Support the Hobart Shakespeareans
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Support the Hobart Shakespeareans Foundation
Rafe Esquith and The Hobart Shakespeareans are under attack by individuals who don’t know this program, the incredible accomplishments of their Shakespeare performances or the great achievements of the students both in school and outside in the real world. We need to work together to help the Hobart Shakespeareans survive this crisis.*
The Los Angeles Unified School District has removed Rafe from his classroom for using inappropriate words in the classroom – words relating to the works of Mark Twain!
None of the members of the LAUSD board have ever been inside this classroom, have ever attended a Shakespeare production. None of them have seen Rafe and the kids do the seeming impossible. Many of us have, and certainly Ian McKellan has. He has written, “You can’t watch the little actors without wanting to cry. Why do you cry? I suppose it’s happiness, really, and a regret that not all the children in the world could have a Rafe Esquith for a Teacher.”
We should all have been so lucky to have a teacher like Rafe Esquith. Now is the time to demand that Rafe be reinstated and time for us to step up and contribute to the program that we all hold so dear.
Let’s be very clear: The accusations of using inappropriate words in the classroom that LAUSD continues to investigate have been found without merit by the California Commission on Teacher Credentials. There has not been a complaint from a student. There has not been a complaint from a parent. Yet, LAUSD refuses to put Rafe back in the classroom.
LAUSD caused the cancelation of this year’s production of Shakespeare. The Hobart Shakespeareans cannot attend the Oregon Shakespeare Festival this year based on a directive from LAUSD. The LAUSD witch hunt has endangered the after school program, the Music Academy, SAT prep classes, the college tours, the history field trips, the futures of many students. LAUSD is basically attempting to close down the Hobart Shakespeareans.
We absolutely CANNOT let this happen. We must all donate to support the program, Rafe Esquith and the Hobart Shakespeareans themselves. The Hobart Shakespeareans lost a great deal of funding because of the cancellation of the play. We need to do something to make sure this amazing, hopeful place continues to mold kids with character as well as critical thinking skills.
The Hobart Shakespeareans Community is family. Room 56 has meant so much to every one of us, whether we visited in person, joined the Facebook page , clicked onto the website , watched the documentary or read one of Rafe’s books . We can help Rafe and the Hobart Shakespeareans through this very difficult time by supporting the Foundation with our financial contributions. This will ensure that the Hobart Shakespearean program continues into the future, changing lives for the better and creating great good in the world. Your donations are tax deductible.
BY CONTRIBUTING TO THIS FUND YOU ARE HELPING THE HOBART SHAKESPEAREANS CONTINUE TO THRIVE!!!
__________________________________________________
Please see the website at HobartShakespeareans.org for more information on the many aspects of the program and for additional information about the non-profit foundation.
________________________________________________________
*For a bit more background on the LAUSD situation, please read Jay Mathews amazing article from the Washington Post:
The outrageous treatment of one of the nation’s most outstanding teachers by Jay Matthews
________________________________________________________
Please join us on Facebook at The Hobart Shakespeareans for the latest updates and information.
________________________________________________________
You can also help by letting the LAUSD school board know about how you feel about Rafe's suspension:
[email redacted]
[email redacted]
[email redacted]
[email redacted]
[email redacted]
[email redacted]
[email redacted]
[email redacted]
[email redacted]
[email redacted]
And don't forget Ramon Cortines: [email redacted]
________________________________________________________
A Bit of a Biography
Rafe Esquith has been a public school teacher for the Los Angeles Unified School District for 30 years. During this time, he has created in Room 56 at Hobart Elementary an inspiring and innovative program that melds the teaching of character, critical thinking, music and Shakespeare to helps students become academically successful but, even more importantly, to find true success in their lives.
A once-in-a-lifetime educator, Rafe Esquith may be the most inspiring school teacher in America. He's been called "a modern day Thoreau" by Newsday, "a genius and a saint" by The New York Times, and "the most interesting and influential classroom teacher in the country" by The Washington Post. For the past 25 years, Esquith has taught fifth graders at a public school in a Los Angeles neighborhood plagued by guns, gangs, and violence. His exceptional classroom at Hobart Elementary - known simply as Room 56 - is unlike any other in the country.
Esquith's students are mostly immigrants or children of immigrants, living in poverty and learning English as a second language. Yet under his tutelage, they voluntarily come to class at 6:30 in the morning and often stay until five in the afternoon. They learn math, reading, and science. But they also play Vivaldi, perform Shakespeare, often score in the top one percent on standardized tests, and go on to attend the best universities. For his near-heroic work, Esquith is the only teacher to be awarded the President's National Medal of the Arts. He has received the National Teacher of the Year Award and won accolades from Oprah, the Queen of England and the Dalai Lama. He has also written four books, with his most recent being the critically acclaimed Real Talk for Real Teachers. His other books include Teach Like Your Hair's on Fire, There Are No Shortcuts, and Lighting Their Fires. Esquith has also been featured, along with his students, in the PBS documentary The Hobart Shakespeareans.
The influence of Rafe Esquith and the Hobart Shakespeareans reverberates throughout the world as their achievements, both academically and personally, motivate and inspire good teachers everywhere to implement the ideas and ideals of Room 56.
No biography of Rafe Esquith would be complete without a word from his students. One of them recently wrote on the eve of her graduation from Northwestern University, “No one has had a bigger impact on my life than you. Not only did you teach me to academically succeed, but you also taught me to be a good person. I will never forget when I walked into your room and you told us to “Be Nice. Work Hard.” Those are the words that I have always tried to live by. I may not always be the best student or best worker, but I always try to be the nicest person that I can be. Thank you for believing in me.”
