Building Blocks

Remember the power of a young voice!

2011-02-09T11:57:00.000-08:00

Local Youngblood Laying it out there!

2010-02-19T11:36:00.000-08:00

Philly's Underground Poet!!

The subway train rattles forward, filled with downcast faces on adreary Monday morning.
This is the room Jadon Woodard works mostmornings, walking through the cars
and booming: “Good morning, ladies
and gentlemen!” He launches into his act, improvising a spoken word
rhyme about a passenger’s apparel or, if they’ll help with the
material, a riff off someone’s name.

Jadon will rake in a few bucks in donations for the entertainment. He
used to need these sessions; it was the way he scraped together enough
money to get off the street for the night. He also does it to hone his
craft, just for the adrenalin rush of working the SEPTA orange line –
possibly the toughest room in Philadelphia.

That kid on the train? He’s a national champion. And rapidly becoming a star.

Jadon Woodard is one of the lead poets of the Philadelphia Youth
Poetry Movement, a program of Resources for Human Development. The
Movement helps young people find their voice through spoken word
poetry, promoting social change, cultural and ethnic diversity and
positive self-esteem. It’s a safe haven for expression, a place to for
young people to work on the art of literal and performance poetry, and
fosters emotional healing and community service.

It’s also an avenue for national and international competition for the
best of the best of the Movement. And the Philly Youth Poetry team
might be the best in the country. In 2007, the Philadelphia team won
the national title at the Brave New Voices National Youth Poetry Slam
(the Movement was featured on HBO, which produced a documentary on the
event). Josh Bennett, one of the Movement’s leaders, performed at the
White House for President Obama and the first family.

This year, if they can scrape up enough money, the Movement will head
to Los Angeles to try to reach the finals and win the title again. It
sends Jadon back to the trains, and all the talented kids at the
Movement to the streets, performing at the Rotunda in west Philly, in
clubs and bookstores, or on the streets of the city trying to raise
money wherever they can to pull together the plane fare to L.A.

This is why Jadon has come here. Spoken-word poetry saved him from the
streets, literally turned his life around. He heard it for the first
time in a bookstore, where he was stealing Playboys to sell to kids in
his neighborhood. The bookstore where Jadon was shoplifting happened
to have an open mic night for spoken word. He put the magazines back,
and got up on stage.

“It was the first time I heard someone really speak my language,’’ he said.

Growing up, Jadon bounced out of five different high schools before
getting involved in spoken word poetry. In his sixth high school, he
graduated valedictorian. He now has a college scholarship, and a
blossoming career.

“If it wasn’t for poetry, I don’t know where I’d be,’’ he said. “I’d
be strung out. I’d be somewhere under a car. I’d be dead, or locked
up. I’d be a horrible product of my environment.

“I stayed focused, my art made me focus in school. I found something.
I found my niche. I had to do good, so that I could be good.”

Jadon came across the Philly Youth Poets at a slam in Florida, and
decided then and there to move to Philadelphia and join them, to hone
his art with Movement Director Greg Corbin and the best spoken word
artists in the country. He didn’t know anyone, had no place to stay,
and no way to make a living.

“I was homeless,’’ he said. “But I was on the team, and that’s all I
cared about.”

“When he’s writing, when he’s on stage, that’s what sustains him,’’
Corbin said. “He drinks it like water. If he couldn’t drink that
water, he’d dry up.”

To earn enough money to find a roof most nights, Jadon worked the trains.

“I developed a little bit of a following; people would recognize me on
the street and say: Hey, I know you from the trains,” he said. “I’ve
grown so much as a performer. If you can survive the trains, you can
survive anywhere. You can’t be scared of performing after that. On any
kind of stage, in front of 20,000 people, believe me, that’s nothing
after you’ve survived the trains.”

That training came in handy when he had to make the Philly team. The
tryouts to make the cut are grueling. Live performances, judged in
front of big crowds, can make or break young poets. On the final day,
Jadon stood in eighth place. The team takes four, with two alternates.

His final performance was scored a 30 – a perfect score. It was the
only perfect score of the competition, and it vaulted him, just
barely, into fourth place and a spot on the team.

Corbin said he started the Philadelphia Youth Poetry Movement because
“I saw a need for young people to speak.”

“There was nothing for young people,’’ Corbin said. “Most places that
did spoken word, kids couldn’t even get into. I just thought: What if
there was something just for young people. I handed out flyers – there
weren’t even attractive – and asked kids if they might be interested.
The turnout that first night, just on word of mouth, was amazing. And
it’s grown from there.

“Our poets are doing work that is hard-nosed and risk-taking. And
they’re living their words.”

Growing in his art with the Movement, Jadon has landed a commercial
(that’s him in the Sprite NBA Slam Dunk ad featuring the Knicks’ Nate
Robinson), and he appears on a Nickleodeon special in February
celebrating Black History Month with a spoken word piece on Josephine
Baker. He credits spoken word poetry, the Movement and Corbin with
helping him grow as an artist – and a person.

