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***To the incredibly generous human who sent an anonymous cashier's check donation: Your donation has been received and I am stunned and humbled by your generosity. Your kindness has ensured that all of these wonderful students will be able to experience this life changing program. Thank you from them and from myself. Though I may never know who you are, I will always remember the impact of your gift.***
My name is Kassie Berg. I work as a naturalist at Walker Creek Ranch, an outdoor school about an hour north of San Francisco. Two years ago, I moved to Oakland, CA and began teaching a class of twenty-eight 6th graders from whom I learned more than any mentor or professor I ever had.
The moment I stepped into their classroom, my rose colored glasses were forever shattered, replaced with a cleaner understanding of this world we live in as well as a deep respect for the children who grow up in the midst of discrimination, wage gaps, and racism.
These students attend a school called ERES Academy and have been in the same class since kindergarten. Now, they are 8th graders, and the oldest students in the school. It is my goal to give back to them before they go their separate ways into the Oakland Public High School system. I hope to do this by funding a week-long trip to the outdoor school that I work at in June just before their graduation.
ERES is a very small in terms of physical space as well as population. The staff has been working for years to acquire a bigger building to expand into. Unfortunately, the project keeps getting delayed by various logistics including funding. The current school's recreation area consists of a 50 by 30 foot rectangle of turf and a play set that is much too small for the 8th graders to use. There is not enough funding or people to support school sports or extra-curricular activities, including outdoor education programs. In the words of the head of the middle school, Lindzey Chadd-Bailey, "Because we are a small, under-funded school, we feel incredibly compelled to give our students [the Walker Creek] experience, but our own limited resources are dedicated to providing the best in-class education possible."
At Walker Creek, the 8th graders would have access to 1700 acres of open space including a pond, creek, and 20 miles of hiking trails through gorgeous Bay Laurel forests and grasslands--sights that are far from the paved streets of Oakland that they've grown up on. They would go on peaceful solo hikes and spend time alone in the forest--something they've never come close to experiencing. They'd go on a night hike beneath the Milky Way and see stars they never knew existed.
I know for certain that they would be pushed out of their comfort zone, have their eyes opened to the wonders of the natural world, and learn about a wild part of them themselves that they've yet to discover. It would change their lives just like they changed mine. I so badly want to give them this but I need your help.
Walker Creek Ranch is a contingent of the Marin County Office of Education, making it a government organization. Therefore, they can't cut me any breaks in pricing. The families of Marin pay $330 per student for this program. Each week at our closing ceremony I listen to a line of student representatives share what has changed in them since attending Walker Creek and each week I find myself nearly in tears from the transformations they voice.
In order to give my former class these experiences I will have to pay the same price. For 28 students and two chaperones I'm looking at roughly $9,600 for the whole class to attend. The cost covers lodging, food, and naturalist fees for the week. I have until the end of April to raise the full price. I would be endlessly grateful for any support you can give to myself and these students. Even if you can't donate, sharing this post with your network would be incredibly helpful. I know for certain that your help will make a difference in the lives of these students.
Here's a link to the Walker Creek Website if you're interested in learning more about our program!
http://www.walkercreekranch.org/outdoor-school/program.html
My name is Kassie Berg. I work as a naturalist at Walker Creek Ranch, an outdoor school about an hour north of San Francisco. Two years ago, I moved to Oakland, CA and began teaching a class of twenty-eight 6th graders from whom I learned more than any mentor or professor I ever had.
The moment I stepped into their classroom, my rose colored glasses were forever shattered, replaced with a cleaner understanding of this world we live in as well as a deep respect for the children who grow up in the midst of discrimination, wage gaps, and racism.
These students attend a school called ERES Academy and have been in the same class since kindergarten. Now, they are 8th graders, and the oldest students in the school. It is my goal to give back to them before they go their separate ways into the Oakland Public High School system. I hope to do this by funding a week-long trip to the outdoor school that I work at in June just before their graduation.
ERES is a very small in terms of physical space as well as population. The staff has been working for years to acquire a bigger building to expand into. Unfortunately, the project keeps getting delayed by various logistics including funding. The current school's recreation area consists of a 50 by 30 foot rectangle of turf and a play set that is much too small for the 8th graders to use. There is not enough funding or people to support school sports or extra-curricular activities, including outdoor education programs. In the words of the head of the middle school, Lindzey Chadd-Bailey, "Because we are a small, under-funded school, we feel incredibly compelled to give our students [the Walker Creek] experience, but our own limited resources are dedicated to providing the best in-class education possible."
At Walker Creek, the 8th graders would have access to 1700 acres of open space including a pond, creek, and 20 miles of hiking trails through gorgeous Bay Laurel forests and grasslands--sights that are far from the paved streets of Oakland that they've grown up on. They would go on peaceful solo hikes and spend time alone in the forest--something they've never come close to experiencing. They'd go on a night hike beneath the Milky Way and see stars they never knew existed.
I know for certain that they would be pushed out of their comfort zone, have their eyes opened to the wonders of the natural world, and learn about a wild part of them themselves that they've yet to discover. It would change their lives just like they changed mine. I so badly want to give them this but I need your help.
Walker Creek Ranch is a contingent of the Marin County Office of Education, making it a government organization. Therefore, they can't cut me any breaks in pricing. The families of Marin pay $330 per student for this program. Each week at our closing ceremony I listen to a line of student representatives share what has changed in them since attending Walker Creek and each week I find myself nearly in tears from the transformations they voice.
In order to give my former class these experiences I will have to pay the same price. For 28 students and two chaperones I'm looking at roughly $9,600 for the whole class to attend. The cost covers lodging, food, and naturalist fees for the week. I have until the end of April to raise the full price. I would be endlessly grateful for any support you can give to myself and these students. Even if you can't donate, sharing this post with your network would be incredibly helpful. I know for certain that your help will make a difference in the lives of these students.
Here's a link to the Walker Creek Website if you're interested in learning more about our program!
http://www.walkercreekranch.org/outdoor-school/program.html