to help them do that.

These twelve kids are trying to make a difference through appropriate channels. They are not sitting back, they want the community to hear their voice.

The newsroom for Young Voices is set up in the Observer office on Bank Street in downtown Waterbury. They will be using old computers the Observer used to launch itself 15 years ago. They will be using old manual cameras and shoot their photographs on film.

Media in Motion, led by Quajay Donnell, is seeking sponsorships for the newspaper that will enable the kids to keep their jobs after August, and keep the paper publishing every month. Quajay’s program is seeking grants and partnerships to help empower the youth of Waterbury.

The kids are also organizing a talent show fundraiser for early autumn, and will be actively seeking sponsorships throughout the community.

These kids are bold and curious. They want to express themselves. These kids are our future. They are beautiful. We hope the community supports their dream of speaking out.

For more information please contact Mr. Quajay Donnell at 203-500-3891, or e-mail him at believeinmedia@gmail.com

Interested parties can also contact the Observer at 203-754-4238, or e-mail John Murray at owlman@optonline.net

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Thanks John for all of your support, and lending your talents and Chelsea's talents to get this great project off the ground.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

2007-07-19T17:06:00.001-07:00

Today the staff of Young Voices spent the afternoon working on presentation skills, and practiced delivering their publications message. They also spent the afternoon in the former Howland Hughes Department Store space, and learned a little bit of history about downtown Waterbury, and life before the mall and corporate owned department stores. Below are some pictures from the afternoon adventure.

The Editor-in-Chief

2007-07-18T18:20:00.000-07:00

PHOTO: Madam editor-in-chief outside the office of Young Voices and The Waterbury Observer

Four weeks ago the group was asked to make a decision. At the end of the first week, barely knowing each other, they were asked to elect the person that they wanted to lead them. This person would become the editor-in-chief, and ultimately the highest ranking member of the youth staff, working closely with the publisher of their paper. Julievette, a senior in high school, was selected by her peers. Over the last few days she has been a leader in the newsroom as stories have begun to develop. She has been instrumental in directing and shaping the first issue (which is due to hit the streets in August). She was asked to write briefly about her experience so far as editor in chief.

"There I sat surrounded by awkward silence in the office when Quajay handed me my new press pass. My name was spelled wrong on the original pass. Not only was my name spelled right this time, but the title “reporter” had been replaced with the title “editor”. My dream is to become a successful journalist some day and being named the editor-in-chief of Young Voices is an honor. It’s a beginning to my career. It’s like a door opening to opportunities. I know that being editor-in-chief will be challenging position, but I am honored and I refuse to let people down."

Flash Back
“I could pick the editor. John could pick the editor. Chelsea could pick the editor. But we want you guys to pick the editor.” Quajay said. At that moment I thought, “oh man". One of the instructors told me I could possibly be the editor. I felt like I wasn’t going to be the editor then. I felt like someone else is going to win. “Oh well,” I thought. We all received blank index cards. I slowly wrote my name on the card thinking to myself that every vote counts. The girl next to me asked me how to spell my name. A smiled appeared on my face as I thanked her and wrote my name for her. Another girl asked the same question. My smile grew wider. I heard whispers, “see, you spelled it wrong," one person whispered. "No you did," another whispered. They were voting for me. A girl who said she was going to vote for herself shocked me when she revealed that she voted for me. I was thankful! “It’s going to be Julivette” everyone kept saying. I didn’t want to get my hopes up and then be disappointed. Quajay showed no emotion on his face whatsoever as he flipped through the votes. There was no way I could know who won. Chelsea looked through the cards and smiled at me. The girl next to me pointed it out. I thought I was the only one who noticed. Quajay made some jokes and then he announced the winner. It was me! I sat back, relaxed and thanked everyone. That’s where my happiness began and the worry set it.”

PHOTO SAFARI

2007-07-18T13:46:00.000-07:00

Over the last few days the young journalists have turned in their notepads for an hour or so and picked up the digital camera and started taking pictures. Below is some of their photos from the last few days. Enjoy.

