District 308 Student Authors See their Hard Work Come to Fruition

Submitted by Oswego School District:

For Jelani Pieters, becoming a published author has been a great accomplishment and has instilled a sense of leadership in him and his classmates.

Pieters is a senior at Oswego East High School and one of 20 African American students who were given the chance to express themselves regarding their experience in School District 308. The students contributed essays to the book Reactions: A Collection of African American Student Essays, available on Amazon. The book explains how students’ educational experiences mold them for a realistic, yet hopeful, future.

“ It really opened a lot of our eyes on how we were compared to our peers and how we excelled,” Pieters said. “I think it was a great overall experience. I think the book was an overall success.”

The authors recently held a book signing in Oswego East’s auditorium where they attracted a crowd of about 100 and sold more than 50 books. Parents, teachers and administrators clamored for signed copies of the book.

They were also recognized by the School District 308 Board of Education for their effort in communicating their experience on a national level with the book now available on Amazon. The popular book sold out of its initial Amazon inventory, but has since restocked. It has developed an audience with parents and academics alike.

As the parent of one of the student authors, Bridgette Rasberry expressed pride in the participation of her daughter, Kierston.

“ I am excited because it is an opportunity for the world to see a group of African American students who are doing positive things,” she said. “They are great students as far as academics are concerned. I am just totally excited about it.”

Students worked with district consultant Dr. Lourdes Ferrer throughout the year, discussing their stories. Ferrer worked with the students to compile their essays. It is great that they were able to convey their experiences, and they will also see great academic benefit, she said.

“ I believe there are two big challenges the American academic system faces today,” she said. “One of them is writing, and the other is mathematics. The accomplishment here is that I believe we got kids to fall in love with the concept of writing, which is a lot more difficult than reading. When you are reading you are analyzing, but when you are writing you are building.”

Oswego East senior Imani Baker agreed that the benefit to the authors was not only in sharing their experiences but also in their personal development of a new skill.

“ I feel like I have a better sense of writing and have more research skills,” Baker said. “I think those will be of value to me when I graduate.”

The experience will be something that will stay with students long into the future, according to Assistant Superintendent for Teaching and Learning Dr. Judith Minor.

“ It opens up doors for them to include this type of recognition on their resumes in the future,” Minor said. “They have been asked to participate in a symposium at a university this spring. This level of learning is translating into real-world success, and that is what education is all about.”

Superintendent of Schools Dr. Matthew Wendt said that the hard work of these students will inspire the district to reflect on areas for possible improvements.

“ I think it is important we showcase these kids and their hard work,” Wendt said. “In this case, their open and honest work will help the district reflect and hopefully improve as we move into the future. It would be difficult to be world class without making some adjustments that kids have pointed out in this particular book. So I am just really pleased with them. I am proud of them. I am proud of their parents.”

The student authors are:

• Bakari C. Caldwell, Oswego East, Sr.

• Breanna C. Jackson, Oswego East, Jr.

• Chaz Xavier Clark, Oswego East, Jr.

• Deana A. Pieters, Oswego East, Jr.

• Ebony Isis Graves, Oswego East, Sr.

• Ian M. Ross, Oswego East, Graduated

• Imani J. Baker, Oswego East, Sr.

• Jacob F. Hicks, Oswego East, Jr.

• Jahani’ I. Pittman, Oswego East, Soph.

• James Jones, Oswego East, Sr.

• Jordyn M. Jones, Oswego East, Soph.

• Jelani A. Pieters, Oswego East, Sr.

• Kiersten A. Rasberry, Oswego East, Soph.

• Laura N. Ndialeloc, Oswego High School, Soph.

• Milin T. Smith, Oswego East, Jr.

• Morgan A. Harris, Oswego East, Jr.

• N’crai I. Pittman, Oswego East, Graduated

• Richard A. Webb, Oswego East, Sr.

• Syntyche J. Kanku, Oswego High School, Jr.

• Zaria Renee Winkfield, Oswego East, Jr.

For a slideshow of the event, view District 308’s web story.