On Friday, February 15, 2019, Second and Third grade students learned about the power of meaningful relationships, and the importance of ending violence and finding understanding. Clifford Ryan from OG’s Against Gun Violence shared his powerful life story to provide useful information on how those qualities can be achieved and shared with others.

On Friday February 8, 2019, SFC Ruby Linzy and Dr. Emad Rahim brought music and inspiration to SASCCS at a recent assembly in the school gym. Ruby Linzy spoke about her mother, Joanne Louise Frazer, the first African American woman to play the piano in the U.S. Army. Dr. Emad “DJ Plain Truth” Rahim spoke with great enthusiasm about his love for music.

On Thursday, February 7, 2019, Maurice Brown from the Working Families Party of New York visited third graders to share information about Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall and the Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka legal case. Students were equally inspired by Tyrone Dixon, who visited to speak about George Crum, the African American Chef who created the potato chip. Yum!

On Wednesday, February 6, 2019, in an effort to expand the reach of reading enrichment from the classroom to the community, NY State Assemblywoman of the 128th District Pamela Hunter visited SASCCS kindergarten and third grade classes to discuss the importance of reading and writing. She enthusiastically expressed her commitment to education by participating in an activity with the students.

On Tuesday, February 5, 2019, first graders received double inspiration from two local musical artists. Tamar Smithers, Education Director of Syracuse’s Community Folk Art Center, spoke about Marian Anderson, the first African American to perform with the New York Metropolitan Opera, in 1955. Marian inspired Tamar to follow her dream as a singer. As a result, she has performed all over New York State and received the Syracuse Area Live Theatre award in 2016. Ben “Tribe of Benjamin” Rudd, a local rapper in the community, enthusiastically encouraged students to express themselves through the creative arts of rapping and writing.

On Thursday, January 24, 2019, the kindergartners from the Citizenship Academy went to the MOST. Through the power of play and thoughtful museum exhibits — students explored outer space, dug for prehistoric fossils, and engineered the next great skyscraper from blocks.  While the students had fun learning our teachers discovered new and exciting ways to bring science into the classroom. 

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On Thursday, January 17, 2019, Andy Vadnais, a software engineer from Syracuse, talked to Citizenship Academy first graders about what software engineers do and how coding is used to create games, apps and other things they use every day. Vadnais explained the importance of going to college and how it helped him achieve his career goals.

On Wednesday, January 15, 2019, third-graders from the Citizenship Academy visited WonderWorks at Destiny USA. While there, they learned about the water temperature from the sinking of the Titanic, how brain waves function, and tried their hand at space navigation using a NASA training program. Thank you, Wonderworks for making science come alive and helping us build success one ATOM at a time! 

On Friday, January 11, 2019, the students at the Citizenship Academy are spending time developing mind-body awareness, improving self-regulation, and cultivating physical fitness. Want to know how? Mr. Eckert, our physical education instructor, is demonstrating the value of flexibility, breathing, and relaxation through the practice of Yoga. Way to go, Mr. Eckert. Thank you for helping us build success one ATOM at a time.