ON THE STREETS

2007-07-17T19:07:00.000-07:00

PHOTO: The staff of Young Voices talk with John Murray, publisher of the Waterbury Observer and Quajay Donnell, publisher of Young Voices about their dress code story

After receiving a morning briefing in story groups, the staff of Young Voices hit the streets to begin research for their stories. Some reporters headed to the mall, the YMCA, the Library, downtown Waterbury and the Department of Education. After their first day out and about, they wrote the following...

"Finally we started getting to work on this paper. I went with a group to the mall to interview some kids about the dress code. However, there weren’t many kids there. Then we went to the YMCA to interview some people. Luckily we didn’t have any problems there. I had so much fun today. I had fun going out and interviewing but also because of the people in my group. It was nice to actually do some work outside of the office. I really like working on these topics."

*********************
"Today I finally felt like a journalist. I was able to go to City Hall to the Board of Education to get the dress code policy. I had to gather information there and at the library to put into the article for our paper. What I felt like I struggled with was remaining neutral because I don’t agree with the dress code."

YOUNG VOICES SPEAK OUT

2007-07-16T20:00:00.000-07:00

PHOTO: The staff of Young Voices read a recent edition of The Waterbury Observer, which featured a story about the program.

After a weekend break, the staff of Young Voices were back in action early Monday morning. They spent most of the day brainstorming story ideas for the first issue due out early August. This is what they wrote in their journal about the day...

"Going into my third week of work is very exciting for me. I really enjoy working here because I feel like I’m learning so much. The people are very opinionated and always have something to talk about. Although I keep a lot of my thoughts and opinions to myself I think I can contribute a lot to making this paper work. Now that we came up with the name “Young Voices” for our newspaper we can finally work at making it worth reading. Since our name is established we can get motivated and work hard at it. We came up with a lot of good ideas to put in our newspaper."

*********************
"Well, we are working on starting the newspaper Young Voices and it’s great we’re about to interview people. We’re going to talk to a lot of people we don’t know, and it’s a new thing for me but I love the ideas we have come up with as a group. I bet this is going to be the best paper in Waterbury once we’re done with it. Much love to Young Voices!"

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"Just talking about what we are going to be writing about has me very excited. I can’t wait to actually start interviewing people and getting opinions from others to write. I like the name “Young Voices” because that is exactly what we are. With this name we aren’t targeting any special group or people nor excluding any one person. I believe getting our opinion on issues that are being addressed right now can help in many ways, such as with the causes of absences or dress code violations. If they heard our opinions and our voices, then many of the problems could possibly be solved without making the condition worse or bringing up new problems."

*********************
"Today we started planning what we are going to write about. I’m writing about the absence policy and the dress code in school. There are just so many things you can write about schools. I think that our paper will do really well, at least I hope so. I would read it if I saw it somewhere. The name Young Voices just sounds catchy to me. I even told my friends and they are really interested in it. So far everyone I told wants a copy of it. I believe this paper will do well because once adults read what we have to say maybe they will start to talk to us about the issues concerning teens. So far I think it’s going to be a great newspaper."

YOUNG VOICES

2007-07-15T08:53:00.000-07:00

After two weeks of research at various times and going through several names and stages, we were still without a definitive name. We went from "Underground Media" to "Media in Motion Newspaper". But nothing really jumped out, or stuck for that matter.

We found ourselves in a midst of a brainstorming session, and research at the library and time to sleep on it. Finally we made a decision. We asked several questions, and looked at the real objective of the publication and compared it to the mission statement of Media in Motion. Key words that came up in that discussion - EMPOWERMENT. VOICES. SPEAKING OUT.

We poised the following questions ... What voices go unheard? What voices are screaming out? What voices are absent from the conversation about youth as it relates to any major issues in Waterbury? What voices will become empowered by this project? What voices will be on center stage, and be able to speak out?

Young Voices.

So, we named the publication "Young Voices". These are young voices that shall be heard. These youth aren't sitting back, they are taking an active stand and will shine a light into the issues and provide their peers with a voice. The debut issue will hit the streets in early August.

2007-07-11T21:36:00.000-07:00

Photo: The group meets on the Waterbury Green for morning session with project director Quajay Donnell (standing) and assistant director Chelsea Murray (seated center).

