Category Archives: Personal Empowerment

Four representatives of Sauberan & Company, Brad Priebe, Corey Gallahan, Dave Milliman and Joe Boulanger, emerged as the champions of Youth Mentoring Services' 25th annual charity golf tournament at Brookfield Country Club, Clarence.

Twenty-six golf foursome groups competed in the fundraising tourney on May 22. To mark its 25th year, YMS put together a display of photos, articles and other mementoes from past tournaments.

Dr. James Shaw of Lockport Dental Group and Brian Costello of Diversified Manufacturing hosted the tourney. Proceeds support YMS, whose mission is to make a positive difference in the lives of children, primarily by pairing them with caring adult mentors. YMS also offers programs for at-risk youths, such as summer "camperships."

The agency's summer program for youths aged 7 to 11 years will be ongoing from June 26 through Aug. 4. The theme, "Nature Navigators," will have participants learning about ecosystems and taking part in interactive workshops on personal empowerment, conflict resolution, perspective taking and more. To register a child, visit the YMS office at 86 Park Ave. (across from the Niagara County Courthouse) or call 434-1855.

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Sauberan foursome wins YMS tourney - Lockport Union-Sun & Journal

(Koyama Press) US: May 2017

It might be easier to introduce the Lolita subculture to a western audience if it had been named anything else. It has little connection to sex, and it does not serve a male gaze. Rather, its mostly a group of young women who participate in a fashion subculture that allows them to embody the innocence of childhood and the sexless purity of cuteness. While it has existed in some form in Japan since the 70s, the subculture has been adopted by many outside of Japan.

Jane Mai and An Nguyen establish the Japanese origins as wholly created and maintained through Japanese street culture and fashion magazines that give performers an attainable aesthetic to reach: cuteness. While most enthusiasts of Japanese pop culture know kawaii from chibi anime characters to character goods based on anime and manga, the Lolitas embody kawaii. Unlike the aesthetic of beauty that has artistic and critical properties of perfection and unattainability, a person can use the fashion to create a kawaii self that embodies complex layers of social resistance and personal empowerment.

We learn that to be in the subculture means that not only do members have a knowledge of fashion, but they buy or make clothes of very high quality. For Japanese Lolitas, this could mean creating an outward appearance that mirrors the qualities of the kind of person they are inside. The authors differentiate this clothing from costumes because it represents an everyday self instead of playing a character. Through the interaction the wearers have with the clothing, each learns to connect to the qualities of the person within or the person each wants to be.

These clothes have ranged from simple looks similar, according to the authors, to those worn on Little House on the Prairie (1974) to clothing that has the billowing skirts similar to rococo dresses seen in paintings. All clothes fit a current street style while maintaining a personal preference. With high-quality fabrics, lace, and often designer labels, the clothing becomes central to the persons preference, finances, and often, socialization. Lolitas live their fantasy while constructing a subculture identity.

One of the most helpful sections of the book is written by Novala Takemoto. He is the author of Shimotsuma Monogatari, the novel that became the film released to English-speaking audiences as Kamikaze Girls (2004). He became interested in the subculture in the 80s, and even though he identifies as a man and straight, he wears Lolita clothes without attempting to perform any specific gender. He writes about the time before his novel and the film helped make the Lolitas more accepted. You may not believe this, but just wearing Lolita fashion, just for walking down the street, people would be attacked and hit or spit on for being eccentric, or refused by restaurants for not wearing appropriate clothing (123).

At about the same time heavy metal and hip-hop subcultures faced a wave of public harassment in North America and England, Japanese underground music influenced the fashions that helped develop more recent branches of Lolita fashion. Girls who attended the concerts would see each other and share tips that led to the development of the style.

While theres no reason to develop the idea beyond a general explanation, the authors try to help readers understand that Lolita does not have the connotations in Japan as it does in cultures where Nabokovs novel, Lolita, has ingrained connotations to pedophilia and the male gaze. In the US, we often study the book and both the 1962 and 1997 films in college, and the name Lolita becomes shorthand for the obsessed mind of a middle age man infatuated with a girl whose coquettish sexuality drives him to perversion.

In Japan, Lolita has no connection to Nabokovs work nor to lolicon, Japanese media that exploits an attraction to sexless, prepubescent girls. Novala Takemoto explicitly states that the Nabokov Lolita is a mans attraction to a girl with adult sexual features, but the Japanese Lolita complex is based on the characteristics of young girls prior to having any sexual attractiveness (130).

Lolitas are a group of people who engage in a somewhat sexless performance of innocence, fairy tale femininity, and cultural resistance. The authors connect some of these through classic art and western literature. Even as we see the strength Lolitas muster by engaging Japanese society dressed in clothes that make them stand out or feel in control outside of cultural expectations through the performance of Lolita, not everyone feels a consistent reward.

A large portion of So Pretty / Very Rotten offers elements of Lolita culture demonstrated through sequential art. While much of the book seems to focus on the self-fulfillment of participating in the culture, much of the art sections tell stories of emptiness as a person loses the ability to find gratification. One character leaves the Lolitas when she comes to terms that her reason for becoming one was her need for others approval. Even when things go well, it seems Lolitas face both internal and external dualities with their identity.

