A message of support of our Asian and Asian-American community
March 17, 2021
CA Community,
We awoke this morning to devastating news, the horrific murder of eight individuals, including six Asian and Asian American women in Atlanta. Since the start of the pandemic, anti-racist organizations have noted a staggering increase in violence and harassment against Asians and Asian Americans—some reporting a 150% increase in reported incidents alone. And, of course, we know that number does not include the micro- and macro- aggressions that go unreported on a daily basis.
Cary Academy condemns these attacks and the racism and misogyny that spurs them in the strongest possible terms.
Racism against Asian Americans is not new in this country. Centuries of racist sentiment and actions have led us to this moment. Increasingly, fanned by incendiary and racist rhetoric, it spills into our streets and into our daily news feeds, taking a devastating emotional and physical toll.
To our Asian and Asian American students, families, faculty, and staff—we see you. We grieve with you. We stand with you. And we reaffirm our pledge to fight the racism that plagues our country and community. It will not stand.
— The Leadership Team at Cary Academy
Written by Mandy Dailey, Director of Communications
Cary Academy hosts COVID-19 vaccination clinic for Triangle-area educators and other front-line workers
March 10, 2021
On Friday, March 5, in partnership with Health Park Pharmacy, Cary Academy hosted a coronavirus vaccine clinic in the Center for Math and Science gym. In addition to CA faculty and staff, CA invited members of the Cary Police department, an RTP-based firm that manufactures syringes for vaccination, and faculty and staff from thirteen Triangle-area elementary and secondary schools: Bright Horizons, Cardinal Charter, Carter Community School, Central Park School, Cresset Christian, Dream Academy, LatinxEd, Mills Park Elementary, Neal Magnet Middle School, Reedy Creek Elementary, Research Triangle High School, The Raleigh School, and Wake Young Women’s Leadership Academy.
“The question of where to go and how to arrange a vaccination is made a lot easier when we’re able to offer vaccinations – not only to our own employees, but other educators and community members,” said Dr. Mike Ehrhardt. “And we’re really grateful to all the partners that helped make this happen.”
By the end of the day, 450 school staff and faculty, front-line workers, and at-risk individuals from Durham and Wake Counties received an injection of the Johnson & Johnson single-dose COVID-19 vaccine from the Health Park Pharmacy team and their volunteer vaccinators.
If you are a healthcare professional interested in volunteering to help distribute vaccines during future vaccination clinics in and around Wake County, contact Health Park Pharmacy nurse manager Lauren Crotty.
Written by Dan Smith, Digital Content Producer and Social Media Manager
CA Curious
Patience, flexibility, grace, and oodles of kindness
Ubuntu inspires students to think about themselves and their communities
March 5, 2021
At Cary Academy, the final Friday in February always marks the Middle School’s Ubuntu program – CA’s celebration of community that supports our mission by helping students see how they can impact the school, their community, and the world. Ubuntu allows students to experience different cultures, food, work, and other topics through different lenses, piquing their interests and inspiring them to take a deeper dive into a variety of issues.
This year, in the interest of keeping our students and community members safe and healthy, the Ubuntu Celebration was spread across the week, last week. On Tuesday and Thursday, Middle School students in the Blue and Gold learning cohorts had the chance to sample foods from across the globe during lunch. On Friday, each Middle School grade attended virtual discussions with scholars, activists, and artists whose work serves to inspire us to think about ourselves, our roles in our communities, and our place in history.
The sixth grade was inspired by Jaki Shelton Green, the third woman and the first African American to be honored as North Carolina’s state poet laureate. Shelton, who teaches documentary poetry at Duke University, challenged the Class of 2027 to each choose an object or experience that has particular significance to them and then craft a thoughtful personal statement on how it’s shaped who they are. In preparation for her workshop, “What We Keep Keeps Us,” Shelton Green asked the students to consider having a conversation with their family about the object, its meaning to them, and its meaning to their family.
