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In Part 2 of this special two-part series, The Conversation continues its look at The Ohio State University’s Student Leadership Research Collaborative and the real-world impact of student voice.
Rachel and John continue the conversation with Dr. Keith Bell, Dr. Maurice Stevens and student participants Evan Allgood and Zarin Wentz as they explore how students have turned research and ideas into meaningful action. From identifying challenges in their communities to advocating for change, students share how the program has empowered them to make a difference beyond the classroom.
Hear firsthand about the impact students are creating, the lessons they’ve learned along the way, and how their experiences have shaped the leaders they are becoming.
Guests:
Guests:
Dr. Keith Bell — Instructional Facilitator, Student Leadership Research Collaborative, The Ohio State University
Dr. Maurice Stevens — Associate Dean, College of Arts and Sciences Office of Engagement, The Ohio State University
Evan Allgood — Junior, Hamilton Township
Zarin Wentz — Junior, New Albany
Creators and Guests
Host
Host
Producer
Brenna Schoen-Roth
Brenna Schoen-Roth is the Communications and Social Media Specialist at the ESC of Central Ohio. As the producer of "The Conversation", Brenna assists with the planning, recording, post production and promotion of the podcast. She also voices the intros of all podcast episodes! Want to be part of "The Conversation"? Email us: brenna.schoen@escco.org
What is The Conversation?
Welcome to "The Conversation", the ESC of Central Ohio's podcast! Join podcast hosts John Hambrick and Rachel Daniels every month as they explore a variety of topics featuring voices in education, helping to ignite ideas and inspire change. Want to be part of "The Conversation"? Email us: brenna.schoen@escco.org
Intro:
This is part two of our Student Voice Leading Change episode. If you have not listened to part one of this series, you can find it on our podcast page. Now, back to the conversation.
John Hambrick:
Dr. Bell, you've really done well to share with us the process and the framework of how you are bringing students together with the collaborative. For our listeners, can you share what some of the examples of the topics and the challenges that students have been exploring over the last many years?
Dr. Keith Bell:
It has been really interesting to watch how these kids have evolved and created the different kinds of topics and issues in their school. So, just a couple of examples. They have looked at mental health has been a big one, and they have examined and looked at what that might look like. They've also examined looking at policy, they've looked at mental health, they've looked at changes in their cafeteria, they've looked at changes in, for example, maybe in parking, different things that go on, that students have issues about that come to the forefront. I'm going to give you a couple of specific examples. Westerville had, it was during the pandemic, they did research on... Wanted to have a class called Adulting. And what that was is that they wanted to be able to have a class where they learned how to write checks, how to live on their own, how to do adult-like stuff.
And during the pandemic, just through social media, they had just under 1300 responses when they sent their information out, and they had all of this research. And they were really adamant about trying to look at adding a course to teach them about how to be adults, and how to do those kinds of things. So, they looked at multiple issues. When they get to year two and three, we start looking at statewide issues. So, in the first year it's about an issue in their school. We've had mental health, we've had issues like I said before in the cafeteria-
Dr. Maurice Stevens:
Absenteeism.
Dr. Keith Bell:
Yeah, absenteeism. Thank you, Doc. They've had absenteeism, all kinds of things that they look for in that first year. And then, when they get into their second and third year... And the kids forced me to do this. When I started this and looked at this, I didn't have a plan for second and third year. And this is where the partnership, and you're going to ask me this later, and I'll allude to it now, where the partnership with Ohio State really gained significance. I didn't really know how or what I was going to do with two and three because kids, one of the ways to measure the effectiveness of what you do with high school kids is if they come back, and they all wanted to come back. We've got probably 80% retention rate of kids who come back from the first year to the second year.
