Higher Ground Voices Newsletter: Welcome to September, All!
Pictured: Higher Ground Staff during their collaboration day.
Can you believe that we’re more than a month into the new school year?
There’s still so much to be excited about: new friendships, familiar faces, and another year of self-discovery and personal growth.
Heading into the Fall season, you’re probably in the swing of your new routine. With this transition, we encourage you to remember a few words of wisdom: this year is your chance to create the positive changes that we all want to see in our shared community.
You don’t need to have everything figured out. You don’t need to strive for perfection. You don’t need to be the loudest voice in the room. You already inspire the people around you— your friends, family, teachers, and even complete strangers—every day. Just keep being you.
Why not spend this next school year embracing the journey that you’re on? It’ll have its ups and downs, of course. With so much out of any one individual’s control, it’s a great time to focus on what you can do. It starts with the little things.
Say Hi Sometime, Ok?
If you see the Higher Ground team out and about, please come say hi. You’ll know it’s us because of our shirts, signs, logo, etc…and you are always welcome where we are. Every conversation has the potential to spark an interesting connection.
Pictured: Lisette Williams, Site Director at Southside Community School
We hosted our first health fair on August 8 at Southside, where we provided resources to our community, including more than 100 new COVID tests and first aid kids.
Doolen’s Restart SMART Team supported an event at Georgetown/Tucson on August 2, where the Tucson Fire Department helped cool off the community by spraying water—perfect for the super hot day! Our partner, Felicia's Farm, generously provided fresh produce including chili peppers, zucchinis, eggplants, and organic eggs, which we distributed to local families
We celebrated an organization-wide Collaboration Day on Friday, August 30. Events like these are part of our regular Friday wellness activities in which we take time for rest, reflection, learning, and teamwork.
Pictured: Kenneth Welch, Director of Outreach & District Partnerships; Pak Yang, Family Support Specialist; Kim Clark, Site Director; Sama Albasha, Student Support Specialist
Upcoming Events
We’ll be at the Celebrating Resilience 2024 Summit (September 5 and 6 in Tucson)
We’ll be at the 13th Annual Tucson Youth and Peace Summit (September 20 in Tucson)
Community Schools Coordinators’ Appreciation Week is coming up, so remember to give your Restart SMART site director a big high-five and thank you! (September 20-25)
Pictured: Taimar Escamilla , Technology Training & Support Coordinator; Charles "Chippy" Sejalbo, Data and Technology Coach
National Events
Despite being one of the youngest community school initiatives, Arizona’s data-driven approach is gaining national traction.
This summer, Higher Ground was one of the few organizations—and the only one from Arizona—invited to an exclusive education summit in Detroit. "US Department of Education: Strengthening Whole Child Communities: Raising the Bar from Cradle to Career," highlighted the growing momentum behind our work in community school implementation.
Additionally, we were the first Arizona organization to present workshops at the Institute for Educational Leadership's (IEL) annual Community School Conference in Atlanta. Higher Ground presented alongside the American Institute for Research (AIR), IEL themselves, business partners, principals, educational leaders.
Broadening Our Perspectives
Pictured: Jansen Azarias Suzumoto, Kenneth Welch, and Kat St.Pierre
With the 2024-2025 academic year, we’re entering year 17 as an organization and year 4 of our Restart SMART strategy.
Here at Higher Ground, we’re all about embracing the learnings and personal growth on our shared team journey.
Several people on our team recently sat down to self-reflect about what it means to be a leader at Higher Ground and our community, given how much growth our organization has been through in the last year. Here are some perspectives that came up.
Higher Ground co-founder and CEO Jansen shares his vision for turning Arizona’s Community Schools into a national role model
Kenny, Higher Ground’s Director of Outreach, discusses his perspectives on building a strategy for inclusion that’s more than just talk
Kat, Director of Communications for Higher Ground, reminds us of some much needed wisdom—remember to take the space you need to live in the moment
We’ll be publishing these letters throughout the year.
Our Team Is Growing
Congratulations to our new teammates and those celebrating team anniversaries:
Jeanie Guymon (Welcome!)
Stephanie Byrd (1 year)
Kenny Welch (1 year)
Chippy Sejalbo (1 year)
Bill Pearson (1 year)
Lisette Williams (1 year)
Pak Yang (1 year)
Gene Martinez (2 years)
Cristian Morales Reyes (2 years)
Kat St.Pierre (2 years)
Amaris Abril (2 years)
Inna Chavez (2 years)
Kim Clark (2 years)
Tiffany Emerson (2 years)
Zeke Lara (2 years)
Angelique Matus (2 years)
Mauricio Salazar (2 years)
Fred Ronstadt (3 years)
Sidney Jasper (4 years)
Rema Hamdan (7 years)
Welcome to our interns from San Miguel High School:
Samantha T.
Mia B.
Claudio G.
Remember to Relax, Have Fun, and Explore
Tucson, AZ
There’s so much lifelong learning that happens outside of the classroom. We thrive when we…live, explore, and prioritize fun. Arizona is such a great place to do exactly that. So consider this publication your reminder to make sure you’re taking space to decompress with your family and friends.
Here are a few ideas for things to do this month (all free):
Check out the First Thursdays and Second Sundays at Tucson Museum of Art - On the first Thursday of each month, the Tucson Museum of Art offers pay-what-you-wish admission during the evening. Enjoy the exhibits and live performances.
Free First Saturday at Valley of the Moon- Local fantasy park Valley of the Moon opens its doors for free this Saturday, this time featuring a sound healing session. Bring your own blanket, mat or chair! When: 8-9:30 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 7, Valley of the Moon, 2544 E. Allen Road
Join the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona on Saturday, Sept. 14 for a fun and rewarding stroll with families, friends and community members to raise awareness AND funds to help end hunger. You can walk in Tucson at Kino Sports Complex, at the Green Valley Walk at Historic Canoa Ranch or at your own time, place (and pace) as a Virtual Walker. Step up and sign up today!
Tucson Symphony Orchestra - There are two free concerts planned this September, a Mexican Independence Day Concert on September 15 in partnership with the Mexican Consulate in Tucson and a Symphony Showcase on September 17.
Wellness and Wonder: a wellness expo for the entire family- Join the University of Arizona for Wellness and Wonder Day, a FREE community wellness expo and educational showcase featuring faculty experts who will help you explore the interconnections of wonder, well-being, health and the humanities from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 21. Expect a digital art collection, tours of the pharmacy museum, photography viewings, faculty talks, meditation lessons and more. See the full schedule here!
Family Saturdays with Watershed Management Group- Head to Watershed Management Group for Family Saturdays, this time to learn about using native plants to create rain gardens. Kid-friendly activities are part of the fun. 8-11 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 21 at Watershed Management Group, 1137 N. Dodge Blvd.
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Thank you for being a part of our community.