CA alumnus Josh “Rowdy” Rowsey ’09 sat down with the seventh grade to discuss how developing one’s voice and a strong sense of self helps us strive towards social justice. Rowsey, an educator and hip hop artist who uses music, writing, and performance workshops to mentor youth across the nation, is the Program Director at the downtown Durham Afrofuturist Teen Center, Blackspace. During Rowsey’s workshop, entitled “Afrofuturism: Taking SPACE as a form of Social Justice,” students created and performed spoken word and lyrics inspired by John Lewis’ autobiographical March trilogy of graphic novels, co-written with Andrew Aydin, and illustrated by Nate Powell. “Josh’s electric energy and welcoming spirit encouraged students to take a risk and courageously perform their pieces before the entire seventh grade,” says MS language arts and social studies teacher Lucy Dawson.
Brie Starks, the Children and Families Program Coordinator at we are, a Durham-based organization dedicated to disrupting structural racism in the education system and promoting youth engagement on racial injustice, spoke with the students and faculty of the eighth grade. Starks worked with the Class of 2025 to better understand cultural identifiers, bias, and how they can take action to effect real, meaningful social change in her workshop, “Unpacking Identity and Implicit Bias.” Starks, who holds a Master of Social Work, has worked on a number of advocacy efforts for students of color, underrepresented youth, persons living with disabilities, and building campaigns around trauma awareness.
About the presenters
Jaki Shelton Green, ninth Poet Laureate of North Carolina is the first African American and third woman to be appointed as the North Carolina Poet Laureate. She is a 2019 Academy of American Poet Laureate Fellow, 2014 NC Literary Hall of Fame Inductee, 2009 NC Piedmont Laureate appointment, 2003 recipient of the North Carolina Award for Literature. Jaki Shelton Green teaches Documentary Poetry at Duke University Center for Documentary Studies and has been named the 2021 Frank B. Hanes Writer in Residence at UNC Chapel Hill. Her publications include: Dead on Arrival, Masks, Dead on Arrival and New Poems, Conjure Blues, singing a tree into dance, breath of the song, Feeding the Light, i want to undie you.On Juneteenth 2020, she released her first LP, poetry album, The River Speaks of Thirst, produced by Soul City Sounds and Clearly Records.Jaki Shelton Green is the owner of SistaWRITE providing writing retreats for women writers in Sedona Arizona, Martha’s Vineyard, Ocracoke North Carolina, Northern Morocco, and Tullamore Ireland.
Joshua Kevin “Rowdy” Rowsey is a National Recording Artist, Writer, Actor, and Educator based in the North Carolina Triangle Area. Rowdy has been featured on BET, NPR, PBS Kids, and has given a TEDX talk on the importance of Hip Hop Culture. Rowsey is a U.S. Hip Hop Ambassador through the U.S. Department of State and the Next Level Hip Hop Program. On stage Rowsey is part of the national collective No9to5 Music and plays with a live Jazz Band (J) Rowdy & The Night Shift which was nominated for a 2017 Carolina Music Award. They’ve been able to share the stage with the likes of Rakim, Busta Rhymes, Ari Lennox, Childish Major, Snow Tha Product, Murs, 2 Chainz, Juicy J, and a plethora of other national recording acts. Currently Rowdy is the founder of two triangle area cyphers – The UNC Cypher (UNC-CH) and the Med City Cypher (Downtown Durham). He also holds the position of Program Director at the Downtown Durham – Afrofuturist Teen Center Blackspace. Through UNC Greensboro’s Master of Arts in Teaching Program Rowsey continues his mission to spread southern hip hop at a national and international level through performance, writing and educational workshops inspiring the culture through the craft.
Brie M. Starks, MSW is a proud Detroit, MI native. Brie is a proud alumna of the University of Michigan where she obtained a B.A. in History, Political Science, and Afro-American and African Studies. She also holds a Master of Social work from the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Social Policy and Practice. Instead of a clinical based MSW, Brie chose to pursue a macro-focused MSW in community organizing and obtained a certificate in Global Human Rights at Penn. Brie has worked on a number of advocacy efforts for students of color, underrepresented youth, persons living with disabilities and building campaigns around trauma awareness. She enjoys DIY projects and anything that allows for maximum creativity. Brie is the Children and Families Program Coordinator for we are.
