The event served as an open forum for anyone in the school community to get behind the microphone and tell stories, share feelings, or recite a poem. These ranged from staff telling their tales of overcoming adversity to students opening up about their experience. Parents also showed their courage and got on stage to share.
Achievement and Behavior Specialist Arnita Cook said the idea for Open Mic Night came from the parent engagement committee at school. The intent of the night was to offer a space for scholars to sharpen their public speaking, social, and emotional skills while also providing families the chance to connect.
“We had a lot of students come up with things they had written down or just what they had on their mind,” Cook said. “We had a lot of staff and they even sang as well. Our first staff member who went up was raised in foster care and spoke about mental health and said she doesn’t usually speak out. I wanted her to go first so she could break the silence. A lot of our students involved were more quiet, so I wanted them to speak out.”
Once the silence was broken, an outpouring of thoughts and feelings flowed from scholars’ mouths. They spoke about their own experiences at a formative age and their parents were moved.
Cook said the school setting allowed parents to see their students in a different mode and environment, which came as surprise to some.
“We had parents actually in tears,” Cook said. “They had these wondering faces when their students went up and spoke because they really did not know. A lot of parents said they had never seen their students in that mode. It was really phenomenal to offer that connection.”
Parents were grateful they were offered a platform to share, as well. Positive parent partnerships are just one of the many reasons Aspire has outperformed the local district for the last 13 years.
The event also touched on social-emotional learning themes for scholars. Their participation helped improve public speaking skills and allowed for self-expression. Cook said she wanted scholars to know they didn’t have to hold in their feelings.
“It was important for them because it’s teaching them when to speak and how to speak,” Cook said. “Like we said, we wanted to break the silence so that they know it’s OK to be heard and it’s OK to speak out.”
What a great event for scholars, staff, and parents! Keep up the great work Arnita and all of Aspire!
Check out a school near you!
About Aspire Charter Academy
Aspire Charter Academy is a tuition-free, public charter school in Gary, Indiana, serving students in kindergarten through eighth grade. It is part of the National Heritage Academies (NHA®) network, which includes more than 100 tuition-free, public charter schools serving more than 65,000 students in kindergarten through 12th grade across nine states. For more information, visit nhaschools.com.
Visit Aspire Charter Academy's blog to read more stories like this.