And so, they're not going to come back unless it's something that they want to do. And so, I didn't know what we were going to do and how we were going to do that. And so, I had the idea that maybe it's a time for us to start looking at maybe statewide and dealing with community, and that's where Dr. Stevens and the College of Arts and Sciences Office of Engagement comes into play, because what they've done is help us to elevate that, and now look at community and how to advocate for the community. So, students now are looking at projects that are now community-based as they go into their second and third year, they come back as third year students. So, this past year, example is we had students that presented at the American Education Research Association, this is the second year. Last year they presented chronic absenteeism presentation.
This past year they presented AI, they examined the AI policy and have made a statewide research and made recommendations on what students are saying about how they can take that model policy and blend some of the things into it from student voice, from a student lens. So, to do that and to communicate that has been really significant. And then, the other component is the civil discourse and community participatory partnership that we have. And I'm going to let Dr. Stevens talk a little bit about that.
Dr. Maurice Stevens:
I mean, it really just builds on the skills that the students are building in the year one around what does it mean to take a YPAR approach to your own world and your own life. And in the same way that YPAR kind of kicks up what standard education practices for them, the regenerative engagement or community engagement advocacy piece, and also the civil discourse for citizenship, which is basically just about how to have hard conversations, it kind of kicks up the basic volunteerism that students are encouraged to do, especially in high school, but also middle school, and says, hey, you can do more than just volunteer for Key... I mean, that's great, volunteering for Key Club and things like that, but also you can develop meaningful relationships with community partners, and work with partners to engage problems that are driven by partners, where it's being defined by community partners.
So, it's collaboration with community partners around issues that matter, and then also hosting conversations that are usually tough conversations that have significance to the students in the spaces that they live. And we've had a number of students who actually combined those two areas of activity to have community conversations that are important to community. So, things around food insecurity, or opioid use, or financial literacy was one that came up, and so where folks are hosting conversations in community around those things.
Dr. Keith Bell:
Absolutely. And what the College of Arts and Sciences Office of Engagement has done also is help us to be able to now be able to give students Ohio State credit, and then we also-
Dr. Maurice Stevens:
Right, giving CCP credit.
Dr. Keith Bell:
Yeah, CCP credit. And we've also been able, we have a summer course.
Dr. Maurice Stevens:
A summer course. There's a week long course called, Regenerative Engagement 101, which will help the students develop these partnerships that they are interested in, or if they don't know yet what they're interested in, help them figure out what they're interested in, and then that'll continue throughout the school year as part of the SLRC program.
Rachel Daniels:
Well, Zarin and Evan, Dr. Bell has teed up what John and I think is the best question of the day perfectly. So, we'd love to hear from you, what's been one of the most meaningful projects, discussions, or activities that you've participated in throughout this program? So, Zarin, we'll start with you. Share with us what has been most meaningful.
Zarin Wentz:
I definitely think our last year's project for student involvement was the most meaningful for us because in our school every year, every student loses more motivation to go to all these school-related events all the time, and it's kind of separated a lot of the students, and making them want to leave school all the time, and just not want to be involved in any of the things. Because they do things for us that they think we'll like, but it's oftentimes what they like, and what they [inaudible 00:07:20] like and it's not what we like. But last year we did bring back houses, which we used to have before COVID, and it has really brought the students together, and it's like each house has different colors and names and all this stuff like that, and you are picked by a house. And we do all these fun games that we oftentimes get to pick, and we get to volunteer if we want to do...
And we can win fun points and prizes for our houses, which has also brought us together. But with that being said, I think that project has really helped us with the student involvement and spirit, and it's a big thing for us. Because oftentimes our school has gotten very separated over the years, every year there's a class that's very close. And then after us younger COVID kids, I feel like we have gotten more separated and more isolated, I guess. Spirit is a big thing for us and involvement is a big thing for us.
Rachel Daniels:
So, it sounds like this addition of voice and choice has been really critical and helpful. And I think that is a great lesson to learn that you'll carry into your adult life, when you are in leadership positions in the future. So, I love how you're seeing the impact of that already. So, Evan, share with us what has had the biggest impact on you.