Written by Dan Smith, Digital Content Producer and Social Media Manager
What’s your passion? What motivates you? Where will your curiosity take you in life?
When you think of that dream job, what does it look like?
These are important questions, and heady and demanding ones—particularly for high school students caught in the high-pressured whirlwind of college planning and future charting.
At CA, we’re dedicated to helping our students engage with these life-altering questions by creating immersive learning experiences that expose students to new ideas and new fields of inquiry; by giving our students ample voice and choice in their learning journey; and empowering them to take smart risks, to experiment, and to follow their curiosity where it leads.
In the Upper School, the Work Experience Program organized by our Center for Community Engagement and led by Dr. Michael McElreath, is just one such innovative initiative, designed to give juniors the opportunity to explore their interests by trying a career on for size.
Initially born out of a desire to offer students a learning alternative to leading a Discovery Term course, the program has grown in popularity, with over 200 students participating with placements in over 100 sites (Laber-Labs, law offices, hospitals, ground-breaking research centers, NC Symphony, Durham Bulls, and NCSU Aerospace Engineering program and SAS to name a few).
These work placements aren’t just for show. No inconsequential administrative tasks here; we ask that our collaborators allow our students to do meaningful introductory-level work. We want our students to stretch themselves and their thinking, to challenge themselves, and get a true glimpse into what it would be like to do the job.
Along the way, they develop crucial soft skills—leadership, communication, collaboration—and begin the important work of building a professional network that can be leveraged long after they leave CA.
“Helping students broaden their view and giving them exposure to adults expands their horizons” says Laura Sellers, Director of College Counseling. “There have been many stories from alums who are currently doing work in college based on their time during the Work Experience.”
Take a look at just a few of the comments that we have received from WEP partners that have hosted CA students:
“She contributed to the analysis of DNA using electron microscopy. She contributed to the execution of the biochemical assays,” Dr. Oya Bermek, Lineberger Cancer Center UNC.
“[Your student] is a quick study and did not miss a beat. She interacted professionally with both clients, legislators, and other lobbyists. She will be a success in whatever profession she chooses,” Ashley Perkinson, Lawyer & Lobbyist.
“The student was respectful, capable, and independent. I gave her a project to model airplane geometry using an open-source program. She was able to learn about the software from internet resources and complete the task. I also arranged for her to meet with several graduate students from my lab and others. She was good about setting up appointments with them and making the visits. At the end, she gave a presentation to my group on her experience,” Prof. Ashok Gopalarathnam, NCSU Aerospace Engineering.
While such professional and soft skills developed through participation in WEP are important, perhaps most crucial is the increased self-awareness that students gain as a result. To facilitate that important work, the WEP incorporates reflection time for students (where some of the most important discoveries are made).
Through a guided process, students are asked to reflect on what they learned, what went well, and what they could improve. This time also allows them to deeply process the experience. Was it what they thought it would be? Is it worth further pursuit and a deeper dive? Or, equally important, something to cross off the list and move on from?
The success of the Work Experience program relies heavily on our community. Our robust and diverse collaborator network is the result of tireless network weaving by Dr. McElreath (for whom I am always so incredibly grateful) and the CCE’s Parental Advisory Board led by current parent and Vice President of CA’s Board of Directors, Trude Bate (thank you!).
Thanks to their tireless efforts and the countless hours spent soliciting, vetting, and confirming partners, we’ve yet to encounter a student’s interest that we haven’t been able to match with a professional, relevant placement.
Unfortunately, however, given COVID, things may have to look a little different this year. In-person placements may prove more challenging given COVID protocols. While we are hoping to accommodate the same number of students as in years past, we need to expand our network.
And that is where you can help: if you or anyone you know has a business or job that would be willing to host one of our students, please do not hesitate to reach out to myself or Dr. McElreath.
And juniors, the time is now! Applications for WEP are now open.
