For weeks Meredith Clark and her roommate have been collecting socks and various school supplies.
The 2007 Clarkston grad volunteered to spend her winter break with Central Michigan University’s Volunteer Alternative Breaks program.
She spent her days with 11 CMU students at the Internation Community School in Atlanta, Georgia helping in the language arts support classroom.
And she met extraordinary students with the biggest smiles she has ever seen.
‘It was a lot different than I imagined,? she said. ‘Kids came from all over the world. They were refugees and immigrants. It was interesting to work in an environment where there was no dominant language, religion or culture.?
The principal took the group on the tour of the school the first day pointing out all classes were in small portable buildings. Then, he took them outside and said this is the gym.
He explained they were trying to raise money for a new school for a more suitable building for the students and they didn’t have to walk building to building.
Clark also noticed some children didn’t come to school without socks of coats and it was common for a teacher to buy socks for her class or a pair of pants or a jacket for another student.
The teachers were also spending their money on school supplies.
‘Whatever the kids brought was what they were allowed to use for the day just because funding is so limited because of the lack of money and support,? said Clark.
The students sometimes didn’t even have pencil or paper to do their work on.
She worked along side a teacher in in the language arts classroom she had a different group of students every hour from grades Kindergarten through fourth and would work with them on their English word recognition.
All of the students knew English, their home language and had to learn a third language – either in Spanish, German, Japanese or Chinese.
Clark was able to learn about the students as they learned from her.
‘They were culturally diverse,? she said. ‘Knowing their own culture and knowing about different pard of the worlds. The students were able to learn so much from each other.?
When Clark came back to Michigan the school was still on her mind and her roommate’s mind.
‘I am passionate about helping the school,? she said. ‘We really appreciated being there because it was a learning experience for us.?
Together with the group, Clark and her roommate set to work collecting donations of socks, school supplies and clothing.
‘The response has been overwhelming from CMU students,? said Clark. ‘We didn’t know what we would get.?
At last count they had over 3,000 pairs of socks, over 2,000 colored pencils, and more. So much more they had to start another collection – for shipping.
Clark is ready to visit ICS again and also plans to sign up for another Alternative Break next winter.
Working with the students is something she plans to do after she graduates with a degree in elementary education.
‘I am really passionate about working with children and educating others,? she said.
For more information about ICS or to help the school, please visit www.icsgeorgia.org.