Beyond Tutoring

*sigh* It seems that we underestimated how long the paperwork and other bureaucratic hurdles can take. In late September, we supplied the Reverend with the permission forms and our finalized (but not anymore…) schedule. However, there was a massive delay because the Reverend wanted to talk to the parents about it, which probably took some time because he’s a busy guy. We also need an adult from the church to be present during the Saturday sessions, a requirement that is rather difficult to fulfill. In hindsight, we probably should have started the negotiations during the summer…

As a result, we probably won’t be able to start the Saturday sessions until next semester…  However, it’s probably not entirely a bad thing, because some of us are going to the Wednesday tutoring sessions hosted by the Black Cultural Center and several Commons houses. The same kids who are attending the Wednesday sessions will be attending our Saturday activities, so it’s good to get to know them beforehand. This is especially important for our group, because many of us are inexplicably shy around kids!

We’ve also started to read books to educate ourselves about poverty. One of the books we’re reading is called “When Helping Hurts.” A main points of this book is that anti-poverty efforts must be sustainable (i.e. not die off when the planners leave) and involve the community that is being helped. However, it seems that these conditions are rather difficult to fulfill. When our VIP project ends, the Saturday activities we’re trying to do will be discontinued. Also, it is difficult to get community involvement, because the parents of the kids are often busy. So our project is not actually “sustainable”…

On a brighter note, the kids painted pumpkins for Halloween last week!

Hard at work.

A vampire pumpkin!

Then, they went trick-or-treating at the Commons last Friday. Too bad we couldn’t join them, because we were too busy cramming for exams…