Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/2868
Educators reach out to make a difference Karen Holman teaches fashion and is the sponsor of the Fashion Club at Freedom High School in Oakley. But she and her students are hardly fashionistas focused solely on trendsetting and looking stylish. Holman and her students have opened a thrift store on campus so that students can have “new” clothes regardless of their pocketbooks. The student-oper- ated shop tucked away in a corner storeroom is called Hello Fashion and operates with students ex- changing previously worn cloth- ing for other used items. “It will help kids who can’t af- ford new clothes,” says shop manager Knicy Bailey, 17. “We’re hoping to have prom dresses soon for kids who can’t afford them.” Holman, a member of the worth 8 points. “We’re going to be pretty picky about what we accept,” says 16-year-old club member Em- ily Perry. “We don’t want beat-up old stuff. We want nice stuff so people want to come here.” The shop is just one way that teachers are Christina Zahn, Liberty Education Association, explains that money never changes hands but is based on the “point system.” For example, a pair of jeans worth 5 points and a shirt worth 3 points could be exchanged for a dress helping students and their families cope dur- ing a tough economy where many have lost their homes due to foreclosure or eviction — or are struggling with joblessness and the high cost of gasoline and necessities. And the commuter towns of Brentwood, Oakley and Antioch within the Liberty High School District have been espe- cially impacted. Christina Zahn, a counselor counselor at Heritage High School at Heritage High School, is mak- ing it easier for her fellow coun- selors to help families in need by providing referrals to agencies that can help them directly. “Parents have come in here and told me they have three days to get out of their houses due to foreclosures,” says Zahn, a longtime community activist. “And it dawned on me that we haven’t done anything to help parents who have been kicked out of their houses.” Zahn has gotten in touch with churches and faith-based organizations, the local Chamber of Commerce, and other associa- tions that can offer assistance to local families needing shelter, food or even job training. “My goal is to see what’s out there, so we can tell people where they can turn for help,” says Zahn. “Perhaps there are even families who are willing to take in other people. The economy is a disaster out here and it’s being ignored by our government. Our job as counselors is all-en- compassing. I spend every day making sure our children have a future — and this is a part of making sure they have a future.” Terri Basso, a third-grade teacher at Stall- ings Elementary School in Corona, serves as the liaison between the Corona-Norco Teach- ers Association (CNTA) and the Corona- Norco Settlement House, a nonprofit agency that assists families in crisis — or with tempo- rary financial needs — by providing food, shelter, clothing, rent and referral to other agencies. Basso, who chairs her association’s Com- munity Outreach Committee, has brought in guest speakers to discuss what CNTA mem- bers can do to help struggling families in the Riverside County area, which has been hit hard by the housing crisis.