Ghetto Life 101

2007-07-10T14:03:00.000-07:00

In 1993 producer David Isay put a tape machine into the hands of a pair of 13-year-old boys living in the "projects" in Chicago's rough South Side. The result was a spontaneous, honest, and surprisingly profound half-hour diary of life in the ghetto. They named it "Ghetto Life 101". During a hot summer day, we shared the 30 minute recording with the participants.

"After standing in the hot unbearable summer heat, I found myself back in the office and sat in my seat wondering how relevant listening to the audio would be to journalism. The sounds of old school hip-hop filled the room, which put me at ease. The high-pitched voice of 13-year-old LeAlan Jones and 14-year-old Lloyd Newman came through the speakers. They introduced themselves to their audience as young journalist making a radio documentary of their life and environment growing up in the Ida B. Wells housing on the south side of Chicago.

I listened very intently and made sure I digested everything that they were saying. As they described their lives growing up with a lot of hardships in their community, I looked around the room trying to figure out what everyone was thinking by their facial expressions. How much they knew and how professional LeAlan and Lloyd were amazed me when they were interviewing people. LeAlan and Lloyd shared some very personal information about their lives.

LeAlan lived with his grandmother, mother and sister just outside of the Ida B. Wells. He interviewed everyone in his house. He seemed unfazed by some of the shocking answers that he got from them. The boys asked some very sensitive questions to their family.

Lloyd’s mom died form drinking and his dad was a drunk, which left his 19-year-old sister to take care of six kids.

LeAlan admits that living in their community gets depressing sometimes. He also says that it forces kids to grow up fast.

Even with living in these types of conditions they still manage to have their spirits up. I sometimes forget how many people have it worst than others. LeAlan and Lloyd were very successful in helping people understand their experiences."

THE HOT SEAT

2007-07-10T13:57:00.000-07:00

Photo: Waterbury Police Officer talks to the students about being a young female cop on the beat, and offered positive encouragement to the students to follow their dreams.

Today participants went straight for the Waterbury Green. They started their morning being introduced to people by John Murray, and immediately jumped into interviewing. Their afternoon featured a guest speaker from the Waterbury Police Department, and the day ended with brainstorming names for their youth newspaper. It was an intense day. This is what they wrote...

"Today was very interesting day. We got to interview “different” people on the Waterbury Green. I’ll be honest, if John wouldn’t have been there, I would’ve been scared to go up to those people. It was extremely hot outside today. The interview with Quajay’s cousin, a police officer, was very moving. I never heard a cop speak about their work so openly. Making up names for our paper was hilarious. I can’t wait to get started. I am beginning to feel the pressure and excitement."

*********************
"After interviewing people on the Green, I don’t feel nervous at all. It was pretty fun. Today we also interviewed a police officer. It was nice hearing the things she goes through from her point of view. Many people talk about police and how they hate them. After hearing what it’s like for her changed what I always thought. It was nice to hear what she had to say. Today was fun except for the heat. Now I am interested in writing the stories and actually getting started on the paper. However, we still need a name for our paper. We started writing ideas and some were just crazy. I wonder what our paper will be like once it’s finished. I told my mother about it and she is really interested. She even wants a copy of the paper."

AND WE'RE BACK

2007-07-10T13:27:00.001-07:00

PHOTO: Observer publisher John Murray talks about the art of interviewing

After a week break, participants found themselves back in the downtown office warming up again with interviewing exercises and journal writing. This is what they had to say about being back...

"Today I enjoyed being here and working with everyone in their interviews. I think that I have gotten more use to the interviewing process and really getting involved in it. I’m really looking forward to finally starting to work on our youth paper and working hard in making it worth reading. I feel like there is a lot of positive energy in this working environment and people are really getting motivated which makes me really excited about being here. I feel like we are all willing to be here and do our best in creating the paper. It also helps that we have supportive people backing us up through this whole experience. I hope that I will be able to learn as much as possible during these six weeks."

