Renaissance Academy of Arts, Science, and Social Justice
1720 Hopkins Dr. ♦ San Jose, Ca. 95122 ♦ Phone: (408) 928-1950 ♦ Fax: (408) 928-1951
Eighth Grade Students
Renaissance Academy Middle School
1720 Hopkins Dr.
San Jose, CA 95127
January 10, 2011
To Whom It May Concern:
We, the eighth grade students at Renaissance Academy, are striving towards balance in the academic battlefield in order to provide social justice and better opportunities for all. Renaissance Academy, a public school in East San Jose’s Alum Rock Union School District where one-hundred percent of our 288 students receive free and reduced lunch, lacks the necessary resources to compete with more affluent schools in the area.
We are advocating because we want to make a change not only in our school but also in our community. We have recently discovered the inequity in technological resources that we have access to compared with the resources at other schools in the Bay Area. Not all schools have the resources that affluent schools have, and we feel that we can work together to help our school and other schools gain resources they need.
The entire eighth grade is divided into four groups that specialize in different aspects of advocating. The first group is comparing communities by researching the resources available at other schools. The second group is researching the benefits of using technology in education. The third group is tying all of our research together by documenting it through media and incorporating in everyone’s voices. The fourth group is in charge of advocating by learning how to gain allies and ensure everyone’s perspectives are heard. By working together and taking action, we believe we will make a difference in all schools.
As you can see this project is very important to us and we hope to leave a footprint on our community. Also, we hope to empower other students with the skills to advocate for themselves, and we hope to inspire others to take action. With the right help, we believe we can accomplish our goal. To learn about the data we have gathered so far, please attend Renaissance Academy’s Exhibition Night on February 3, 2011 at 6:00 pm.
For further information please visit Emily Spacek’s student blog. To access the blog please visit the Renaissance Academy website (www.arusd.org/renaissancea) and click on the “News” tab. For additional questions, please contact our advocacy teacher Ms. Sanee Ibrahim at sanee.ibrahim@arusd.org
Sincerely,
Renaissance Student Advocates
408-928-1950
