Student Program

SDEA student volunteers transform
school in annual 'Outreach to Teach'

Educators put down their pencils
and pick up shovels for a good cause

South Dakota Education Association (SDEA) student members joined forces with National Education Association (NEA) members for “Outreach to Teach” and descended on Balboa Elementary School in San Diego, Calif., June 27, where members grabbed hammers, shovels, brushes and mops to repair, landscape, paint, clean and redecorate the school.

The award winning “Outreach to Teach” is celebrating its 14th year of community service. Each year, a high-need public school located in the host city of the NEA Annual Meeting is selected to receive a free makeover—thanks to hundreds of NEA volunteers.

“The Outreach to Teach program is a wonderful opportunity for our members to roll up their sleeves and really make a difference in the lives of children whose communities don’t have the resources to provide a healthy learning environment,” said SDEA President Sandy Arseneault.  “It is amazing how much a fresh coat of paint, an updated library or a repaired window can motivate children to learn.  When they return to school and see those improvements they sense that someone cares about them and they are excited to be there.

“Yet, while the students gain the most from the service project, our members come away from the experience with a new sense of hope as well,” said Arseneault. “They see firsthand how a small group of educators can transform the lives of children in just a couple of days and their hope in our educators and our hope in a great public school for every child is renewed.”

Balboa Elementary School is the most southwestern school in the San Diego Unified School District and serves a diverse community of English Language Learners, including students from Russia, Sudan, the Congo, and the Philippines. The student body is comprised of 91 percent Latino and 4.3 percent African American.

"I was so honored to participate in this year's Outreach to Teach," said Jessica Callahan, SDEA Student Program President.  "Having people from all across the country come together for one common cause was very humbling."

 “Outreach to Teach” began in 1996 as a beautification project to give back to schools.  Past sites have included Atlanta, San Antonio, Philadelphia, Dallas, Orlando, Chicago, Los Angeles, New Orleans, and the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. Since its inception, participation has increased by more than 1,000 percent.

"Our work as educators isn't just limited to the classroom," said Callahan, who is a student at the University of South Dakota and double majoring in elementary education and special education. "It’s also providing a positive learning environment for children.  It was an honor for all of us to participate in this year's Outreach to Teach event to benefit Balboa Elementary School."

Major renovation projects included the teachers’ lounge and school library.

To provide peace of mind during the day for busy teachers and staff, a very special redesign of the teachers’ lounge was completed. This room was completely refurbished. The lounge was painted, cleaned and organized; new shelves and decorated bulletin boards gave the room a fresh, new look; and new furniture was brought in to create a relaxing atmosphere.

Rich Mittelstedt, SDEA Student Program advisor, sees a big impact the project makes on the students, staff and the community.  “The schools we choose are usually located in impoverished inner-city neighborhoods where children don’t have a lot of opportunity and don’t often get to see that others outside of their own family and friends care about them.”

Mittelstedt, a Watertown resident, feels the project demonstrates that much can be done outside the classroom to help children.  “This project demonstrates the power of unifying in groups to solve problems,” he said.  “The outreach projects convey to students that teachers can make a tremendous difference when unified to solve a common problem.”

Now in its 14th year, “Outreach to Teach” is an annual event that has serves as an inspiration for meaningful volunteerism—just like President Barack Obama’s recent call to service. President Obama’s “United We Serve” initiative, launched on June 22, is intended to help make volunteerism and community service a part of the daily lives of all Americans in order to help build a new foundation, one community at a time. “Outreach to Teach” has embraced this challenge and answered the call.

SDEA student members held its own “Outreach to Teach” this spring by helping prepare Prairie Village, a historic prairie town near Madison, for school tours.  Prairie Village sees on average nearly 1,400 students on tours.

“Teaching isn’t just about educating; it is the service to others to help and grow,” said Callahan.  “I think our experience at Prairie Village not only helped them complete tasks before their visitor season, but also to help us all appreciate how important it is to serve our communities.”

Click here for more photos from Outreach to Teach 2009