Rafe Esquith and The Hobart Shakespeareans are under attack by individuals who don’t know this program, the incredible accomplishments of their Shakespeare performances or the great achievements of the students both in school and outside in the real world. We need to work together to help the Hobart Shakespeareans survive this crisis.*
The Los Angeles Unified School District has removed Rafe from his classroom for using inappropriate words in the classroom – words relating to the works of Mark Twain!
None of the members of the LAUSD board have ever been inside this classroom, have ever attended a Shakespeare production. None of them have seen Rafe and the kids do the seeming impossible. Many of us have, and certainly Ian McKellan has. He has written, “You can’t watch the little actors without wanting to cry. Why do you cry? I suppose it’s happiness, really, and a regret that not all the children in the world could have a Rafe Esquith for a Teacher.”
We should all have been so lucky to have a teacher like Rafe Esquith. Now is the time to demand that Rafe be reinstated and time for us to step up and contribute to the program that we all hold so dear.
Let’s be very clear: The accusations of using inappropriate words in the classroom that LAUSD continues to investigate have been found without merit by the California Commission on Teacher Credentials. There has not been a complaint from a student. There has not been a complaint from a parent. Yet, LAUSD refuses to put Rafe back in the classroom.
LAUSD caused the cancelation of this year’s production of Shakespeare. The Hobart Shakespeareans cannot attend the Oregon Shakespeare Festival this year based on a directive from LAUSD. The LAUSD witch hunt has endangered the after school program, the Music Academy, SAT prep classes, the college tours, the history field trips, the futures of many students. LAUSD is basically attempting to close down the Hobart Shakespeareans.
We absolutely CANNOT let this happen. We must all donate to support the program, Rafe Esquith and the Hobart Shakespeareans themselves. The Hobart Shakespeareans lost a great deal of funding because of the cancellation of the play. We need to do something to make sure this amazing, hopeful place continues to mold kids with character as well as critical thinking skills.
The Hobart Shakespeareans Community is family. Room 56 has meant so much to every one of us, whether we visited in person, joined the Facebook page , clicked onto the website , watched the documentary or read one of Rafe’s books . We can help Rafe and the Hobart Shakespeareans through this very difficult time by supporting the Foundation with our financial contributions. This will ensure that the Hobart Shakespearean program continues into the future, changing lives for the better and creating great good in the world. Your donations are tax deductible.
BY CONTRIBUTING TO THIS FUND YOU ARE HELPING THE HOBART SHAKESPEAREANS CONTINUE TO THRIVE!!!
__________________________________________________
Please see the website at HobartShakespeareans.org for more information on the many aspects of the program and for additional information about the non-profit foundation.
________________________________________________________
*For a bit more background on the LAUSD situation, please read Jay Mathews amazing article from the Washington Post:
The outrageous treatment of one of the nation’s most outstanding teachers by Jay Matthews
________________________________________________________
Please join us on Facebook at The Hobart Shakespeareans for the latest updates and information.
________________________________________________________
You can also help by letting the LAUSD school board know about how you feel about Rafe's suspension:
[email redacted]
[email redacted]
[email redacted]
[email redacted]
[email redacted]
[email redacted]
[email redacted]
[email redacted]
[email redacted]
[email redacted]
And don't forget Ramon Cortines: [email redacted]
________________________________________________________
A Bit of a Biography
Rafe Esquith has been a public school teacher for the Los Angeles Unified School District for 30 years. During this time, he has created in Room 56 at Hobart Elementary an inspiring and innovative program that melds the teaching of character, critical thinking, music and Shakespeare to helps students become academically successful but, even more importantly, to find true success in their lives.
A once-in-a-lifetime educator, Rafe Esquith may be the most inspiring school teacher in America. He's been called "a modern day Thoreau" by Newsday, "a genius and a saint" by The New York Times, and "the most interesting and influential classroom teacher in the country" by The Washington Post. For the past 25 years, Esquith has taught fifth graders at a public school in a Los Angeles neighborhood plagued by guns, gangs, and violence. His exceptional classroom at Hobart Elementary - known simply as Room 56 - is unlike any other in the country.
Esquith's students are mostly immigrants or children of immigrants, living in poverty and learning English as a second language. Yet under his tutelage, they voluntarily come to class at 6:30 in the morning and often stay until five in the afternoon. They learn math, reading, and science. But they also play Vivaldi, perform Shakespeare, often score in the top one percent on standardized tests, and go on to attend the best universities. For his near-heroic work, Esquith is the only teacher to be awarded the President's National Medal of the Arts. He has received the National Teacher of the Year Award and won accolades from Oprah, the Queen of England and the Dalai Lama. He has also written four books, with his most recent being the critically acclaimed Real Talk for Real Teachers. His other books include Teach Like Your Hair's on Fire, There Are No Shortcuts, and Lighting Their Fires. Esquith has also been featured, along with his students, in the PBS documentary The Hobart Shakespeareans.
The influence of Rafe Esquith and the Hobart Shakespeareans reverberates throughout the world as their achievements, both academically and personally, motivate and inspire good teachers everywhere to implement the ideas and ideals of Room 56.
No biography of Rafe Esquith would be complete without a word from his students. One of them recently wrote on the eve of her graduation from Northwestern University, “No one has had a bigger impact on my life than you. Not only did you teach me to academically succeed, but you also taught me to be a good person. I will never forget when I walked into your room and you told us to “Be Nice. Work Hard.” Those are the words that I have always tried to live by. I may not always be the best student or best worker, but I always try to be the nicest person that I can be. Thank you for believing in me.”
Organizer
Dylan Song
Organizer
Los Angeles, CA
HOBART SHAKESPEAREANS
Registered nonprofit
Donations are typically 100% tax deductible in the US.
