I didn't have time to blog yesterday because I had an extra long day - I took my mother-in-law to the airport before going in for a 10 1/2 hour day. Yikes. I was pretty exhausted.
I spent the morning at the Franklin Learning Center, which is in the lower level of the Franklin library and offers tutoring for English and adult basic education. They have been around for 20 years (!) and do some really great things to support community members who are trying to improve their skills. I got the sense that they are a real "family" and the students feel very welcome in the space.
In the afternoon, I had the chance to sit in on a partnerships meeting with a group called "SCIP" - Schools and Communities in Partnership." They meet regularly and have different speakers tell the group about services and partnerships - I got to hear about a joint partnership between several local police precincts and the immigrant community. They are working to break down barriers and misunderstandings between the immigrant community and police by encouraging an open dialogue and teaching each group to understand the other. Very cool! It was inspiring to hear all of the different agencies talk about how they could work together to reach common goals and serve the needs of their communities more holistically.
Yesterday evening, I went to a special event at the University of Minnesota. There is a new book coming out about the Somali Diaspora by Columbus, Ohio resident Abdi Roble, and the author was doing a exhibit of the photos and a book signing for the public. It was inspiring to hear him talk about the documentary project that took over 5 years to complete. I am hoping that we can recruit Mr. Roble's help working with the Somali community in Columbus - he was really wonderful to talk with and has a unique perspective since he has experience living in both Minneapolis and Columbus.
I spent the morning at the Franklin Learning Center, which is in the lower level of the Franklin library and offers tutoring for English and adult basic education. They have been around for 20 years (!) and do some really great things to support community members who are trying to improve their skills. I got the sense that they are a real "family" and the students feel very welcome in the space.
In the afternoon, I had the chance to sit in on a partnerships meeting with a group called "SCIP" - Schools and Communities in Partnership." They meet regularly and have different speakers tell the group about services and partnerships - I got to hear about a joint partnership between several local police precincts and the immigrant community. They are working to break down barriers and misunderstandings between the immigrant community and police by encouraging an open dialogue and teaching each group to understand the other. Very cool! It was inspiring to hear all of the different agencies talk about how they could work together to reach common goals and serve the needs of their communities more holistically.
Yesterday evening, I went to a special event at the University of Minnesota. There is a new book coming out about the Somali Diaspora by Columbus, Ohio resident Abdi Roble, and the author was doing a exhibit of the photos and a book signing for the public. It was inspiring to hear him talk about the documentary project that took over 5 years to complete. I am hoping that we can recruit Mr. Roble's help working with the Somali community in Columbus - he was really wonderful to talk with and has a unique perspective since he has experience living in both Minneapolis and Columbus.
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