STORY NO.

17

826 Seattle and John Marshall make changes

by Teri Hein

Our plan

The plan was to send volunteers into the classrooms to work with students, hoping to inspire them by inviting them to write personal stories. The project started with a kick-off event by author Sherman Alexie who talked about his own experiences as a child on a reservation in Idaho and how important writing became to him to escape his difficult life. We wanted to include all the essays in one volume, including an essay by Sherman, and have a publishing party to celebrate the release.

What we did

Fifteen volunteers went three times a week into the school to work with what turned out to be about 80 students. At first it was tough going, getting the students to trust us enough to write their stories. Once the stories started taking shape we began making progress. We were helped by the fact that we had done the same project the year before -- the students knew we were good for our word about publishing a lovely book. After six weeks of writing, we then sent the essays to professional (volunteer) copyeditors who sent the essays back to the students with suggested changes as well as personal, encouraging comments. Students had an opportunity to question changes (although as publisher, 826 Seattle had the final say). Students also suggested cover concepts and title ideas to the graphic designer who met several times with them, incorporating their ideas.

Our results

The result was “Burning The Past, Essays on Change by the Students of John Marshall Alternative School.” The foreword was written by author Charles Mudede who stepped in to help when Sherman Alexie was unable to attend. The book publishing party started with pizza for all the authors and their families. Then the public came for a reading and book signing. 826 Seattle acted as PTA for the Day, as John Marshall has no PTA. Board members and volunteers brought cupcakes. We had white tablecloths, flowers and all the fanfare these young authors deserved for their accomplishments. The result: at least 47 students feel that their life stories, stories they worked so hard to write, are valued by people -- even people they will never meet. And this is very important, as these are students who haven’t lived a life where their work has been valued.

Discuss this story

Add to the discussion

Your email address won't show up with your comment.

*required fields
  • *
  • *
  • *
Security message (please type the word below)
simple_captcha.jpg
Get Adobe Flash player

Close X

Minyoung Huh
Kensington, CA