Trust Keepers

This Year, Next Year

2011-05-18T15:13:00.004-04:00

As the year ends, I am really happy about everything the Youth Board has done. The new middle school program is good because kids will get the same respect as the teacher. It will be a way for me and other kids to speak up about what they think about Middle School.

The Youth Board has helped me show myself the difference. It has shown me that even if I don't like to talk a lot I can say a lot with dance and art. It showed me I am a great performer My favorite part was getting to speak up about the cell phone rule and eating. My best memory is getting along with everyone and getting to be good friends with everyone on the Youth Board. I will be sad when it is over.

But I think that CityDance should have the Youth Board next year because it is fun. We are helping, giving, and caring about CityDance DREAM and the new T.R.U.S.T. Program. We will have to see if we are going to add any new Youth Board members but I think we should all meet next year even if the T.R.U.S.T. Program does not come to my school.

Youth Board performance at Kings Dominion!!

2011-05-02T12:41:00.008-04:00

Here are some great pictures from the Youth Board's recent performance at Kings Dominion! We have been busy writing lyrics, creating music, and choreographing dances in our weekly meetings. Below are a few pictures from our fun filled day and a video of our performance is soon to follow. We also can't wait to share each of our experiences from the performance to the exciting rides and fun with friends! Enjoy!

Kings Dominion here we come!!

Chyna, Camryn, Amber, Kaylah, Janae, Nicholas, and Nicah

Youth Board in front of Kings Dominion fountain

Amber, Chyna, and Camryn taking a short break from the wild rides!

Chyna, Janae, Kaylah, Camryn, and Amber on the high flying swings

Amber, Camryn, Janae, and Chyna

Youth Board riding the Dominator!

Getting ready to race onto the Intimidator!

Amber, Janae, Camryn, and Chyna

CityDance Youth Board Survey

2011-03-20T21:48:00.003-04:00

Youth Board Members, Doctanian Batts and Janae Collins, surveyed fifth and sixth grade D.R.E.A.M. students on next year's T.R.U.S.T. program's concepts. Here is what D.R.E.A.M. students had to say about their ideas.

New Experience

2011-03-14T17:57:00.005-04:00

Hi Readers,

It's me Janae again. So on March 8th I performed at the Washington Wizards game in the half-time show. It was great I and everybody else did great, fantastic job. Its was cool because everybody was in all these bright colors. Then my brother and mother came they were all the way up at the top and could still see me!

Now we are going to perform at Kings Dominon. We think that Middle Schoolers need to move on to a new place after performing at the Wizards in elementary school. This year the Youth Board is going on the first trip so next year everyone is going. In the T.R.U.S.T. program everyone has different jobs to plan the trip. I am in charge of money and transportation. Ms. Alexe came in and talked to us about how to make a budget. We came down to a good price and that was the end of the money on everything. I love Kings Dominion, it is my favorite amusement park. I liked my job and I thought it was cool and fun just like my personality.

(MIDDLE SCHOOLERS)

This is going to be a great program! Nick, Nicah, and Doctanian created their own rap with the help of Christylez Bacon. It is about cell phones and how if teachers have their cell phones out during school then they have to expect us to have our cell phones out too. I can't wait to go this Sunday, and I can't wait for everyone to go next year.

All Areas of Art

2011-02-14T21:00:00.007-05:00

I really can only express myself in three different ways:rap, art, dance.

I like to rap because I can talk about myself, what has happened, and what I'm feeling. Sometimes I make people up and tell their stories, but it all expresses me. Rapping helps express me like dancing does.

When I draw, I draw my dreams. If I have a nightmare I draw a girl alone in the darkness in a small corner trapped. If I have a good dream, I draw what I saw happening to myself. I draw every morning on the bus on the way to school and show my art teacher.

Dancing helps me express my feelings. When I am in a bad mood, I krump. When I am feeling good, I pop. When I am sad, I dance to a sad song. I dance everywhere. Sometimes I dance to the music in my head. I dance in the streets with my friends and sometimes people video tape us on their cell phones.

I want to incorporate all of these things into the T.R.U.S.T. Program. I want to perform like we did at the Wizards game. I got to meet kids from other schools and people got to know me and my brother for our dancing. At first, I was really shy. But I was allowed to freestyle at a rehearsal and all the kids were clapping. Then I was happy because I recognized other kids at the game. I got to meet other boys that danced and they were asking me to teach them how to do some of the moves.