Being a Lolita is fundamentally a solitary thing, even though there is a larger subculture. The consumer aspects drain personal finances, and the individuality places one in conflict with the greater culture. Even though this seems to be a performance for the self, it threatens to further isolate Lolitas who dont have strong social relationships.

While acquiring the clothes and performing Lolita has the ability to bring pleasure, it also has the potential to end up being hollow as the identity loses its meaning when consumption becomes empty, leaving a person without a purposeful identity. One weakness stands out. While the authors are clear that Lolitas are not limited to a specific sex or gender identity, the only male examples are only Novala Takemoto and Visual kei musical performers.

Mai and Nguyen have produced an interesting glimpse into Japanese and western Lolita practice, but the book also laments the ability to really study the subculture due to its ephemeral, fashion-centric existence and the lack of Japanese scholarship and cultural barriers to disclosure. They offer readers a good primer on the Japanese subculture and illustrate key differences with Lolitas in other cultures who have different reasons for participation. Even though some sections of the book have been adapted from scholarly work, this can be fully appreciated by readers without specific scholarly knowledge.

As the characteristics of Lolita culture have frequently appeared in western translations of manga and anime since the boom in the early 00s, this book offers fans a new way to understand those characters. Beyond fans, it offers a general reader an introduction to a consumer subculture that resonates in the nostalgia of fairy tale worlds and external performance of a genderless self.

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Gregory Vance Smith has a Ph.D. in Communication and M.A. in English from the University of South Florida. His published research focuses on media, music, and cultural production. In addition to writing for PopMatters, he frequently contributes to The Fandom Post.

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'So Pretty / Very Rotten' - PopMatters

ALEXANDRIA, La. (Holy Savior Menard High School) - Holy Savior Menard Central High School will have a new face helping lead the way when the students return. New to Menard, but not to high quality education, Dwayne Lemoine has over 30 years of educational leadership experience in central Louisiana.

With core beliefs that center around transformative education, civic responsibility and personal empowerment, Menard will benefit from Lemoines strategic background and vision. Menard Principal, Joel Desselle, is looking forward to working with Lemoine because of his proven track record in this region.

As Superintendent of Avoyelles Parish, Dwayne helped create a system for significant academic and social growth of more than 6,000 students and maintained a balanced budget in a district where the per pupil funding is one of the lowest in the state. During his tenure as Principal of Pineville High School, Lemoine led the school to become the highest performing public high school in the district, as well as provided direction and guidance for the design and construction of a new $14 million-dollar school facility.

A Master of Education degree from Northwestern State University and many years of coaching and teaching experience, along with numerous awards and honors make Lemoine a uniquely qualified candidate to join the Menard family and continue raising the standards of excellence that have been established throughout the 125 years of Catholic secondary education in central Louisiana.

According to Lemoine, I am grateful and honored to be given the opportunity to work with the Holy Savior Menard community in advancing the school's mission."

Welcome to the Holy Savior Menard family Mr. Lemoine.

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Menard introduces new Assistant Principal - KALB News (press release)

UNITED STATES Whentwo men were fatally stabbed and another injured on a Portland train in May, officials and journalists began to follow the predictable course of profiling the attacker in an effort to understand why he would resort to such actions. After a few short days, severalsources began to speculate on his Heathen religious practice, more specifically on Odinism.

This assumption rests squarely on Facebook posts made the attacker over the past year. On May 9, he wrote, Hail Vinland!! Hail Victory!!

[Photo credit: Paul Walker.]

The term Vinland has more recently become a rallying point for white supremacist groups and has been used in the naming of related organizations, such as the Wolves of Vinland. In a post last fall, the Oregon attacker wrote, I Hereby Solemnly swear to Die trying to Kill Hillary (Herself a filthy Murderess) Clinton and Donald Trump should they be elected to the post of President in my faire country on Vinland [sic].

The ideological meaning placed onVinland in these cases is not entirely dissimilar from the Trump administrations call to make America great again. At their core, both rallying cries center around a false nostalgia, hearkening back to a time whenlife was allegedly better than it is today, and promising that a return tothat illustrious time would fix all modern problems. Although similar, one cry is far more openly extreme than the other.

Along with using Vinland,the Portland attacker has alsoreferenced other Pagan or Heathen terminology, and has suggested that he harbors polytheist beliefs.According to one news report, he was introduced to such religiouspractices while in prison for another crime.

Most recently, in an Apr. 19 post, the stabber wrote, May all the Gods Bless Timothy McVeigh and then quoted William Ernest Henleys poem Invictus. In an earlier post he says hed like to put an end to the monotheist question, threatening to kill All Zionist Jews, All Christians who do not follow Christs teaching of Love, Charity, and Forgiveness.

As the mainstream media continued to follow the line of reasoning that the attacker was indeed an Odinist, various Heathen organizations issued statements in response to theseclaims.

The Trothcondemned the attack, reflecting on the need for in-prison military services.Mallory Brooks, program coordinator for the organizationsIn-Reach Heathen Prison Services, wrote: Our hearts go out to the targets and victims of last Fridays attack. The alleged perpetrator brought shame to our religion and, in the eyes of many, to our gods and goddesses. This is unacceptable.

