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Posted on April 18, 2019 by Scott

Exciting news today as bees arrived. Pine Street neighbor Stephenie Harrington had this to say,

Thanks to the dedicated teachers and volunteers who assisted with beekeeping instruction since last fall. Today we watched a wonderful group of confident students handle bees! #OpenHighSchool
We established one hive today and will receive the second hive in a few weeks.
I will be documenting activities and later this year we will offer some public workshops with Parks and Rec Dept so folks can learn more about this urban pollinator project and more things coming this fall.
Thanks to OHHIC (Oregon Hill Home Improvement Council), OHNA (Oregon Hill Neighborhood Association) and neighbors for your support.

More details and publicity soon…

Coliseum Vs. Schools II (Or Is It V?)

Posted on April 14, 2019 by Scott

And this issue keeps bubbling…

Paul Goldman responds to Richmond Public Schools superintendent Jason Kamras’ column in the Times Dispatch newspaper:

Dear Mr. Kamras, in response to your column which predictably starts by blaming white racism. Your open by saying opposition to the record taxes you and Stoney proposing to pay for huge new RPS spending is primarily rooted in a lack of “trust the money” as to how the money will be spent. The first reason you give for this lack of trust parrots the growing City Hall line Stoney aides post on FaceBook: “Some of that distrust has its roots in biases about race and class — conscious or otherwise — that still grip Richmond.” Mr. Kamras, with all due respect, if you want to know why people don’t trust, look no further than the bogus school modernization plan you, Stoney and Council championed. We now know it knowingly used $cost figures $hundreds of millions too low! In addition, 5 new schools where promised from the record meals tax hike: now we know we will be lucky to get 3. A 60% mistake! Sir, the people’s growing lack of trust isn’t caused by racism. But rather proven financial incompetence and knowing misstatements by you, the Mayor, Council on money matters.

By the way, Goldman recently entered a court petition that challenges the City on its secrecy surrounding the Farrell Coliseum redevelopment scheme. And a recent protest at Farrell’s appearance at the University of Richmond included prominent mention of the coliseum proposal. From the UR Collegian article:

The protesters, who are part of a group called The Virginia Student Environmental Coalition, were escorted out of the event. As they were escorted out, they chanted, “No coliseum, no pipeline, people’s lives are on the line!”

And one other thing… Virginia Business reports that Dominion Energy was among large corporations that paid no federal income tax for 2018 U.S. income.

Some previous posts about this subject:

CenterStage, Altria Theater Exempted From Real Estate Tax

Schools Before Stadiums!

Broken Promises: Richmond’s Leaders Don’t Want To Put Schools First

Coliseum Vs. Schools: Time For A New Referendum (I)

St. Andrew’s School Hosting Event Tomorrow Evening

Posted on April 10, 2019 by Scott

Tomorrow (Thursday) evening at 7 pm, the St. Andrew’s School is hosting “a community conversation” at The Woman’s Club at The Historic Bolling Haxall House (211 E. Franklin Street).

Here is more information:

The Carol Wingo Dickinson Thought Leaders Series
Cradle to Career: Equity and Social Justice in Early Childhood Education
Thursday, April 11, 2019
7:00 p.m.
The Woman’s Club at The Historic Bolling Haxall House

Please join us for a thoughtful conversation on how our community can work together to ensure
that all of our children are given equitable educational opportunities that lead to future success.

Featuring:
The State of Early Childhood Education in Virginia
Kathy Glazer, President, Virginia Early Childhood Foundation

Keynote Address
Dr. Beatrice S. Fennimore, Professor of Education, Indiana University of Pennsylvania

With a panel discussion moderated by
Dr. Cynthia Weldon-Lassiter, Ed.D., Head of School, St. Andrew’s School

Panelists
Mrs. Q’Sheka Banks, Family Member, St. Andrew’s School
Dr. Andrew Daire, Dean, VCU School of Education
Dr. Beatrice S. Fennimore, Professor of Education, IUP
Dr. Kate O’Donnell, Principal, St. Andrew’s School

If you would like to attend this event, please RSVP to Ashley Landes at development@St-Andrews-School.org or 804.648.4952 ext. 123.

Suggested admission is $35 per person.

If you would like to give the suggested admission, please make your check payable to St. Andrew’s School, 227 South Cherry Street, Richmond, VA, 23220 or click here to give online.

This inaugural event was named after Carol Wingo Dickinson, a lifelong community servant who, along with her family, supported the St. Andrew’s School community for almost 20 years. During her time at St. Andrew’s, Carol served as a Lunch Buddies volunteer, joined the Board of Directors in 2011, and assumed the role of Board Chair in 2017. Her knowledge, experience, and dedication to the school made her an invaluable leader and advocate for providing access to quality, life-changing education to our students. The Thought Leaders Series honors her memory and invites the whole community to work together for social justice and equity in education.