Maybe you are ready to fight for change alongside a local lobbyist? Or learn the ins and outs of managing a professional sports team? Want to get an inside look at video game development? Participate in ground-breaking research that might contribute to a cure for cancer or advance aeronautic engineering. Or perhaps *gasp* you just don’t know just yet (it’s okay!), but have a vague idea that you’d like to discuss and explore.
Whether you are interested in a pursuing a fervent passion or investigating an emerging curiosity–we want to hear from you!
Written by Danielle Johnson-Webb, Director of Equity and Community Engagement
Introducing the White Ally Anti-Racist Faculty and Staff Group
January 14, 2021
Image courtesy of CA parent and community activist Charman Driver. Driver, alongside a group of community volunteers, partnered to paint this #EndRacismNow message on W. Martin St. in front of the Contemporary Art Museum in Raleigh.
Affinity groups have been a vital feature of the Cary Academy experience for well over a decade. Typically, these groups help students find their place at Cary Academy by giving them access to a group of people with whom they share a core identifier or those who are supportive allies of the group. The groups can be educational and fun. Employees at CA have participated in affinity groups as well, including a LBGTQ and Allies group, a women’s group, and an African American Affinity Group.
Several employees, over a number of years, also participated in a year-long program called SEED: Seeking Educational Equity and Diversity. The National SEED Project works to help attendees understand and recognize systems of power, oppression, and privilege. In light of recent events and a desire to push ourselves, a group of employees have formed the White Ally Anti-Racist Affinity Group to continue this crucial work.
The impetus to create this employee affinity group really came out of two places. One, the murder of George Floyd in the summer, and the Black Lives Matter protests that followed, sparked interest among Middle School teachers to form an anti-racist faculty group. Secondly, many folks who participated in the diversity and inclusion reading groups in the fall felt it was important to continue the work after the groups ended. We want to continue to not only push ourselves individually to become actively anti-racist in our work and in our lives beyond CA, but also to consider systemic changes that can be made at CA to make the school actively anti-racist. Because of feedback received from some BIPOC and white alums, as well as their parents, we felt we had to act.
While the teachers on this campus explicitly deliver content in our classrooms day in and day out, we must realize that all adults are constantly imparting lessons to students who attend CA. These lessons transcend the classroom; they are delivered in day-to-day interactions in our hallways, in the dining hall, on the sports field, and on field trips. Students observe how we engage with their classmates, our fellow employees and community members, with people who look different than us, act differently than us, and may have very different beliefs than us.
Cary Academy’s core values of respect, integrity, and compassion demand that we do better. So do our students. A number of our students spoke at an Upper School faculty meeting last school year about how they were impacted by teachers not being actively anti-racist. And CA alums of color have shared experiences of feeling marginalized and even traumatized by adults on our campus. It has been eye-opening for many.
Beyond personal interactions, students look at the history we teach, the books we assign, the music we perform, and the artists we highlight. It is imperative that we interrupt overt racist behaviors in our hallways, but also the quieter systemic racism that may have infiltrated our course planning and institutional systems.
CA’s administration is already taking steps to increase the number of faculty and staff of color on campus. There is ample research demonstrating the importance of this for both students of color and white students. Care should be taken to also examine our grading practices and discipline procedures, both in our classrooms and for the school as a whole. We need to make sure that the impact we have on our students and colleagues match our intentions.
Cary Academy’s mission is a wonderful guide for our work. First of all, we are a learning community. We want to come together to learn from one another, to hold each other accountable, to grow on the journey together—even though we are not all starting the work from the same spot.
During this work, we will be discovering new things about ourselves, some of which we might not be excited to find; it may be uncomfortable, even difficult. But we also want to discover new and better anti-racist ways of moving forward. Some of those ways might be innovative—new and different ways to teach a unit or course or a different model for one of the other parts of the school. Obviously, we will be collaborating on this work, even as we do our own personal heavy lifting.
Working together, we hope that we will find excellence – for ourselves and for the Cary Academy community.