Heathens United Against Racisms statement offered its support to the family, adding that the Portland Killer is our communitys responsibility, and we must do everything we can to prevent it from happening again.

The Portland Killers actions didnt happen in a vacuum, reads HUARs statement. In an environment where hate-speech is being normalized and promoted, it tends to bubble over into violence.

Both the statements from the Troth and HUAR work from the assumption that the man was indeed Heathen in some way, and send out acall to action to the greater Heathen community to join in the fight to stop theuse of Norse mythology and related modern religions to justify extremist violence. Their pleas are not unlike those often found in the Muslim community.

However, not all Heathens were convinced that this man was actually co-religionist. Wild Hunt writer and author of The Norse Mythology Blog Karl E. H. Seigfried told a reporter that the stabbers various Facebook rants invoke Lilith (Jewish), Tiamat (Babylonian), and Lucifer. His oath to Odin, Kali, Bastet and all other Pagan Gods and Goddesses in my Aryan Theosophical Nucleus concludes by invoking Jesus Christ and Bernie Sanders.

He goes on to argue: This muddles together Norse, Hindu, Egyptian, Christian, and Jewish figures with an unsectarian body of seekers whose founder was baptized in the Russian Orthodox Church.

To pick one thread out of this insane tapestry and declare it to be the religious determiner of [] hate would be nonsensical.

Seigfried makes a point. Over the past year, the stabber posted information aboutancient Egyptian gods and goddesses; he called specifically to Gaia, Kali Ma, and even Jesus. On Apr. 28 he wrote, Until you cross that line then nothing will stop our come to Jesus talk friend or foe. If our come to Jesus talk fails you will face the come to Lucifer talk.

The only term that stands out as repetitive is Vinland, which has become interwoven in contemporarywhite supremacist ideology, independent of religious practice. As Seigfried suggests, this points directly to the question of whether or not this man actually practices any form of religious Heathenry.

Are the stabbers words simply the markings of a supremacist viewpoint? If so, another question arises. Shouldthe use of Norse mythology simply as symbolism or as a coating for extremist ideology, rather than as true religion, be enough to pushHeathens into action? Is the attacker their responsibility, as suggested by HUAR and the Troth?

This is where the proverbial waters are muddied, and the Heathen communitys struggle becomes increasingly difficult. Publicly speaking, connections are being made between the religious practice, the mythology, and extremists acts. Picking them apart is not always easy.

In 2015, the Richmond Dispatcher asked the question: are white supremacists in prison using a Pagan religion to radicalize young men? The article was written after the FBI broke up a ring of men who were plottingto attack a number of synagogues and black churches in Virginia. The article posits that there has been a growing number of Odinists and Asatruar in the prison system, but it also notes that there is a growing number of white supremacists.

The analysis provides no speculation on where the intersections between religious beliefs and extremist views lie, and how the reported statistics correlate. Which ideology is bredfirst? Do white supremacists find Odinism? Or do Odinists find white supremacy? It is a chicken-and-egg question.

In the recent Troth statement, Brooks explains: Racist groups within prisons often engage in bullying tactics to instill fear into inmates who do not hold such views, and the racists rhetoric and dominance cause them to be the Heathens most visible to the correctional officers, chaplains, and administrators, who often do not understand the dynamics at play.

As such, the racists become who defines Heathenry in many of these facilities.

Brooks believes that a better, stronger, and more extensive Heathen prison ministry can help clarify the divide and support inmates, who are genuinely interested in the religion, from getting caught up in the game being played by supremacists.

As suggested by the above article, Heathenry, in these radicalizedforms, is reportedly attracting a large number of young men, which issimilar to reports on Islamic extremism.

Dr. Jennifer Snook, lecturer of sociology at Grinnell college, speculates: White supremacists are attracted to it []sometimes, but often just because theyve seen the show Vikings, and it allows them to enact a hypermasculine performance while appealing to their (imagined) super-white Northern European bloodlines a source of perceived privilege and status when other avenues of power (economic, political, manhood) begin to feel cut off.

It is a way for these young men to find personal empowerment within a contemporary and changing landscape.Snook explainsthat this says more about the supremacists than the religion, and she adds that the connection is nothing new.

There is historical precedent for white supremacists (think: Third Reich) to co-opt images of Germanic warriors, gods and heroes in an appeal to the epic past (think: Wagner). Norse mythology is the cultural inheritance of Northern Europe the whitest of white folks. Its also perceived as untarnished by Christians which is completely untrue (the stories were recorded by monks, after all) which white supremacists view as a desert religion for the racial other. Add to that an overdose of hypermasculinity, and youve got quite a mess.

As Snook suggests, the connection between the extremist ideology and symbolic presence of Norse mythology is obvious when placed in an historical context. However, what about the modern practice of Norse-basedreligions? In the suggested framework, these religions have become victims, being pulled unwittingly into a universe of hate.

Theincrease in white supremacy isnt a Heathen problem, its an American problem, Snook says. It indicates more about the current political climate in the United States than anything that Heathens are doing or saying.

Snooks comment returns to the question of responsibility; a question that canbe posed to any religious subgroup. Are violent extremists, who openly claim or use a religion to justify violence, the responsibility of the rest of that religious community, even if the extremist is not practicing?