*********************
"It feels great to be back at work! I know that sounds corny, but it’s true. I am excited to start getting stories and interviewing new people. We had our second press conference today and it was even more exciting than the first. It was sad listening to this man talk about his life. Today I got to be the interviewee for the first time and my story was outrageous. I also got to be the interviewer and I had my share of laughs. I have a feeling this job is going to be a life-changing experience."

*********************
"Today is my second day on the job and it’s not bad. We practiced interviewing people and I think I’m pretty good at it. I’m better at that than I am at writing stories. I have good ideas but I just don’t know how to get them to make sense on paper. I think that’s the only thing I’m worried about is not being able to sound good on paper."

FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION

2007-07-10T13:26:00.001-07:00

PHOTO: A participant examines an orange during creative writing exercise.

The participants are randomly given free write opportunities. The following are from those sessions...

"Today I noticed how empty the streets were while I was on my way to work. Then I seen how gray the sky was this morning and I knew that it was going to rain soon. That’s when I started to speed up my walk before I got caught in the rain. The people who were outside wore clothes for a hot summer day. They had on shorts, tank tops and wife beaters, without any umbrellas in their hands. When I finally got to work I stood there for about fifteen minutes watching the cars and people pass by. People smiled as they passed me. I even got an occasional “hi” or “how are you?”"

*********************
"I think it’s time I tell my mother I’ve fallen in love with journalism. This program is excellent. They asked us to write how we feel and if anything scares us about the program. Nothing scares me so far. I love this program. I’m getting paid to do something that I love. It’s more like a mini career. I can’t wait until we interview people, take pictures, make graphics and what not. That’s always fun! We had three activities today. One on values, one on communication and we had to write our own obituary if we passed today."

*********************
"My days are like Novelas in the making. My father is sick. My mother works too much. And I’m the oldest, meaning the next one to bare the responsibilities when they can’t. I have a little brother who is 15 years old and I have to be a big brother/sister to him. He needs to be taught things that my parents can’t teach anymore and that are now my responsibility. I don’t have a chance to be a teenager and I can’t regress to childhood, so what am I now? I’m not an adult because no one gives me that respect. Yet I’m not a child nor teen because I’m working to help provide for a family. Is there a category for the “overworked, overwhelmed” teen? Because I know there’s plenty like me … maybe even closer than I think."

THE DRESS CODE DEBATE

2007-07-10T13:24:00.000-07:00

Photo: Students practice interviewing each other on the Waterbury Green.

We asked the students how they felt about the dress code. They unleased on the subject, and then wrote in their journals.

"Talking with my peers and my instructors helped me realize that I am not alone and that there are people that want to listen. A light bulb lit up in my head. The school system has some serious issues! Whether it’s dress code, racism, teacher attitudes; something needs to be done. We need to include this information in our newspaper. We need to inform the public of the unfairness. We might not be able to change the system ourselves, but I truly believe that if we print our stories, people will read them. And this paper will reach someone of a high status who will be inspired to help us, the youth! We deserve to be treated as equals. The teachers should not have special privileges. Equality needs to be found."

*********************
"After talking about all of the crazy rules and what everyone went through, I felt that I could relate to what everyone was talking about. I might have not got in trouble as much as everyone else in here, but I have friends that have been in the same situations. I see the same problems at my school. Many schools have dress code, disrespect students and don’t treat students right. In my opinion it’s because there are so many rules that they don’t pay attention to the bigger issue. Students go to school to learn and teachers are supposed to help them. However, instead of doing their job, they are more worried about having everyone look the same, following the rules and being in control of the students. They should care more about making sure the students are getting done what needs to be done."

EMPOWERED

2007-07-10T13:23:00.000-07:00

PHOTO: The staff take a look at a newspaper from 100 years ago

The participants were asked how they feel about the program so far. This is what they wrote...

"I enjoy doing this journalism thing very much so far. I’ve been coming here for 2 days now and each day has been a lot of fun. We’ve watched a movie (Freedom Writers), ate pizza, shared laughs. Got to meet one another and played games. I just can’t wait until we start going out to interview people on the streets of downtown Waterbury. I expect to have a lot of fun doing this job. I also expect to get a lot of knowledge out from it too. I want to do stories such as someone who made it from a small city child to recording music in a New York City studio or something like students at certain schools whose grades have increased tremendously. I want to look at the positive side of our city news. I also want to write about what plans the city have going about for ongoing violence, school problems and drugs on the streets. I am going to achieve a lot coming out of this group."