Written by Lucy Dawson and Bill Velto, MS language arts and social studies teacher and US social studies teacher
Acclaimed scholar guides students through the lessons of Martin Luther King’s final years
January 13, 2021
On Wednesday, Cary Academy, in partnership with Durham Academy, proudly welcomed acclaimed scholar Dr. Eddie Glaude, Jr. as part of its Upper School Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Observance.
In an inspiring and thought-provoking keynote address “Lessons from the Later Dr. King,” Dr. Glaude offered a complex and nuanced representation of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s life and work, ultimately issuing a call to action for us all to strive towards creating the Beloved Community– a society based on justice, equal opportunity, and love of one’s fellow human beings – that King envisioned.
Glaude argues that, for most Americans, the image of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is frozen in time. We easily think of him as the leader of the 1955 Montgomery bus boycott or as the passionate preacher delivering “I Have a Dream” in 1963. Dr. Glaude, however, offered students a look at another facet of the MLK story: Dr. King’s later and final years — when he was doubtful and felt that the country had turned its back on him.
Five years after “I Have a Dream,” King was grappling with despair and disillusionment over the country’s direction — a sentiment he shared with James Baldwin, one of the 20th century’s greatest writers and chroniclers of the Black experience. When the two men met a few months before Dr. King’s murder, both were desperately trying to re-narrate the civil rights movement and change the consciousness of America.
Dr. Glaude examines this critical juncture in the life of Martin Luther King Jr., and what we all must do to make America live up to its promise. “We long for a Dr. King or an Abe Lincoln, because we don’t see our own capabilities as being sufficient,” Glaude has said. “History converged in a way that called Dr. King forward, and he answered the call. That can happen with anybody. We don’t need another Martin Luther King. We need everyday, ordinary people. We are the leaders we’ve been looking for.”
Eddie S. Glaude, Jr. is the James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor and chair of the Department of African American Studies at Princeton University. His most well-known books, Democracy in Black: How Race Still Enslaves the American Soul, and In a Shade of Blue: Pragmatism and the Politics of Black America, take a wide look at black communities, the difficulties of race in the United States, and the challenges our democracy face. His most recent book, Begin Again: James Baldwin’s America and Its Urgent Lessons for Our Own, was released in June 2020. Glaude holds a bachelor’s degree from Morehouse College, a master’s degree in African American Studies from Temple University, and a Ph.D. in Religion from Princeton University. He is a columnist for Time Magazine, an MSNBC contributor, and regularly appears on Meet the Press.
This event was co-hosted by Cary Academy’s Director of Equity and Community Engagement, Danielle Johnson-Webb and Durham Academy’s Director of Diversity, Equity and Engagement, Kemi Nonez, and sponsored by Cary Academy’s PTAA.
Written by Dan Smith, Digital Content Producer and Social Media Manager
At only 29 years old, Firoz Jameel (‘09) is already a seasoned political operative.
Since his freshmen year at CA, Jameel has worked every election cycle, save one. It has been a fifteen-year journey that has taken him from municipal politics to the North Carolina governor’s mansion, the White House, and back again.
His experience has encompassed myriad political roles—from grassroots volunteer to community organizer, campaign operative to paid political consultant, even to the part of personal aide for a prominent politician during a high-profile campaign, and numerous others in-between. Altogether, it is an arc that has afforded him an insider’s view into the many dimensions of electoral politics.
Jameel—who graduated from Duke University with degrees in economics and public policy before earning his Master of Business Administration from the University of North Carolina in 2019—has been following the call to civic engagement for almost as long as he can remember.
“I was politically engaged at an early age,” says Jameel. “I would follow stories covered in the Raleigh News & Observer. I was always fascinated to see how they would unfold.”
A foray into Cary’s municipal politics in ninth grade—delivering a speech to the Cary Town Council in successful opposition to the construction of a large hotel in his neighborhood—proved formative, sparking an initial interest in grassroots politics.
“It was that moment, almost accidentally, that I realized that those involved in decision-making processes are those that are in the room. It was those that showed up, those that made their voices heard.”
THE ART OF PERSUASION
At CA, he discovered an opportunity to do just that—make his voice heard—throwing himself into CA’s Speech and Debate program. It is an experience that Jameel credits—alongside an opportunity to work the 2008 Iowa caucuses with two CA classmates—for fanning that initial spark of political interest into a full flame.