As suggested by the recent public statements, the members of both HUAR and the Troth believe that it is their responsibility. Bothpublic opinion and the consistent media focus on the connection between Heathenry and extremism has significantly affected the work and lives of many Heathens worldwide. It keeps Heathen writers such as Seigfried and Snook busy with interview requests from mainstream journalists. This conflation wasthe catalyst for the formation of groups,such as theAlliance for Inclusive Heathenry, Heathens against Hate, and HUAR.

One interviewee who wished to remain anonymouskeeps his religious practice hidden from coworkers and superiors, not because hes worried about being labeled a devil worshiper, but because he is concerned, due to the public opinion, that hell be called white supremacist.

The reality of the situation has placed the Heathen community in the uncomfortable position of perpetual defense, waging a monthly, weekly and sometimes even daily public relations battle to protect and defend their religion against a minority of people who are using Norse mythology to define their ideology, whether or not they practice the religion.

This social problem shows no signs of ending; the Oregon attack is just another example in a long line of similar cases. Heathen organizations continue to remainvigilant with regard to the public relations issues, as well as suggesting proactive strategies to curb the problem.

HUAR is encouraging all Heathen groups and individuals to create and enforce anti-discrimination/anti-harassment statements.

With regard to her prison work, Brooks has said, We ultimately want to be able to bridge a gap to help both the Chaplains and inmates understand that they dont have to give into the hate. There are other ways and they dont have to follow the crowd. This is truly the hardest part of prison outreach.

We will not give up and we will not give in.

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Heathen community continues the struggle to distance themselves ... - The Wild Hunt

Name:Gina Yoryet

Business:Lingua Professional Services

Location:Guadalajara, Mexico

Industry:Education & Training

Reason for starting? My main reason for starting is because I want to help more people achieve their educational goals. One of my main concerns is the immigration issue in the U. S. Many peoples futures are at stake.My main interest is to help minority groups to find a professional and personal purpose through their hidden and many times unrecognized skills. I want to be part of their personal, social, spiritual, professional, and financial empowerment by finding their passion and using it to thrive.

I grew up in California, but thirteenyears ago I had to return to Mxico. Like many Mexicans, I was unfortunately denied permanent residency. When I came to Guadalajara, I was at a loss because my only world was the U. S. Although Mxico is my country of birth, I was oblivious to the system, I didnt know anyone, I went through emotional, financial, professional and personal hardship. My family and I moved to the U. S. in search of a better life. When I had finally defined my professional goals, reality hit me and before I could even react to it, I was told that I could no longer remain in the U. S. When I came to Mxico I was told that all the prior credits/classes didnt count towards my B. A. and I had to retake all my classes with the according recognition here in Mxico. Since I was denied that opportunity, I got motivated to help others. Thats why my business is geared towards education. I am certain that the right time and place to get my degree will come for me.

Related:Read about another entrepreneur working in the education field here.

How do you define success? Success is not simply a matter of skill acquisition. It involves a process of personal deconstruction and reconstruction in dealing with each student, client and individuals case, prior history, needs, priorities and objectives. This means that I must constantly evaluate my personal values, motives and goals, and I must be willing to make any necessary changes in order to evolve as a professional. My goal is to genuinely be of assistance to others, entice them and persuade them to reach towards a better and more promising tomorrow to reach wholeness.

Since 2006 Ive helped hundreds of Middle School, High School, College, University students, as well as entrepreneurs in reaching their goal; to improve their English in order to qualify for scholarships, grants, and be able to study abroad, mainly in the U. S., Canada, or other English speaking countries. We assist many people in Standarized College Testing, Advanced Composition, Medical Writing, Business Writing, Cover Letter, CV writing support, among others.Im very fulfilled because I share an igniting passion thatll help me achieve my own education goal. I am certain that by helping them, I am helping myself by gaining more business, education experience to complete my MBA before 2020 (one of my personal goals). This huge worldwide education need has made me more aware of the needs of our society as a whole, and philanthropy is one of my greatest passions.

Biggest success:Follow my fundamentals. Playing with words (writing) is first and foremost fundamental to my success. Writing was first a dream, then it became a passion and that passion then became areality. One of my testimonials and greatest achievements, is my blogin which all my emotions and achievements are channeled. For me it is a success being able to write in a language that is not my native language and being able to use that passion to help others.

What is your top challengeand how you have addressed it?My top challenge has been the culture and business mindset of people in Mexico. Guadalajara is by far, the most difficult city/state to establish long-lasting business relationships in. Doing business is not as straightforward as it is in the U. S., Canada, or other foreign countries. The bureaucracy involved makes everything take much longer than needed, which makes sales and growing a small business as an individual entity very difficult. I have educated myself through workshops, networking, meetings. I have invested money to learn how to get around that and to further understand the business mentality in this end. I have slowly learned but I still find it difficult.

