School Board Meeting: Check!

Tonight marked one of the major landmarks in my ILC journey- the School Board Meeting.   After arriving at Lovonya Dejean Middle school I quickly found the other ILC students, most definitely the snazziest dressers at the meeting.  I mingled a bit with everyone else and after some quick instructions, it was time to sit down.  

Both Mr. Ramsey and Ms. Kronenberg were in their element on the stage with the school board, and President Ramsey promptly started the meeting.  Of course, Don also looked in his element perched in the corner of the stage taking pictures.  Never having been to a School Board meeting before, I was not quite prepared for what was to follow. The board members took roll and rapidly voted on different items.  I'm still not entirely sure what was going on, but it was a very exciting start to the meeting.  

The meeting included many attendees who wished to speak about adult education in our district.  Each speaker was very moving, and I couldn't help rooting  for them, especially the 6-year-old student who begged the board to continue allowing her mother to learn English at night school. 

The Ivy League Connection was next on the agenda.  The chaperones for each group introduced all the students and spoke about their  excitement for the coming summer. It was nice to put some names to faces I had seen around the blogs and e-mails.  We even received very nice certificates to acknowledge our participation in the program, and I know this is one of the first things I will keep forever to remind me of my summer at Penn.  The sponsors were then presented to the board and students, and a well deserved thank you was given to them all.

Next came our group photo, a monumental task during which Don got the students, parents, and chaperones arranged and took countless photos.  I am almost certain I blinked during each flash, but I hope one picture turned out okay.   Seeing all the ILC participants in one place for the first time made the prospect of my amazing summer even more real.  I wish it would just hurry up and get here already!