St. Andrew’s School is a well-established equity-driven community organization that engages in positive community change by providing access to high-quality K through 5 education and forges relationships that strengthen the greater Richmond community’s cradle to career continuum through the perspectives of equity and social justice in education.

Radio IQ WVTF: “At This Elementary School, Every Kid Learns the Violin”

Posted on April 5, 2019 by Scott

Virginia Public Radio station WVTF aired a nice story about the Advanced Music Ensemble/violin program at St. Andrew’s School this morning. You can hear it again on 92.5 FM at 8:44am, 5:44pm, or read/listen by clicking here.

Here’s an excerpt:

The St. Andrews program was founded in 2013 by Amanda Ellerbe. Ellerbe says the violin packs a punch in terms of a musical education.

“Movement, notation, connecting music to other other art forms,” she lists.

Ellerbe based the program off El Sistema, a now global movement that began in Venezuela in the 1970’s – when one man used music education to connect with at-risk youth.

Students at St. Andrew’s also come from disadvantaged backgrounds. Ellerbe says music is a clear way for them to realize that despite systemic inequality, if they work hard they can change their lives.

ONE VCU Master Plan Includes New ‘Capsule Dorm’ On West Cary

Posted on April 1, 2019 by Scott

Further examination of the new ONE VCU Master Plan reveals an ambitious experiment for the Monroe campus- a new ‘capsule dorm’ for West Cary Street.

The document details, recently approved by the VCU Board Of Visitors, include the design, construction, and operation of a new type of temporary dormitory for a small subset of the university’s students. The building will be part of a new complex built on the current location of the Thalhimer Tennis Center on the north side of the 900 block of West Cary Street.

This concept is modeled on a known phenomenon in downtown Tokyo, Japan- ‘kapuseru hoteru‘ or ‘pod hotels’. These structures typically feature a large number of small bed-sized rooms known as capsules that are available for short term rental. The VCU capsule dorm, informally called “The W.Cary Street Pods”, will provide basic overnight accommodation for VCU undergraduate students who voluntarily aspire to minimalist lifestyles. Special VCU student backpacks and digital access rights will be part of the program.

A VCU dean who did not wish to be identified by name had this to say:

This idea comes to fruition at a time when the university is innovating new ways to make campus residential life more affordable. It is also noteworthy that the City of Richmond is now codifying STR’s (short term rentals) and that our own Sustainability Department is tackling traditional dorm outputs.

There will be a full briefing on ‘pod life’ at VCU for the public at a later date at the VCU ICA.

VCU SGA’s “The Big Event” Coming Up Next Month

Posted on March 29, 2019 by Scott

VCU’s Student Government Association is sponsoring “The Big Event” on April 20th.

The Big Event at VCU is a one-day, student-run service project where Rams come together to say “Thank You” to the residents of Richmond. VCU Student Government Association is excited to provide leadership and vision for a new tradition that shows our appreciation to the surrounding community, completing service projects such as yard work, window washing and painting for residents of the community. We share in the mission of similar programs throughout the nation – “One Big Help, One Big Thanks.”

Do you know of a project requiring attention in Oregon Hill? Does an elderly neighbor need yard work done? Any graffiti that needs covering up? Need something heavy taken to Goodwill? VCU students can help with that! Submit your request online at https://thebigevent.vcu.edu/residents/

New Activities Offered In Monroe Park

Posted on March 23, 2019 by Scott

… Or as a neighbor put it, the transfer of ownership to VCU is complete.

Open High Students March For Climate

Posted on March 15, 2019 by Scott

The Times Dispatch has a nice article on Open High students’ participation in today’s international youth march for climate awareness.

Here’s an excerpt:

About 100 Open students – roughly half of the school’s population – left their studies in the Oregon Hill neighborhood at 9:30 a.m. and marched down Belvidere, Franklin and Broad streets to demand the city and school system take action to stop the effects of climate change.

“This is our future,” said senior Ian McCoy. “The generations before us screwed up our environment and now we have to suffer.”

McCoy helped organize the Richmond protest, one of an estimated 2,000 across the world on Friday. Global students drew inspiration from Greta Thunberg, a 16-year-old Swedish activist who has held demonstrations outside the Swedish parliament since last year. Thunberg was recently nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

What I really appreciated was that the article included specific demands from Richmond students to their school administration and City government:

1. Have the city and Richmond School Board recognize the need “to include steps to mitigate climate change with the long term and short term goals.”
2. Use green building standards in school renovations and construction.
3. Have the school district stop using Styrofoam and other non-recyclable, one-time-use plastics in school lunches.
4. Reduce energy usage and improve energy efficiency in schools.
They made those requests known in a meeting Friday with Richmond Public Schools Chief of Staff Michelle Hudacsko and Mayor Levar Stoney’s Senior Policy Advisor for Youth Initiatives, Eva Colen.

Bring on the solar schools!