Although I am Mexican, I am missing that part of how they conduct business. Because although Ive had to cross many barriers, and start from the bottom, I have not been daunted by those hurdles and I have not acquiesced my circumstances to dictate my fate. Also because in spite of not having a college degree yet, I have overturned that and other unfortunate life events, Ive instead invested thousands of pesos in my own education, despite not having a college degree yet. Im TEFL and Teaching English for a Specific Purpose Certified, FPELE Spanish as a Foreign Language Certified. I am also a Professional Translator/Interpreter and Ive published one book through the International Womens Leadership Association. As a result of that, I dont set any limitations when it comes to reaching my goals.And because through my skills, I am able to help others achieve their goals. Part of my work is charity work, so I help those who lack the financial means to accomplish that. Real living is living for others. Realize that anything you want in life can be obtained.

Related: TSE Quick Take: Why Womens Businesses Remain Stubbornly Small

Who is your most important role model?Ive had a role models since my early adolescence. When I was 14, Sandra Pizarro from my Latina Leadership Network Group.Currently, My friend Ann Whiting, an American woman whos lived Guadalajara since 1960 and whos done so much for our society. Shes been the founder of many important institutions here. Nelly Galan from the Adelante Movement andSister Madonna Buderare also role models. Every woman who has undergone constant hardship, but in spite of that, has never given up is a role model for me.

Edited by The Story Exchange

Posted: June 8, 2017

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Gina Yoryet: English Language Programs in Guadalajara - The Story Exchange

Your thoughts, not your circumstances, determine if you thrive after divorce. You could end up with the house, your preferred custody plan, the china and the crystal, and still blame your ex for messing up your formerly picture-perfect existence.

Or, you could trade the house for an apartment, less custody time than youd hoped, mismatched Ikea flatware, and recognize your divorce as an opportunity to create an authentic, meaningful life.

So what makes the person who got what they wanted (or thought they wanted) bitter, while the downwardly-mobile one grows empowered?

The presence, or absence, of shame.

People who feel shame blame themselves or others for their choices and their situations. After awhile, the negative stories they tell themselves become a life narrative thats hard to shake. Negative thoughts lead to poor choices which create more shame, and the cycle repeats itself.

Those who believe that, despite some bad choices, theyre still good people, tend to manifest positive change. They recognize their errors, make amends where they can, and move on to the only thing they can control: the choices they make now.

And those choices are fueled by thoughts.

If you feel neck-deep in divorce shame and shame often comes disguised as anger, sadness, and fear notice your thoughts. Are they mostly of the gloom-and-doom variety? Do they resemble any of the following?

Shame festers. Youre chronically depressed. Angry. Resentful. You react to your ex in ways that invite more drama and conflict: knee-jerk replies to emails and texts, fighting battles that arent worth fighting, trying to control what goes on in his or her house. The chaos begins to shape your worldview. You stop trusting people. You see trouble where there isnt any. You expect the worst.

You dont have to live this way.

Personal empowerment begins with accepting things you cant control and choosing how you respond not just to events, but also to your own thoughts. If you tell yourself your ex ruined your future, as well as your childrens, how do you think youre going to act? Since your current way of thinking isnt helping you turn your life around, why not replace your bad thoughts with good ones?

Changing the way you think takes discipline and time. Your brain is used to following the well-worn tracks of negativity, so have patience with yourself. When you catch yourself ruminating on the same bad story, watch those destructive thoughts float by, without judgment. Set your intention to swap out your bad thoughts for good ones. Make this a daily, even hourly, practice, and one day youll realize that you havent just survived divorce.

For more help managing your divorce, visit http://www.virginiagilbertmft.com.

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The Secret To Getting Over Divorce Is Telling Yourself These 5 Things - HuffPost

Mariah Timms , The Tennessean Published 3:44 p.m. CT June 6, 2017 | Updated 24 hours ago

Lanise Harden, a rising sixth-grader who attended the Junior Deputy Camp, demonstrates her favorite radKIDS technique, the elbow strike.(Photo: Submitted)

Nearly 80 students entering sixthgrade in Rutherford County schools attended a Junior Deputy Camp hosted by the Rutherford County Sheriffs Office.

I love how they teach us to defend ourselves if our parents are not around, rising sixth-grader Lanise Harden said. I will do anything to defend myself.

Harden gained confidence while learning self-defense techniques from school resource officers at Riverdale High School and Stewartsboro Elementary School over the four-day course, according to a release from the RCSO.

The students were taught methods of defense from the radKIDS Personal Empowerment Safety Education Program, which teaches decision-making skills and physical resistance options to escape violence, the release said.

Chris Erwin, an SRO with the sheriffs department, led group classes while other SROs helped students hone their skills one on one.

This is to protect you from danger, Erwin said in the release, adding that regular practice will help students turn the techniques into instincts they can act on in case of an emergency.

To allow students to practice the moves properly, Riverdale SRO Jason Urban wore a protective red suit when instructing the children. He said the program teaches students how to get away from an abductor.

SRO Sgt. Tim Hayes, who coordinated the camp at Stewartsboro, said the physical training was the primary focus of the camp.

We train the kids on how to protect themselves from abduction and gave more knowledge of what law enforcement is all about, Hayes said.

More than just teaching children how to defend themselves from theoretical strangers, the SROs held discussions with students about bullying, internet safety, bicycle safety and more.

SRO Mike Farmer of Buchanan Elementary talked with the kids about how to deal with bullying because verbal abuse lasts a lifetime, according to the release.

It means everything in the world to me to show them extra attention, Farmer said.