*********************
"I feel that the program so far is going well. I feel that I’m getting a chance to be open and get to try new things. I’m getting a chance to do things that I wouldn’t think I would be interested in, although I’ve always wanted to interview people. This program is educational, lets us speak our mind and keeps us out of trouble. I am scared that I will do something wrong or miss an important word, sentence or idea to put in."

*********************
"I think this program is very educational because they are trying to teach us how to communicate better. To become a better journalist these are things you need to know in the real world. My only problem is that I’m not a people person. I just like to stick around family and sometimes friends. I really don’t like meeting new people or even introducing myself. But I have to because then I’m not going to be able to interview. The interviewing may be my only fear with this program. But so far I like it and I think this is something I can look into as a career. It seems fun to write about what I feel about the school system and many other issues. So I think this is a good experience for me."

"I WANT TO REPRESENT MYSELF"

2007-07-10T13:21:00.000-07:00

Today they listened to an audio recording from the transcripts of the United States vs. Abbie Hoffman, Jerry Rubin, David Dellinger, Tom Hayden, Rennie Davis, John Froines, Lee Weiner, and Bobby Seale (known as the Chicago 8). The recording is an account of Bobby Seale, Black Panther leader, who wanted to represent himself. This is what they wrote...

"The court session that we just listened to is kind of similar to “us” at school. Sometimes when students raise their hand to speak they don’t get the privilege to speak. So in the same way we are like Bobby Seale because they won’t let him speak. But in is also the same with dress code. We got shot down every time we brought up the subject of dress code. We I felt bad for Bobby because he couldn’t speak. He asked more than once can be defend himself and he was denied. He was not allowed his constitutional rights that were also unfair. He didn’t have a lawyer so he should have been able to represent himself."

*********************
"How do I relate? I think that the tape that I listened to was very inspirational because I learned that I can stick up for myself no matter what a judge or lawyers say or do. The tape was about a former Black Panther who stood up for his rights. His name was Bobby G. Seale. He was very outspoken person who said the first thing that came to his mind. Bobby Seale was a political prisoner in CT. He was sentenced for 4 years for content in the court trial. He was speaking up for his life. They were made that they couldn’t keep him quiet."

*********************
"Bobby Seale’s court case was very inspirational. If I believed in something strongly, I would want to have as much courage as Seale did to stand up for my cause. The case can be paralleled with our Underground Media situation. We are not letting the powers lock us up. We wont let them handcuff our minds. We are going to strive for our newspaper regardless of the rejection we may receive, just like Seale spoke his mind regardless of the punishments he could’ve received."

I HAVE A DREAM

2007-06-27T20:30:00.000-07:00

During the first day, the participants watched Freedom Writers. This is from their journal...

"Watching “Freedom Writers” left a deep mark on me. The students in the movie reminded me that no matter what I am going through, there is always someone who has more problems! The way all the students and the teachers were able to connect was all truly amazing. I believe everyone should have someone such as the teacher in their lives. This person doesn’t necessarily have to be a teacher. The way the students were inspired and given hope and something to believe in should be applied to everyone. However I don’t believe all this was played in a realistic way. I know this was a true story, but the way the movie was told was in a “hollywood” way. I do hope one day there will be a teacher that can teach and inspire students the way the movie tells it.

The movie inspires me to become something big and to run after everything and anything I desire no matter how “out there” it might be. I also want to start a diary, even if it is not read. I will always have something to look back on and remember how I felt at the time. The idea of the diary always being there, even if you’re gone, is cleaver. The diary will always be a piece of someone left behind."

2007-06-13T21:09:00.000-07:00

CONTACT INFORMATION
Quajay Donnell, President & Publisher
203-500-3891 | email: believeinmedia@gmail.com

120 Bank Street, Waterbury, CT 06702

Assistant Director
Chelsea Murray

Program Advisor
John Murray, Publisher & Editor of The Waterbury Observer
203-754-4238 | www.waterburyobserver.com