“Greg is like a mentor, a big brother,’’ he said. “He makes the point
that we not only come here to become great poets, but to become great
people. What’s the point of being a great poet, a great performer, if
you’re not a good person?”

“It has crafted me into the person I am. I think it’s made me a great
performer and a better writer. But I developed into the person I am
because of the people who care about me. In Philly, they’ve shown me
nothing but love. It’s a community; they care about you.’’

GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR YOUNG FILMMAKERS!

2010-02-08T11:01:00.001-08:00

"Non-Violence 365" - Philly's MLK Day of Service 2010: Lead by the Philadelphia Student Union

2010-02-01T09:55:00.000-08:00

MLK Day of Service 2010

2010-01-20T05:29:00.001-08:00

On January 18th, 2010, Martin Luther King Day, 600+ people marched down Broad St. to resist all forms of violence in our schools and communities.

The Good the Bad and the Baby - (Song and Video)

2009-11-13T07:16:00.000-08:00

A video by the amazing students of the Germantown Beacon Center's Summer Bridge Academy, 2009.

Target for the Way We Walk - (Video and Song)

2009-11-13T07:11:00.000-08:00

A video by the amazing students of the Germantown Beacon Center's Summer Bridge Academy, 2009. This group chose the topic of police brutality, interviewed students, police officers, teachers, and then wrote poetry, songs, and produced this video. They seek to raise understanding among all participants so that situations can be diffused and violence avoided!

In A Man's Eyes - Teen Pregnancy

2009-11-13T07:06:00.000-08:00

A video by the amazing students of the Germantown Beacon Center's Summer Bridge Academy, 2009.

The Violence Is Rising - (Song and Video)

2009-11-13T07:01:00.000-08:00

Video by the Germantown Beacon Center Summer Bridge Academy, 2009. This group sought to deal with the rising violence in local Philadelphia Public Schools by examining the scenarios, motivations, and fallout of violence. They then created music, wrote poetry and scripts, and produced a song and this video to share with their families and peers as a testimony for peace!

From the Archives: Teens with Toddlers, 2006!

2009-11-13T06:57:00.000-08:00

Unfinished, Uncut, unadulterated and unforgettable, Kids having Kids, or Baby saves the Day. The struggle of young mothers and the blessing of each new life. Where's daddy? What to do? Why so young? A close look by students at Germantown High at themselves, the young mothers, fathers, and children that are on the rise with increasing teen pregnancy rates. We seek to understand the bigger picture, and honor our individual journeys and each new life.

Ballin with heart Gtown

2009-08-15T20:21:00.000-07:00

Players hoop it up in 4th Annual Basketball Tournament, August 13th - 17th, 2009 @ The Daniel E. Rumph II Recreation Center (Mallery), in the heart of Germantown. College stars, European, NBA, and street ballers alike join the Daniel Rumph Foundation to offer you the opportunity to help support the 4th annual “Save the Next Bright Star” tournament. We are hoping to purchase 3 defibrillators with the money raised from this year’s tournament. Learn more about the life of Danny Rumph and the cause of combating Hypertrophy Cardiomyopathy at: http://www.derii.org/

Wissahickon warriors training to defend philly's water

2009-08-03T11:55:00.000-07:00

My G-High - By Kemon Lucas '09

2009-05-22T05:31:00.000-07:00

To many students, school is a home away from home, but Germantown High School resembles something closer to an abandoned house. The present state of the building conveys a disgusting neglectful atmosphere for students. Is it surprising that the efforts of the students to succeed in school coincides with the effort of our city to replenish our public schools. Our school is not only visually disgusting but also contains danger around the corners of the hallways, down the steps, and in the classrooms. The building we come to 180 days out the year, 5 days out the week, for 8 hours at the least a day evokes tone of worthlessness and dismantling that echoes in the minds of everyone who is a part of the school.

As you walk down the halls look for the compartments where a fire extinguisher would be and count how many fire extinguishers you see. Is this a clear and present danger? One teacher recalls an incident where a fire took place in close proximity to her classroom. The absence of fire extinguisher, led the people in pursuit of the fire to come to her room, ask for her bottle of spring water, in hopes of dousing the flames. In this your excursions of the school watch where you walk and what you touch. The colors on the walls are a collage of milk, mold and mildew. A Pieces of metal protrudes from the wall were a railing should be. Patches of ceiling are missing and wires dangle dangerously in reach of students in crowded hallways. Heaters are not correctly covered and display jagged pieces of metal that are just waiting to harm a student. The paint on the walls is peeling for reasons unclear to me, but I’m sure it cannot be anything good for our health.