Students learned about investigations and evidence and how bloodhounds can help track lost children. They also were toured the adult detention center and learned about first aid from Rutherford County Emergency Medical Services paramedic Terry Cunningham.

Overall, the sixth-graders enjoyed the experience.

Shawn Walding said he would definitely remember the radKIDStraining, which he described in the release as awesome and I get to defend myself.

Student A.J. Wilcox liked the different moves he learned, the release said, and fellow student Lucas Lovell said he learned self-defense, preparing him to run away to a safe place.

The Junior Deputy Camp is held annually after the end of the school year and is open to rising sixth-graders attending middle schools.

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Students learn self-defense, gain confidence at Junior Deputy Camp - The Daily News Journal

First Person

By Ronen Habib

Eight years ago, I was beginning to feel burned out. As a teacher at Gunn High School in Palo Alto, Calif., I first taught math and then moved onto algebra, AP economics, and history. I was tired of the amount of work it took to plan lessons, teach, create assessments, and grade, and I was frustrated with my students' obsession with working for grades, rather than their natural curiosity to learn. Conversations with parents about why their child earned a B+ instead of an A- drove me crazy. I began to lose touch with the real reasons I became a teacher.

But in May of 2009, I received a rude wake-up call. I arrived at school to an emergency meeting; one of my students had committed suicide. I was shocked and devastated.

As I sat in the first row at the student's funeral, I was overcome with emotions, bawling alongside my students, and the deceased student's family. He was in my class for six months and in so much pain, I thought. How did I miss this? How were we so disconnected that I had no idea?

Before my student's suicide, I was nave. I looked at my students and made assumptions that they were fine. I would tell myself, "We live in an amazing place at a high-achieving school. These kids have bright futureshow hard could their lives really be?" And I would focus on the content of my teaching and my students' performance. But under the smiles and the high or low grades, my students experienced internal struggles that were not always readily visible.

Although I felt helpless in the face of my student's suicide, I suddenly felt a new purpose. I knew that something needed to change. If I were to continue to be an educator, nothing could stop me from putting my students' well-being first. I became determined to figure out how to connect more authentically and form stronger relationships with my students. I wouldn't worry about academic standards, content, or grades, until I made sure they felt like they belonged and gave them more skills to ride the waves of life.

I set out to create a course on positive psychology, the scientific study of what makes life most worth living, for juniors and seniors at my school. The curriculum focused on personal empowerment: We live life "choice by choice." I taught students that it's critical to be aware of our emotions as well as the suffering that can be caused by our thoughts. We dont need to "buy into" what our inner critic is telling us, and treating ourselves with compassion is key to our well-being and resilience. In the first year, 107 students signed up. Year after year, I've seen hundreds of students pass through my classroom and change their behavior, including the debilitating nature of perfectionism so many students wrestle with in high school.

These principles were also useful in every other class that I taught. Incorporating just five minutes of mindfulness into my AP economics course saved instructional minutes because the students were more focused.

To train other teachers to use strategies of positive psychology with their students, I created EQ Schools, a California-based organization that empowers educators through positive psychology, emotional intelligence, and mindfulness training. In trainings, teachers learn about the neurobiology of stress, focus, and happiness, as well as the creative ways to incorporate play and social-emotional skills in classrooms such as playing games and doing yoga. Teachers say that they felt revived and inspired, and that bringing emotions into learning, as well as taking stock of how burned out they are, is transforming their classrooms.

Over the last few years, I've had the privilege of working with thousands of educators across California, and it's abundantly clear that our societys obsession with academic performance and preparing students for tests leaves them, and many teachers, drained and empty. As teachers, we want our students to be well-educated, but when the balance shifts to focusing on educating students brains to the detriment of their well-being, students are at risk.

And it's not only students who are struggling. Teaching is one of the most stressful professions, and burnout rates are very high. But it doesn't have to be this way. It is time for us to prioritize and infuse our schools with more joy, connection, and a focus on well-being. Learning will deepen, academic achievements will improve, and we'll raise a generation of happier, well-adjusted, and creatively confident people.

Research shows that emotional intelligence is far more predictive of a person's future success than academic achievements. Happier students and teachers tend to be more productive, creative, and resilient. And happiness is a positive-sum game. The happier you are as a teacher, the happier your students and colleagues will be, too.

So, how can you work to bring more happiness into your classroom?

Be present. You know those times you are with a student or colleague, but you are actually ruminating about how your last lesson went or why some of your student scored poorly on a portion of a test? Or perhaps youre fearing the evaluation that you will get from your department head? You're not being present and this diminishes your well-being. The trick isn't to beat yourself up when you notice your mind wandering, but to remind yourself to return your focus. Bringing your mind back when it wanders can go a long way toward strengthening the muscle of being present.

Connect deeply with others. According to Harvard University's Study of Adult Development, which has studied participants mental and physical health over decades, relationships are the No. 1 predictor of happiness and longevity. Before you begin your class, take three deep breaths and as your students enter the classroom, greet them with warmth and eye contact, and maybe even send them silent good thoughts. Ask yourself, what is one small step you can take today to cultivate or feed a supportive learning environment and connect with students?