Evan Allgood:
I would say the biggest impact on me, our project was over counselors and being able to meet with our counselors and talk to our counselors. Our counselors are usually never available, and they also don't have a scheduled lunch, so sometimes they won't even be able to eat lunch. And also we did an analysis and gathered some research, over half the kids in our school doesn't know our counselors, they don't have a specific counselor. So, what we plan on doing is having us schedule set meeting times with counselors, you got to be able to schedule set meeting times, having a counselor specify in one thing, and also our counselors having an intern or getting more help, or adding another counselor so they can have the time to eat lunch, or be able to take a break.
Rachel Daniels:
Well, and I love how that project really impacts not just students, but also the entire staff, the entire building. And so, it's not as though you're just thinking about what's best for students, but you're really thinking about the building as a whole, and that's a really powerful approach. I appreciate hearing from both of you.
Dr. Keith Bell:
Can I just add one other example because I think this is really good and I hadn't thought about this one.
Rachel Daniels:
Sure.
Dr. Keith Bell:
And this one was one of the schools had a issue with students wanting to see the counselor for mental health and all that kind of thing, and they couldn't figure out why no one ever wanted to go to the counselor, why they never went, and based off what Evan was talking about, why weren't students coming and all of that. And here's what the students found out that the adults never figured out. They did their research, they found out that the reason why no one ever went to the counselor or never went to them to talk about mental health is because the window to the counselor's room was open and everybody could see them in there. All they had to do was to change the window or change the location and people would go. But the adults never figured that out, the kids did. And they, through their research, found out that, yeah, we'll go, but we're not going there when everybody can see us in there.
Dr. Maurice Stevens:
They had a simple recommendation too.
Dr. Keith Bell:
A simple recommendation.
Dr. Maurice Stevens:
It was just to put a curtain across the window.
Dr. Keith Bell:
It was a simple recommendation, yes. That's the kind of thing that these kids are able to do.
Rachel Daniels:
Yeah, that's a really powerful example. What seems like an insurmountable problem turned out to have a pretty simple fix when you look at it from a different perspective.
Dr. Keith Bell:
Absolutely.
Rachel Daniels:
Yeah, that's a powerful example. Well, again, our podcast is coming to an end, but to wrap up, Dr. Bell and Stevens, what gives you hope when you think about the next generation of student leaders? Just share a brief snippet about what percolates that notion of hope in you when you think about students like Evan and Zarin, who've been with us today.
Dr. Maurice Stevens:
Well, I'll start by saying I don't really rely on hope for things, so I won't use the notion of hope for it. But what I do know is that when young people have the experience of changing their world through education, through knowledge production and knowledge sharing, that it enlivens their living vibrancy and their sense of possibility. And when they do that and act from that place, liberation happens. So, that's all I'll say.
Dr. Keith Bell:
Absolutely.
Rachel Daniels:
Powerful. Dr. Bell?
Dr. Keith Bell:
Yeah, and again, hope's never been my strategy either. And so, when I look at this, I look at the fact that when I see kids talking about how they quantitatively and qualitatively measured a problem in their school, speaking from that language, and also when I see them willing to give up their time, like these two students today, and others willing to give up their time to work to make their schools better, that tells me that this generation, all they need is the trust, and the support, and the resources and they can make it happen. These kids are brilliant, they are absolutely brilliant.
Rachel Daniels:
That's right.
Dr. Keith Bell:
And all they need is an opportunity. And for us as adults in those positions, what we have to do is create the opportunity for them to exercise their brilliance. And that to me is what gives me the belief that they're going to make things better.
Rachel Daniels:
Yeah, that's a powerful perspective. Well, from authentic collaboration to leadership and advocacy, I've decided from our conversation today that we could all learn a little something through the YPAR approach. So, we'd like to just say a special thank you to you, Dr. Bell and Dr. Stevens, for joining us. And obviously Zarin and Evan, we wouldn't be here if it weren't for you. So, thank you for your participation in the program and your willingness to share just a little snippet with us today. We are just so thrilled to learn about this project. So, for John, this is Rachel, stay curious and keep up with the conversation.