My CityDance Story

2011-01-17T17:40:00.008-05:00

My name is Chyna D. McCleary. I am a 6th grader. When I was two years old, all I wanted to do was dance and as I got older I got that opportunity. I am apart of a Youth Board for CityDance D.R.E.A.M. Program. This is my blog entry of how it all started.

When I was eight years old in the third grade I joined CityDance. Since then CityDance has made it so easy to achieve my dream. I love CityDance. I have been apart of Citydance for three years. It would have been four, but in second grade I was too young. Hopefully as I grow older I'm able to continue dancing with CityDance. As of now I go to join a elementary school group because there is no official middle school D.R.E.A.M. Program yet. I am excited to be working on creating the new program and cannot wait for it to be at my school.

Performing at the Verizon Center for the Wizards Halftime was a great experience for me because it was the first time I ever danced in front of 20,000 people. Not only have I gotten to perform but I've also gotten to talk to Chairman Vince Gray (now Mayor Gray). I got selected as one of the three students from CityDance who spoke to Chairman Gray about issues at my old elementary school. I also thanked Chairman Gray for giving out school tickets to go see Dancing with the Stars in a special box. It was a great experience because I have never talked to someone important in the government or that has been on television.

Now that I'm in Middle School I'm apart of the CityDance Youth Board. The CityDance Youth Board is a program that gives me a chance to help middle schoolers like me understand that CityDance can help you achieve your dreams, no matter what they are. My dream is to be a dancer and CityDance helps me dance. Also when I get older I hope CityDance is still going on because I would like to teach there. I would want other students to be apart of it.

My Poem

What if I were a dancer?

I might have cancer.

What if I got stabbed in my back?

I could never wake up again.

What if I wish that?

I would take it back.

I wrote the following poem because first it was a class assignment. I saw a movie about a "B-Girl" at CityDance and it made me want to write this poem. Even if something happens to me I would still want to dance. Even if it killed me I would still want to dance.

A Big Thank You to our Youth!

2011-01-06T20:39:00.003-05:00

The CityDance Youth Board enjoyed a successful Fall. Our CityDance staff truly appreciates all of the dedication of the Youth Board members and the hard work they have put into designing the new middle school program. In appreciation, the Youth Board enjoyed a trip to the movies to see a flick of their choosing, Yogi Bear 3D. It was a fun time to have together before the holiday break. CityDance and the Youth Board anticipate a productive spring. We will see where we go!

Spotlight

2010-12-07T09:35:00.012-05:00

By Martez Handon

I think today's youth are very talented. I think that the youth do not have a spotlight on themselves, but the spotlight is on the adults. My thoughts that I have concerning the world today is that people are trying to figure out why the youth are starting to participate in gangs, smoking, fighting, etc. Well I can tell you why that is. It is because we have talent but no one is really paying attention to us.

This is what happens when we get tired and do stupid stuff in life. My thoughts are that you adults should give us kids a chance. You adults had your turn. Its the kids turn now. We have a voice too. The world was not just for adults. The youth can make a difference in the world. Everyone can. Just give us a stage and a spotlight and I guarantee we can.

I have seen youth do things that they are not supposed to because they never had a spotlight. For example, My brother and his friends; They have brains but they don't know how to use it. They could be lawyers, football players, anything they want. But there is no spotlight on them. Help me help the youth.

We need a spotlight on us.

Dreaming Bigger

2010-12-01T09:18:00.006-05:00

WHO I AM

My name is Janae Collins and I was in the CityDance DREAM program for 3 years. During the program, Paul Emerson, the founder and artistic director of CityDance, interviewed me about my dream. I dreamed of getting trashcans for my neighborhood so that my playground and community could be clean. I talked to Chairman Gray and he helped me by connecting me with people who could help me get trashcans. After a few months of work, trashcans were placed on my playground and outside my apartment building. I would have never been able to change my neighborhood and see my dream come true without everyone’s help.

WHAT I WANT

When I started school this year I was mad and sad because I was “too old” to be in CityDance. When Miss Maggie brought me a registration paper for the youth board I was excited. I had wanted to do something that involved CityDance and this new program was a great idea!

WHAT WE DO

So far, the youth board has been talking about things like “what middle schoolers like”, “what they do”, and “what happens in middle schoolers lives”. These things are important so that we can help create a program where older kids can reach their dreams and not be cut off at a certain age.

WHAT I THINK

We don’t want to get confused with adults and younger children. As a group, we want people to know we stand out. It’s important to stand out so that we can show people what we do. As a team, we’re making a change and setting an example. We’re helping make a program so that all ages can dance.