Take time to experience positive emotions. Take a moment to think about one thing you feel grateful for today and savor that feeling. Give a colleague a compliment or write them a supportive note. Games, like "Pass the Sound," also help to foster joy and build community in your classroom. Have your students stand in a circle. Tell the first person next to you to clap, and then the next, and the next, until the clap gets all the way around the circle. Explain that this is timed and the goal is to "pass the clap" under a certain number of seconds. Tell them that if we 'fail,' we are going to celebrate our failure like crazy! In unison, shout "woohoo!" and throw our hands up in the air. If they are successful, up the challenge by decreasing the number of seconds. And so on. Cultivate a playful attitude. Cheer them on, and tell them you believe in them, even if we fail all together.

Feel your negative feelings. Some might think that the best way to get through difficult emotions is to ignore them and move on. But the more you suppress your emotions, the more problematic they become. As teachers, we must cultivate nonjudgmental awareness of difficult feelings so we can strive to be more perceptive to our students when they are down. Letting them know they are not alone in struggling with anger or sadness will help them feel more comfortable reaching out to others for support.

Invest in self-care. When I ask teachers what they do for self-care, they often chuckle, "Who has time for that?" But if you don't learn to put the oxygen mask on yourself first, you might unintentionally affect your students because you seem grouchy or distant. You might also burn out, which means your students would miss out on your gifts. Take a moment to think about what recharges your battery, whether it's going on a walk outside and appreciating the trees or taking a slightly longer showerschedule it into your day.

Continue to grow and pursue intrinsic goals. Your professional development and growth should be meaningful. Take time to identify a personal or professional goal you have for yourself and break it down into steps. What kind of impact do you make for your students, and how are you going to do so?

Photo provided by author.

Coverage of social and emotional learning is supported in part by a grant from the NoVo Foundation, at http://www.novofoundation.org. Education Week retains sole editorial control over the content of this coverage.

Ronen Habib is a teacher and ed-tech coordinator at Gunn High School in Palo Alto, Calif. He is the founder of EQ Schools, which provides emotional-intelligence training to teachers, students, and parents in the United States and abroad. He is also a contributing writer for EdSurge.

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Season 3 Ellie Kemper, Tituss Burgess, Jane Krakowski (Netflix)

It doesnt take long for the third season of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt to remind its audience why its such a powerful and unexpected treasure; by the time the first new episode Kimmy Gets Divorced?! is over, its proven itself, once again, to be a truly wacky and wounding oddity. The first season of the show introduced the audience to Kimmy Schmidt (Ellie Kemper)the perpetually enthusiastic former cult member unleashed onto the streets of New York after being held captive for over a decadewith aplomb and style. It was a fantastic season of television, and if the second season expanded the narrative goals somewhat unsteadily, the third installment is a rollicking return to form by getting to the sadness beneath its day-glow wonderland aesthetic.

When were reintroduced to Kimmy, shes received divorce papers from her former captor and cult leader, Richard Wayne Gary Wayne (Jon Hamm). Initially, shes ecstatic to have another remnant of her old life pushed aside, but falters in signing the document, partly because her friend, the wealthy Upper East Side socialite Jacqueline (Jane Krakowski), introduces her to the idea of spousal power dynamics. Kimmy, Jacqueline argues, is now the powerful party by virtue of the fact that she has something that Richard wants. For a woman who had all of her agency removed from her and whose life was a constant struggle for even small shreds of personal empowerment, the prospect of withholding something Richard wants is irresistible.

Its an enormous testament to the show in general that this comedic set-up, in which Kimmy comes up with more and more elaborate excuses for not signing, feels so nuanced and emotional. Kimmys motivations are evident without being signposted; the joke ends up being a funny one, but its the emotional wallop that leaves a bruise. When she finally decides to grant her enemy a divorce, it feels like genuine development rather than an easy narrative cop-out, because its so rooted in character growth. Kimmys reminded that even if shes at the head of the table, shes allowing Richard to have a seat next to her; power means proximity, which ultimately leads to powerlessness again. Characters have realizations like this throughout the showKimmys outrageous roommate Titus (Tituss Burgess) more than anyonebut they never feel cloying or blithe, and never get in the way of the joke.

For many sitcoms, the trick to longevity and success is finding ways to constantly re-establish the formulae, to reset at the end of each episode so that the audience knows exactly what to expect next time; but Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt blows that dynamic up, demanding that the viewer accept that these people will be different with each passing episode: that sadness will seep through, that trauma will rear its ugly head at inopportune times. Part of what made the second season feel fragmented was the difficulty it had in giving each character side-plots whilst still maintaining the fun group dynamic that was so successful.

Season three feels much more fluid, making a virtue of the fact that Kimmys apartment is a place of perpetual forward motion; characters whizz in and out of it with remarkable speed, whilst still touching base with each other. Each character is integral to the fabric of the show, so their own stories feel like extensions of the narrative rather than peripheral to it. This is helped by the fact that there isnt a dud story amongst the four main cast members; each have their moments of whimsy, horror, and breakthrough.