Should our health be an issue when we go to school with intent to learn? We can see the mouse holes, dirt, grime and an obvious infestation of roaches bigger that your pinky finger. This is the product of a building that has bathrooms with toilets that flood the floors and some that flush without command. This is an outcome of an institution with trash in every crevice which has been there longer than I have attended the school. Paper and wrappers stuffed in the heaters just waiting to spark. Newspapers and magazines dangerously lay on top of light fixtures with broken and missing covers.

The hearts of people in higher places, who have the power to make our community beautiful and prosperous place, show no compassion to the needs of everyone who is a part of this institution. Our school needs grave and hasty attention. As far as I have seen, we hold a great, extensive staff, but we lack the resources to prepare anyone in this school for a career in the science fields. We sit in classes with broken windows, and the only thing keeping us from the frigid winter cold is a thin plastic sheet secured by tape. We know we are not seen as beautiful in the eyes of outsiders, but we hold great pride in what we accomplish in these walls and we want nothing more than for these walls to resemble our perception of Germantown as a school, and for some, an oasis. We want change, but we can’t do it alone.

BY,

Kemon Lucas, Germantown High '09

AND NOW THE REAL STORY! After Kemon wrote this piece for the sophmore season of the schools returned newspaper, the clipper, the piece made its way into the hands of the head of the Alumni association, who brought it to the SRC meeting, and new CEO Arlene Ackerman. For the past week there have been workers at Germantown REPAINTING CLASSROOMS!!!
From voice and expression we see change, keep sharing the good word!

We Fly High!

2009-05-22T05:01:00.000-07:00

Germantown High Says Hello to Dolly at Radnor

2009-04-20T23:27:00.000-07:00

Germantown High Visits Radnor from Elan Gepner on Vimeo.

For the second year in a row Germantown High students journey to Radnor to see their musical, "Hello Dolly." The Radnor students graciously gathered donations during their show to support the creation of Germantown High's theater program. Last year their gift turned the lights back on in the Germantown High auditorium, this year they sponsored the students production of the "Charity Castle Story," a film and performance telling the story of a slave seeking her freedom in Germantown in 1913. They joined in a workshop together before the show, a hope to visit Germantown high for the final presentation later this spring. Once again our youth lead is in crossing boundaries and uniting around the arts and shared expression of culture and story. Let's all follow their example!

Question of the Day....?

2009-03-04T16:23:00.000-08:00

ARE PRISONS OBSOLETE? (click ?)

CLICK ANSWER!

Don't let the Arts Fall!

2009-03-04T15:54:00.000-08:00

Today's Inspiration: ThE ArtS and InnoVatiOn (click here!)

The Artists Corps of America Inaugural Workshop

2008-12-30T04:52:00.000-08:00

Retained - The Charity Castle Story

2008-12-29T20:57:00.000-08:00

The true story of Charity Castles quest for Freedom. A slave from Maryland, brought to Philadelphia, destined to be sent back, she said she would rather die than return. The truth has eluded us for two centuries, until now? Investigated and performed, performed by students from Germantown High School in collaboration with Cliveden of the National Trust, and the Germantown Community Theater Project. A Discover Germantown Production.

ME, WE, US... A Bridge to the FUTURE

2008-12-12T01:10:00.000-08:00

CHOPIN IT UP WITH THE MAYOR, KAZI, and PHILLY'S FINEST STUDENTS!

Today hundreds of us gathered in center city to show how we really do when we get together to honor the voices of our youth, discuss sustainability, and plan for a brighter tomorrow hand in hand with the people who are going to define it. This is how true PHILAnthropy shines, when organizations such as Greater Philadelphia Federation of Settlements, United Way, William Penn, Youthadelphia, Philadelphia Foundation, Soul Gen, the Hip-Hop Project, and MANY MANY MORE, come together in the spirit of mentorship, collaboration, and celebration to help our city keep BUILDING BLOCKS, and proving that ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE!
The tasks at hand aren't easy, but if we have the strength to admit our mistakes and LISTEN to our youth, the greatest of all creative possibilities lie ahead!

YES WE CAN... YES WE DID... NOW WORK!!!

2008-12-11T20:59:00.000-08:00

2008-11-11T16:05:00.000-08:00

MUSIC IS OUR OIL!!!

Gathering Artists to set the Bar for citizen participation, and show that our greatest commodities are our Creativity and Ideals.

Hand in Hand with a New President, Working with all Americans, and Across the Globe!!!

YES WE CAN!
Save our planet, find renewable energy, care for our neighbors...
Save our businesses, educate our children,
support democract around the planet without imposing or policing

2008-11-11T15:54:00.000-08:00

Germantown Community Theater Project Productions to Date:

SPUNK!
Spring, 2008
Germantown High & Germantown Friends School
Dedicated to all who Git to the Git!
(Celebrate and Collaborate in the Face of Adversity)

FALLOUT
Spring 2007
Germantown High & Germantown Friends
Dedicated to Our Friend, Teacher, and Constant Inspiration, Frank Burd

2008-04-17T06:56:00.000-07:00

2007-11-11T22:33:00.000-08:00