Jameel’s specialty was extemporaneous speaking, an event where speakers are expected to prepare a seven-minute speech on a current events topic with only 30 minutes to prepare. A broad knowledge base and the ability to think your feet under pressure were crucial.
“Debate gave me important insights into how political issues are framed for the public. It made me realize that, for all issues, there are always going to be two sides. It taught me how to analyze both—and to effectively understand and argue, not only the side I agree with but the one that I don’t,” explains Jameel. “I learned how to empathize with people that might not share my opinion, and to craft persuasive arguments that appeal to different constituencies with different beliefs.”
The lessons imparted by the Speech and Debate program were not limited to argumentation, policy, and persuasion, however. “My debate coach, Carole Hamilton, instilled in me that it is always worth doing the right thing, even if it is hard to do,” reflects Jameel. “And RJ Pellicciotta taught me not to be intimidated by things that may seem bigger than me— that I have the tools to tackle them.”
INTO THE FRAY
He got his first opportunity to put those tools to good professional use as an undergraduate at Duke University, securing an internship in the communications office of North Carolina Governor Beverly Purdue. He was responsible for social media and video production—a role he landed, in part, because of expertise gained at CA.
“I had taken video production at CA for my art credit,” explains Jameel. “I knew how to communicate a message, how to elevate the production value of the digital assets we were creating, even better ways to light the governor. She was so pleased with my work that she helped me apply for a White House internship.”
He laughs, “Let that be a lesson: that random elective you take in high school may just be the key to advancing your career.”
And advance it, it did—first to that internship in the Office of Intergovernmental
Affairs in President Barack Obama’s White House (an experience he sums up as “awesome”), and later to a high-profile role within Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina Walter Dalton’s gubernatorial campaign.
“WE HAVE TO ENSURE THAT WE ARE CREATING A SOCIETY WHERE ALL PEOPLE ARE EMPOWERED TO BE CIVICALLY ENGAGED, REGARDLESS OF THEIR RESOURCES OR BACKGROUNDS.”
As Dalton’s “body man,” Jameel was his right-hand personal aide, accompanying him on the campaign trail and assisting with all facets of his day-to day-campaign. “Being at the side of the Lieutenant Governor all those months gave me a much deeper understanding of the political process and everything that is required to be a politician—including the stress involved.”
After Dalton’s loss in the 2012 gubernatorial campaign, Jameel turned to the private sector for a needed respite from the stress of professional politics. The call of civic responsibility would prove too strong, however, and, in 2016, he found himself returning to the political arena.
“At that time, the image of North Carolina that was being presented by our elected policymakers did not align with the state that I knew,” says Jameel. “I wanted to make a difference —to restore my state’s reputation to the welcoming, inclusive, open North Carolina that got my parents to move here in the 1980s.”
Jameel threw his political acumen and gift for persuasive rhetoric into political consulting, creating outreach strategies to drive fundraising for candidates aligned with this vision of North Carolina. The work proved both rewarding—and revealing.
“Aside from making an impact, I realized what appealed to me most was figuring out how best to appeal to voters—determining what messages would ultimately sway their decisions to vote for my candidate. It made me realize that I wanted to pursue marketing.”
Jameel earned his Master of Business Administration from UNC in 2019. These days, he leverages his passion for persuasion as a brand manager in the private sector, designing campaigns to win over consumers to his product lines.
GETTING IN THE ROOM
While he has hung up his professional political career (for now), he remains committed to civic engagement through active volunteerism. With age and experience has come a deeper, more nuanced understanding of issues that confront our political processes—of the challenges of “getting people into the room” where the decisions are made—including challenges of inclusivity, equity, and privilege.
“As I’ve gotten older, I realize we need to ask questions about who knows the room exists and who can access it,” offers Jameel. “We need more voices to be heard. And we have to ensure that we are creating a society where all people are empowered to be civically engaged, regardless of their resources or backgrounds.”