Thats whats always been the shows greatest strength and perhaps the thing that may stop people from entering its world: the clash between the bubble-gum pink colour scheme and the darkness of the premise takes a few beats to get used to, even for someone who knows what to expect. Its a sad show enacted by characters that, at least on the surface, appear to be clowns. Kimmys gee-whiz-ness, Jacquelines privilege, Tituss zaniness, are all extremely well-constructed joke personas until the characters are revealed to be all too human: lonely, impatient for change, waking up to the injustice around them. Titus, who left New York to pursue a career as a cruise singer in season two and returns under mysterious circumstances, gets a particularly well-shaded character arc that forces him to realize that love isnt owed as much as its earned.

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All of this makes it sound like the third season is significantly gloomier than what preceded it; it isnt. It still has a manic comedic energy like nothing else on television and follows the Tina Fey school of lobbing so many jokes at the screen that if some miss it doesnt really matter. Maya Rudolph has an especially loopy supporting role as Dionne Warwick in a plot line that sees her playing against Burgess expertly. In order to pay her way through college, Kimmy takes part in the gig economy in increasingly elaborate and ludicrous ways. A recurring joke about robots being part of the New York populace is absurd, precisely because the show refuses to acknowledge its absurdity. Fred Armisen returns with his weirdly modulated Robert Durst impression and Krakowski is excellent in a late season twist that sees her husband getting crushed by a reversing car and emerging from hospital as a significantly younger, significantly hunkier version of himself.

It certainly has one of the highest joke to screen time ratios on television at the moment, and its remarkable how smooth each delivery is; there are very few times when the episodes feel as if theyre reaching for a punchline. A sequence that shows Titus happily singing extremely offensive things about politics, religion, and gender, only to be horrified and offended at singing a breakaway pop hit called Boobs in California, is particularly noteworthy for its strangeness and hilarity.

Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt is still, rest assured, very bizarre and rabid in its pursuit of a punchline. The sheer variety of joke formats is impressive; puns, pratfalls, satire, camp, word play, musical comedy, pop-culture riffs and sheer showmanship are thrown at the screen, making the whole show worthy of a second watch. Yet, its hard to argue that this year the show isnt more interested in the darkness that constantly threatens to disrupt the candy-toned hilarity. In the third episode Kimmy Cant Help You! the excellent Laura Dernthe queen of making sadness feel funny and vice-versamakes an appearance as Wendy Hebert, a divorce attorney who wants to rush through Kimmys divorce in order to marry Richard Wayne Gary Wayne herself.

Eventually, its revealed that Wendy is in love with the cult leader because hes incarcerated, not despite of it. Her previous relationships have been so bad and abusive that the prospect of being in love with someone whos physically incapable of damaging her seems like a dream. Its heartbreaking, but made even worse when Kimmy, in an attempt to convince Wendy that shes doing the wrong thing, calls Richard a rapist. Previously, the show has referred to Kimmys history with weird sex stuff, but its never been so forthright in its depiction. Kimmys recovering from trauma the likes of which she doesnt completely want to reveal to those around her; putting a label on her experiences, its made clear, makes them feel more real to the protagonist.

It also makes sense of one of the seasons more thought-provoking elements: Kimmys constant cycling through institutions and ideologies. In the aptly titled episode Kimmy Is a Feminist!, Kimmy comes up against the multitudes of modern feminist thoughts, vacillating between staunch feminism and rejecting it all together. Kimmy also decides to throw herself into religion, only to discover that shes replacing the indoctrination of her past in the bunker with a new, more socially accepted one.

Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt is at its most humane when it allows itself, and its characters, to try on different lifestyles and points-of-view, building Kimmys worldview in front of the viewers eyes. By showing Kimmy coming up against the concept of utilitarianism, the season poses interesting questions about how difficult it is to wrestle with morality, especially for a person who was forced into arrested development. It makes the show deeper than a lot of much more traditionally serious shows on air; its its levity that allows it to sneak in so many interesting concepts about personal responsibility and reinvention.

That isnt to say that everything works. Season three doubles down on the storyline that many fans have found the most off-putting; Jacquelines personal struggle with her Native American heritage and her guilt about passing in the extremely white, extremely wealthy Upper East Side. This may not sound controversial, but Jane Krakowski is decidedly not Native American, and the show has been criticised in its clumsy handling of the whole thing (the show was also criticised for its handling of Asian American characters), and this season sees Jacqueline taking on the owners of the Washington Redskins. Its certainly an interesting discussion about the role of heritage vs empathy, but its still never fully convincing or barbed enough to be cutting. Theres also a strangely pointed joke at the expense of college campuses insistence on sexual consent, which seems strangely out of synch with Kimmys history, that amounts to arent young people sensitive about rape culture.

Overall though, its a very good, thoughtful season of television, buoyed by a fantastic performance from Kemper, some truly hilarious punchlines, and a keen, startling interest in the emotional lives of its characters. By being brave enough to suggest that the world isnt always fair or kind, even to those who approach it with nothing but fairness and kindness, it emerges as an inspiring and inspired, sly and sentimental. Oh, and if youre a Beyonc fan, you wont believe what Titus has planned when he decides to Lemonade.

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Jay has a BA in English Literature and Film Studies from Roehampton University and an MA in Film and Screen Cultures from the same institution. His debut novel Until There Was You was released last year and the follow-up, The Restart Project, is forthcoming, both with Less Than Three Press. You can read his television rants on Twitter or his website.

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'Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt': Season 3 Embraces Its Sadness ... - PopMatters