With the onslaught of recent flash mobs taking place in Center City, many are asking, “Why?” Are the youth of this city so bored with themselves, and so angry, that they find entertainment in hurting innocent bystanders for no reason at all? And are the adults of this city doing enough to engage them in…
There are a lot of things you learn very quickly as a college student. One is that there may be a few classes that you wish you never had to take. At Community College of Philadelphia, I certainly had a few – basic English and math, to be exact – but in the end it…
As I type this I am staring at my newly earned Associate in Arts degree and certificate in creative writing from the Community College of Philadelphia. I am realizing that no matter how tedious, all of the work was worth it. All of the nights staying up to write papers, reading handout after handout, and studying…
What used to be nothing but a huge parking lot for the Philadelphia Housing Authority has become something much more to a group of residents living in the Haddington section of Philadelphia. Nearly hidden amidst a cluster of homes, the Conestoga Pearl Gardens is full of garden beds neatly in rows, cherry trees ready to…
How exciting. Myself and a few others from the Community College Of Philadelphia are featured in an article by Philadelphia Public School Notebook Managing Editor, Wendy Harris. In the article I briefly discuss my journey toward getting into college. CCP was not my first choice, but I am glad that I attended. You can read…
Hopefully the start of a blog series for the notebook, email me/comment if you have suggestions of what afterschool programs I should profile. Sometimes I think of what my life would be like, or how it would have turned out, if I had not attended and ultimately become a teacher assistant with Project H.O.M.E.’s afterschool…
“One thing about the teachers here is that they will never give up on you,” says Klarice Reed. The 11th-grader begins each day at Shallcross Academy attending Townhouse, a social gathering in which students from different grades come together to discuss their issues and brainstorm on how to make the day successful. Like most of…
Jamal Nasir was 15 the first time he sold drugs. It was an easy choice for the gullible teenager: As a Baltimore high school student in the late ’80s, he watched many of his peers arrive at school sporting flashy clothes, showcasing new cars and brandishing huge wads of cash. “It was eye-catching,” says Nasir,…