Ensuring that everyone can “get in the room” has been in sharp focus for Jameel this year. And it’s why he committed himself to turn out the vote, serving as an election judge at precinct 404 in Forsyth County, North Carolina. Working alongside his fellow judge and chief judge, he ensured that the 2020 election was run fairly, freely, and to the letter of the law.
“I read articles about the need for poll workers, about how the average poll worker was above retirement age—the very population most vulnerable to coronavirus. There were dire predictions that without enough poll workers, precincts would have to close,” explains Jameel. “I saw it as a call to do my part—to fill the need in the community. This election was critical, and regardless of party affiliation, I wanted people to vote.”
THE GOOD FIGHT
As for what comes next, Jameel has recently relocated to Winston-Salem for his position with Reynolds American. It’s a new community for him, and one where he is learning the lay of the land.
As always, he is thinking strategically about the best way to improve and advocate for his community and to encourage and empower others to do the same. In many ways, he’s come full circle—from local politics to state to national and now back to local.
“I’m focused on building a future here. The government that you and I will interact with daily is the municipal government; it controls our local infrastructure, environment, and local economies. There are opportunities at the local level to make a profound impact.”
At the heart of all that Jameel does is a profound commitment to face down cynicism, to highlight the power of the people. “A lot of people have this perception that nothing they do matters. Across all my political and civic engagement work, this has been one of the biggest challenges, the biggest obstacles to overcome,” says Jameel.
“But we have to fight against that. We don’t have to accept that something has to happen one way just because that is how it’s always been. We can ask the right questions, discern the reason things are the way they are, and then figure out how to make it better. We can exert our influence; we can shape policy for the better by showing up, by making our voices heard. Together, we can move the needle.”
Jameel briefs then-Lieutenant Governor Walter Dalton in the campaign bus prior to an event in Eastern North Carolina in 2012
Jameel films North Carolina Governor Beverly Perdue as a communications intern in 2010.
THE CA WAY
Looking back, Jameel credits the Cary Academy community for motivating him to think big and work hard in the pursuit of impact and positive change. “Whether it was my friend piloting work in the community to fight hunger or another friend that was consistently the best runner in the state, at CA, I was surrounded by fellow students that were motivated to do their best—to always strive for better. It wasn’t competitive; on the contrary, it was supportive and incredibly inspiring,” offers Jameel. “It made me push for success.”
Jameel—who is on CA’s Alumni Council—is quick to point out the crucial role that the tight-knit CA community continues to play in his life, even now, long after graduation. (He received no less than six spontaneous texts from former CA classmates during his brief interview for this profile).
“You have those friendships that seem to be frozen in amber, frozen in time. They are pretty to look at and reflect on, but they don’t grow,” muses Jameel. “My friendships from Cary Academy aren’t like that; they’re different.
“I still talk and hang out with my CA friends, not because we are reliving our high school glory days, but because we have chosen to stay in each other’s lives even as we have evolved as people—as we have undertaken careers, started families, and pursued our goals.
“Through thick and thin, we’re still pushing each other to be the best version of ourselves and to make a positive impact in our communities. Because that is just what we did as CA students, and what we want to continue to do as CA alumni.”
Written by Mandy Dailey, Director of Communications
Upper School
Sophomore writes the book on financial literacy for her generation, literally
GivingTuesday. The global day of giving. After Black Friday purchases and Cyber Monday orders, GivingTuesday provides an opportunity for us to pause, reflect, and give back to those around us. This day has become a day showing strong support for non-profits around the globe, including schools. Here at CA, though, we choose to use this day to look outside our campus, come together, and support our local community.
Last year, as a community, we provided more than 200 in-kind donations to the Diaper Bank of North Carolina. Our students, teachers, and staff brought in disposable diapers, feminine hygiene products, baby wipes, and adult incontinence items to support the local non-profit. I also sported an inflatable baby costume during Middle School drop-off.
