Thursday, March 27, 2008

Youth to Rally for Poor

More than 500 youth from all over the country will gather Tuesday to rally for change and improvements in their communities.

The YouthBuild USA national conference will begin at 7 p.m. at the historic Lincoln Theatre, 1215 U St. NW. Participants will work to generate a Declaration of Inter-dependence, which will indirectly represent the 2.4 million low-income youth who face issues of homelessness and discrimination. The students will also discuss policy changes and reforms needed to improve public school systems, family support, economic development, the justice system and more. MTV VJ Sway will moderate the event, which aims to ensure opportunities for underserved communities.

The nonprofit Lincoln Theatre has helped mobilize underserved youth by offering safe, healthy and effective avenues of expression as part of its Cultural Enrichment Initiative.

The YouthBuild Coalition is a network of more than 1,000 programs that help low-income youth 16 to 24 work toward General Educational Development diplomas and high school diplomas while learning job skills.

School groups and community youth organizations interested in participating should contact Jenna Glass at http://jglass@thelincolntheatre.org. For information about the forum, visit www.lovethelincoln.org.

Parents and students interested in learning more about District charter schools are invited to attend a recruitment fair from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at the Kennedy Recreation Center, 1401 Seventh St. NW.

The event, sponsored by the D.C. Association of Chartered Public Schools, will offer parents and students a one-stop opportunity to explore options available to residents. Representatives from charter schools across the city will be in attendance to answer questions and accept applications. Teachers are also invited to attend and submit their r¿sum¿s and have private interviews with school leaders.

For information, visit http://www.dcpcsa.org.

Emily Pakulski, an eighth-grader at Washington International School in Northwest, is the top winner of the You Be the Chemist Challenge and is scheduled to participate in a national competition in June.

Created by the Chemical Educational Foundation, the contest quizzes students in grades 5 through 8 on chemistry concepts, important discoveries and chemical safety awareness tips. Fifteen eighth-grade students from Washington International School were honored last month for their outstanding performance in the question-and-answer competition.

The top five winners received Barnes and Noble gift certificates, along with trophies. The national You Be the Chemist Challenge will be June 13 at the Chemical Heritage Foundation in Philadelphia. Pakulski will compete against students from 15 states for the title of national champion.

-- Compiled by JILLIAN S. JARRETT