Tom Arcaro sat in on our class today!
Here’s what he had to say: The blog is going to be a crucial way for Pericleans to communicate, both between and within classes. Anyone can be an author of a post if they want to, they just have to be added to the author list. It’s not just for logistical information, we want to put fun updates up to. We can post pictures, videos, hyperlinks, etc. Elements include class notes, class resumes, general updates, etc. Past Pericleans and Periclean partners will also use this website to be updated on what’s going on within the organization. This blog is an addition to our individual class website, however they will probably complement each other; they are not mutually exclusive. Bookmark this page and send it out to any organizations/individuals! This is a great way to network and get people interested in the program.
There’s a twitter feed! #PSelon will automatically show up on the blog.
We can also construct polls, both on the general blog site and the individual class category sites.
Lindner 206: swing by anytime after 4:00 this Wendesday, the 27th, to meet the representative of the University of Monterey, Mexico, Agustin Landa. We would like him to meet as many Pericleans and Periclean mentors as possible! The students that have been inducted into their program want to meet us and speak with us about what we’re doing and how we’re doing it. They’re available over Facebook, e-mail, Skype, etc.
Tesla Mellage, an ’08 Periclean scholar, will be speaking at the induction ceremony.
This Thursday, Dr. Arcaro will be speaking at the Numen Lumen College Chapel and how to deal with issues such as modern slavery.
If you’re interested, we may have extra issues of That the world May Know: Bearing witness to Atrocity, by James Dawes. It would be a great read for us as it deals with charity. It may shed new light onto aspects that we have not yet adressed or thought about.
We’re the first class with a beginning balance. Dr. Arcaro needs ammunition to argue that this funding is a good idea for future classes, let show them how this money has helped our project!
(Side Note: There’s a current movement to begin taxing nonprofit organizations [like Elon University] and give tax breaks to corporate businesses. CRAZY. This may kill small nonprofits and eliminate many scholarships that Elon gives out. Stay politically informed and active, people!)
At the end of the day, we’re in this to make the world a better place. It’s a difficult task. The work that each class is doing, even considering how hard it can get, is making material change. We can make a huge change, an important one.
Advice from Arcaro’s Haitian travels: Port-au-Prince is probably not the best place to stay for us, if/when we organize a trip. The representative of a church that’s funding a school that Arcaro talked to wanted “people to walk into the future with.” Not donations or anything like that. No matter what organization we partner with, it needs to have Haitian connections. Making this connection is extremely difficult, however, the communication venues that we have available today will facilitate this process.
One of the things that is different between Periclean and other organization is that we have an extended period of time to develop relationships. We are on real life time, and not a semesterly schedule.
A word to the wise from the ’12s: They were trying to figure out their partner and it got to the point that they were on the phone with an organization in India, and they asked, “What do you have to offer to us?” That got them thinking, what does it mean to be a partner? What do we have to offer? What does our group look like a whole, considering all of our individual interests, majors, etc? What connections and resources do we have? It was a major reflection point.
Thank you, Dr. Arcaro!
From Elaina: The Trafficking Victims Reauthorization Act. This was supposed to be reenacted in 2011, but it didn’t pass. It just passed again earlier this February. Tess and Elaina will be going to a conference about this on the Wednesday before spring break.
Laura Wagner: post doc at UNC Chapel Hill. She teaches Creole and is interested in many topics that pertain to our project in Haiti, including public health.
Due to logistical hurdles associated with official Elon websites, we will be setting up our individual class website on WordPress.
Next week: we will be hearing reports from local and and Haitian partner ideas that had initially been planned for today.
Fundraising: we can start now, even before we have a specific project. Possible profit share ideas: Town Table, Pandora’s, Co-op, etc.
Let’s make sure that the people who can’t make it to these meetings stay involved!
Restavek Elevator Speech
Periclean Scholars
Elevator Speech:
Haiti’s restavec system is technically illegal but is a culturally accepted practice of childhood slavery. Rural families who do not have the means to support their children send their youth to families in urban areas and promise household help in exchange for shelter, food, and hopefully education. What many families are not aware of is the sexual, physical, and emotional abuse children endure when being placed in modern day slavery.
Prolonged Elevator Speech:
If you have any questions, comments, or visions, contact me! Colby Halligan: challigan3@elon.edu
Class schedule: The class will officially meet every 4:30-5:30 every Tuesday. The purpose of the class will be, hopefully, to keep the entire class up to date on what the different focus groups within the class are doing and other logistical sorts of things, not necessarily to do work. This means that most of our Periclean work will be out of class time, so we decided that it’s unnecessary to make a second meeting time since those who can’t meet on Tuesday will still be so involved in their focus group. We haven’t figured out the specific focus groups yet.
General updates:
-a student wants to come in and talk with us about her research on human trafficking in NC (Jessica Elizando….sp? sorry if I butchered that)
-Dr. Arcaro has possible ideas for us and wants to come in and talk with us
-possible partnership with an Elon student’s (Will Hemminger) family’s private charity in Haiti?
Tasks for the semester:
1. Identify partners both in Haiti and locally (what do they do? what do we have to offer them?)
2. Define work groups/assignments
(fundraising)
3. Create plan for next two years. (visioning, project goal/objectives, who can travel?)
4. 2016’s induction
Focus groups: (subgroups, main chairperson)
FUNDRAISING
Elaina
Chloe
Rachel
Shelby
grant writing
events
accounting
PR
website crew
Elaina
Libby
newsletter
elevator speech
Cat
Georgia
general events/awareness
Omolayo
Nic
Tess
Amy
Libby
Pan-Periclean
Susie
Colby
INDUCTION COMMITTEE
Colby
Susie
Cat
Shelby
For those of you who weren’t in class, we are sending out a google doc to sign up for a group.
Conversational Creole: There is a person interesting in teaching Creole for 30-40 minutes each class. Dr. Warner is working on getting the ball rolling! Implications: class time for logistics will be shrunk, and class time may be extended. But our effort shows a lot about our commitment, and will also be very helpful for if (i mean, when) we go to Haiti. Perhaps we will get networking opportunities from it!
Summarizing last semester’s work to recollect and move forward:
Partners in Haiti: Shelby, Amy, Georgia
Partners in NC: Cat, Elaina, Rachel
A Word to the Wise from Dr. Warner:
-We won’t know the mistakes we’ll make or where we’re headed until we actually get there.
-Simples things can cause major ramifications. Human trafficking is a very serious and very sensitive topic, and we have to be careful about we proceed. People may respond in negative and maybe even dangerous ways.
-This is OUR Periclean class!
No class next Tuesday, but go to the Hunger Summit!
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