This year, we are thrilled by the leadership taken on by three of our juniors – Sanjna Jotwani, Folu Ogundipe, and Neha Sharma – to connect with, learn about, and spearhead the efforts to support a local non-profit, Haven House. Cary Academy has partnered with Haven House for various endeavors in the past, but thanks to the passion of our students, we are thrilled to officially partner with them to drive support for local youths on GivingTuesday.
I have so many incredible things to say about the leadership and passion shown by our students, but instead, I would rather let them tell you, in their own words, why this is important to them and how everyone can be helpful.
The stars truly aligned when it came to our opportunity to partner with Haven House. Dr. McElreath, CA’sExperiential Learning Director, is friends with a member of Haven House’s team, and they introduced us to one of their new initiatives: The TeensHelpingTeens program. We were immediately interested, as the idea of being able to make an impact as a student had great appeal. As much as we appreciate the support from the adults around us, we loved the idea of being able to drive these efforts on our own – especially for others our age.
Haven House is a local organization focused on aiding teens and young adults who are experiencing homelessness. Youth homelessness may be caused by a variety of reasons: some are experiencing crisis at home due to abuse, family conflict, poverty, or inequitable access to housing. Some have been in foster care and, for myriad reasons, leave without a stable place to call home. Others are navigating mental health challenges and do not have access to the necessary resources needed to thrive. Whatever their situations, Haven House provides a safe–haven for youth—a place where they can find the freedom to realize their full potential.
As the holidays are approaching, it’s not only a time to reflect on the privilege that many of us at Cary Academy have, but it’s also an opportunity for us to use that privilege to help others.
Haven House fills a crucial need in our community, and we are beyond excited to be able to help them in any way we can.Sanjna, Neha, and I see how truly similar we are to those being helped by Haven House, and how things that are entirelyoutside of ourand their control haveled us down such markedly different paths.
This year, Haven House is not just asking us to donate to those teens and young adults. Instead, they are requesting donations to their TeenStore. At the TeenStore, teens can “shop” and give gifts to their own parents and legal guardians to show how grateful they are for them. It is a beautiful way for us to use our privilege to spread holiday cheer to not only these teens, but their whole families.
Many of us have never second guessed our ability to show our gratefulness to our families through gifts, yet so many cannot. We do not want to only recognize this; we want to act on it and empower Haven House youth to express their gratitude to those that have supported them.
To that end, Haven House has put together an Amazon wishlist comprised of small gifts, $10 – $20, that they need to stock their TeenStore. With a few clicks, you could transform the holiday season for another youth.
Will you join us in sending some joy their way? The Wishlist is open and accepting purchases now. We will continue to promote and support this cause through the week of GivingTuesday. If you’d like to participate with us, you can purchase directly from Amazon, or you can bring your gift to campus on December 1st or 3rd to be delivered to HavenHouse.
We hope that you will consider using Haven House’s Amazon wishlist and sponsoring a gift to ship to them. And we thank you for joining in us in our gratitude this season.
Alumna named one of North Carolina’s “20 Under 20” Latinx leaders
October 8, 2020
LatinxEd, a North Carolina-based non-profit educational initiative has named Lara Crochik ’20 one of its “20 Under 20.”
Each year, LatinxEd — an organization dedicated to cultivating young Latinx leaders from the Southern U.S. with the aim of removing barriers to higher education and economic opportunities for North Carolina’s growing Latinx community — compiles a state-wide list of 20 outstanding Latinx students under the age of 20. To be honored as a member of the annual “20 Under 20” list, nominees must be lifelong learners, demonstrate a commitment to their communities, and embody inspiring leadership.
Crochik, now in her first year at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, co-founded Cary Academy’s Delta Service Club, working with the Center for Community Engagement to elevate service opportunities for CA students on- and off-campus. Currently studying Global Studies and Political Science, Crochik — the child of Brazilian immigrants — tells LatinxEd that she hopes to apply her passion to the nonprofit sector or in the United States Department of State. Her dream is “to help others get access to the same opportunities as she has had, bring different people together, and to help improve the world.”
LatinxEd will honor Crochik and her fellow honorees during a virtual gala on Saturday, October 10.
Written by Dan Smith, Digital Content Producer and Social Media Manager