I am already an artist

2010-11-18T10:02:00.010-05:00

Hello, My name is Nick McNeil and I am a part of the CityDance Youth Board. I created the CityDance Youth Board tag with my brother and my own creativity. A tag is a graffiti signature. A symbol is just shapes but a tag is a signature that represents who you are.

I made one for the CityDance Youth Board so people could recognize us quickly and so we would not have to write out the whole name all the time. I liked helping the Youth Board by contributing the tag. The Youth Board tag was like drawing myself because it is a symbol of who are as a group. I always : Think. Sketch. Draw. That is also how I create my drawings. I like drawing because it’s motivating. It’s calming and you can draw yourself and think up what you’re going to do next. I wanted to draw a graffiti tag to show that we belong to hip hop culture. Graffiti is an element of hip hop.

Hip Hop is more than dance. Hip hop is drawing, music, everyday movement, and even more. It is where I feel I belong. Hip Hop is my own road of things I can do. I use hip hop when I make jokes. I am hip hop all day by how I behave. Hip hop is how I dress, it is how I talk to friends. I don’t use slang most of the time when I talk. It is the topics I talk about. Hip Hop gets me excited about creating things. My brother and I dance, write rhymes, and draw. My brother Nicah and I have been interested in those things ever since our Dad helped us record a song for our eighth birthday.

I am already an artist.

...For what we do

2010-11-09T09:17:00.014-05:00

By Doctanian Batts

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Hi, my name is Doctanian Batts and I’ve been in CityDance for the past two years. This year I am in Middle school and am a part of the CityDance Youth Board. Here, we are creating a new program in CityDance for Middle school kids. The new program will be at Kelly Miller this spring. The Youth Board is going to help make a program that is from us so we can avoid disrespect, and then we, the kids, know what to do at program and get what we need the first time without fighting. The Youth Board is important because teachers need to know what to expect from students. Kelly Miller is not going to be an open book, but they will follow the right directions. The Youth Board will help make these directions. Some students will be open arms with teachers, but some won’t because middle schoolers like to talk a lot. But how much we talk to you, depends on how much you talk and listen to us. We don’t like favoritism. We want to know we are doing a good job.

We want acknowledgement.

The Youth Board is great for me personally. I like supporting CityDance and I want it to grow because I want all my little cousins and my family to be a part of it. I feel mature coming every week and making decisions. I want this for my Youth because it is a different option after school and it will help us have better ideas, and something new we could grow up to become. If it is created by us, then it will be for us. We have already come up with better ideas for CityDance. One example is this blog. This blog will help share what we are doing and what our program needs. Alexe, Paul, choreographers, funders, parents, and friends will all be able to see what we are doing. CityDance is good, but everyone that comes on the blog will be able to see us for who we are and won’t get us confused with other parts of CityDance. We want to be known for what we do. Keep looking for updates from people about everything we are doing in CityDance and on the Youth Board.

Trust

2010-11-09T08:53:00.000-05:00

By Paul Gordon Emerson

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

"This is the first time anyone ever asked me what my dreams are."

Those words have resonated for me, and for all of us at CityDance, for years now. They came from a young artist in an unexpected moment in the middle of a class at CityDance's DREAM after-school program. It was a wake-up call of sorts about the fact that we so often talk at, not talk to, our children. That's as true in the classroom as it is in the home.

If dance is about expression and empowerment, then its also a catalyst to reflection and hope. We talk all the time about teaching and training, and about how to give voice to those dreams.

This year Alexe Nowakowski, CityDance's Executive Director, Kelli Quinn, the Early Arts Manager and Maggie Strawley, the Outreach Program Manager set out to find new tools and techniques for our DREAM students to have ownership of their work with us. They set up the CityDance Youth Board. Its comprised of middle school students (and one high school student) who are graduates of the DREAM elementary school program. They're charged with helping to shape the programs we direct for the children whose dreams are, even in a small measure, entrusted to us.

It seemed logical to take the tools of the internet and utilize them in fulfilling that goal of empowerment. One of the outcomes is this blog. The title, Trust Keepers, is theirs. Other than this single posting, the content will be theirs. Under Alexe and Maggie and Kelli's guidance and nurturing it will be a vehicle for them to speak, to be heard, and to give voice to those ideas and dreams and goals that make them who they are and the program richer and more meaningful.

We'll post a writing each week made by the DREAM Youth Board. Its a simple, single step along a long and remarkable journey, and an honor to share with the world.