Leading Lady
A Career in After-School Education Starts at Citizen Schools  

Citizen Schools strives to build the field of after-school learning by training a cadre of professionals who specialize in the unique challenges of out-of-school education. The National Teaching Fellowship combines a special Master's degree program, field experience at middle schools, and partnerships with community organizations that build other professional skills. The result is commitment, versatility and leadership -- as represented perfectly by graduating Fellow Sharlene Jeanty.

To learn more about the unique National Teaching Fellowship at Citizen Schools, click here.

Having served in the Americorps-funded Fellowship for two years, connect ing schools and communities in Malden's Salemwood Middle School and Boston's Mildred Avenue Middle School, Sharlene has played many roles. She's been an educator and a student, a leader and a teammate. Now that her Fellowship is over, she's taking on a new role: campus director. Starting this fall, she begins her career as an after-school professional, running the Citizen Schools program for Boston's Rogers Middle School.

For Sharlene, after-school time is a serious educational endeavor. She says she will set three high bars for her team and her students: to be "productive, high-expectation and results-oriented." The ambition is well earned. She has seen first-hand how programs like Citizen Schools bring communities together with schools to help young people get inspired to learn.

The apprenticeship model makes students see the real-world applications of academic skills. Volunteers for Citizen Schools share their areas of expertise with students by creating a hands-on project that gives back to the community. As a Teaching Fellow, Sharlene helped the volunteers become Citizen Teachers, as well as building the apprentices' confidence and enthusiasm.

Her time on campus wasn't the only place where educational inspiration was born, though. One of Citizen Schools' strategies for attracting talent to the after-school field is to partner with community organizations to employ Teaching Fellows in relevant work during the school day. Sharlene spent her mornings at the Lead Action Collaborative. As often happens when communities intersect, Sharlene saw an opportunity to bring learning alive for her students. She taught an apprenticeship herself-on the dangers of lead contamination.

Bringing her morning partnership into her after-school work, Sharlene led the students in investigating lead in their own homes. The final project of her apprenticeship was an informational video on lead poisoning, made by the students for the Lead Action Collaborative to use in their outreach efforts.

Educational outcomes are Citizen Schools' primary goals, but the impact of the program ripples out from the school. The community benefits from the products the students make, the Citizen Teachers benefit from giving of themselves, and the staff build their professional skills. Next year, as Campus Director, Sharlene will have yet another role, coordinating a team of three new Teaching Fellows-each with a daytime partnership and potential for innovative leadership in the future.

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CITIZEN SCHOOLS
308 CONGRESS STREET
BOSTON, MA 02210
TEL 617.695.2300      FAX 617.695.2367
[ www.citizenschools.org ]