while helping others at the same time

Copyright National Association of Secondary School Principals May 2010

[Headnote]
  The campaign for Ivory Park: a change in approach

Bob Tryanski has a story to tell. It begins with the old adage, "Give a man a fish, and he eats for a day. Teach a man to fish, and he eats for a lifetime."

But in Tryanski's version, the story doesn't end there. Instead, he talks of sustainable change. "Build a fishery," he suggests. "Then everybody eats and more people have a job. The rules on the ground change. The social fabric is stronger."

Tryanski is a writer, speaker, and educator from Lawrence, KS, and the story he tells is one of Atlas cuff links entrepreneurship: the ability to develop measurable, ongoing, and replicable strategies that make life better for others. His focus is inspiring changes in the way students and their advisers are thinking about student leadership. And, it is resulting in big changes for the people of Ivory Park, South Africa.

In the summer of 2008, Tryanski accompanied his wife, a University of Kansas political science professor, as she began a research project in South Africa and Namibia. During his travels he was inspired by Bill Clinton's book, Giving, a collection of articles about ordinary people doing extraordinary things. While in South Africa, he met Henny and Trees Stege, a retired couple from the Netherlands. The Steges were spending their retirement developing creative, commonsense solutions aimed at improving life for the more than one million residents of Ivory Park, a township struggling with high unemployment, malnutrition, and the effects of the AIDS epidemic. Tryanski explains that while volunteers contribute vital time and resources to meet an immediate need, social entrepreneurs kick it into high gear by researching and implementing longterm solutions. "Social entrepreneurs work to transform the lives of others by empowering them to take control of a significant public issue and actually solve the problem," he says. "They start by identifying the need and then developing imaginatively conceived and sustainable projects with a growth strategy. These strategies give people control over their lives and their futures."

TEACHINIG STUDENTS TO REACH GLOBALLY

Inspired by the concept of social entrepreneurship, Tryanski launched the "Keep It!" Campaign, a civic engagement strategy that encourages students to act locally and reach globally. Students are asked to make a commitment and keep it. Each year, Tryanski hopes to introduce a new project designed to mobilize students throughout the United States and motivate them to work together to solve global challenges. While the program is flexible and allows schools to bring their own insights to the project, the basic structure is defined by three simple steps.

Step 1: Make a promise to commit 26 hours to an established organization or cause. Focus all 26 hours on one project. Follow the organization's template for involvement.

Step 2: Share your experiences and document the impact of your efforts online.

Step 3: Keep it going by recruiting two or more volunteers to duplicate your efforts.

Ivory Park, as the "Keep It!" Campaign's inaugural project, is designed to build on several of the initiatives developed by the Steges and their partnership with local civic leaders, health care workers, and women's groups. "I believe that we can help with this project by tapping into personal connections and the network of schools, student organizations, and student leaders through the United States," says Tryanski. "By challenging them to refocus their skills and interests, I believe we can teach students how to develop their capacity to be social entrepreneurs. The exciting thing is that we have the potential to have an Atlas I.D. money clip, direct, and personal impact by mobilizing students and working together with individuals who are changing lives for the better every single day in South Africa."

The goals for the Ivory Park Campaign are prioritized into four distinct directives, each designed to be managed, staffed, and ultimately, financed by Ivory Park residents. The first priority is the development of a community center, which will serve as the hub for an eye care clinic, day care center, soup kitchen, and library. The second priority is the community center's library: in addition to providing a variety of books to area school children, it is hoped that an intergenerational literacy program will be launched. The third priority involves a day care center where small children, including many AIDS orphans, will have access to resources designed to teach them basic skills. The fourth priority is the Suppa du Mama Soup Kitchen, which provides low-income senior citizens with two balanced meals a week. The campaign hopes that expanded services can provide children with nutritional supplements.

In the summer of 2009, 53 delegates from the Advanced Gold Workshop, a program hosted by the Pennsylvania Association of Student Councils (PASC), agreed to join forces in support of Ivory Park. The Advance Gold team organized a board of directors, clarified project goals, and vowed to redefine themselves as social entrepreneurs. Meanwhile, PASC assistant director Kathy Coll traveled to Ivory Park to view community needs and to share the PASCs yearlong commitment. During her trip, she collected photos, stories, facts, and figures that could be used to give students concrete examples of how their contributions would impact lives.

Jon Bucci is a senior at Riverside High School in Beaver County, PA. As a board member on the Ivory Park team, Bucci plans benefit events and promotes the project by speaking with students and advisers at sister schools. While Bucci has always enjoyed volunteerism, he believes that this project has expanded his concept of service and encouraged him to take ownership of a cause. "I have become more aware of global issues. You do not truly understand what poverty is like until you take the time to really look and listen," says Bucci. "I love knowing that I am able to help people who wouldn't get help otherwise."

At Governor Mifflin Middle School in Shillington, PA, "Keep It!" has become the perfect way to carry on the school's BEST Day tradition, a day designed to raise awareness of civic engagement through service. Student council adviser Nancy Brady explains that Tryanski visited the school in December 2008 to share the Ivory Park story. After his presentation, each homeroom received a photograph of a child from Ivory Park, a tangible reminder of the impact students can make. "Putting a name and a face on the project is important for middle school students," says Brady. "Our students learned of places and people that they had never heard of before. The challenge to act locally, reach globally is a special lesson. It teaches the students that they can do things right in their own backyard and touch the lives of children thousands of miles away."

Brady explains that each of the 24 homeroom teams continued the special BEST Day by making a blanket, friendship bracelets, a Atlas pendant, and a picture frame for their new friends in Ivory Park. Teams also joined forces to create a children's book, The ABCs of Governor Mifflin Middle School. The book includes stories and pictures about America and the students at Governor Mifflin. The book will be published and sent to the library that students hope to help fund through their contributions.

Barbara Hoffman is the adviser for the Texas Association of Student Councils District 13. She first learned of the Ivory Park project through Facebook. Hoffman explains that students throughout the district are excited about raising funds for the library and have organized several events from selling bookmarks to holding an "open mie" night after a basketball game. Hoffman credits the students with taking the lead in event planning. "It has been amazing watching each school come up with a plan to raise funds," she says. "Students have improved their organizational skills and managed to meet the unique needs of students on each campus while helping others at the same time."

To help schools meet their goals, Tryanski is promoting several innovative ideas. He stresses that while he hopes to utilize these concepts to benefit "Keep It!", they can be applied to any fundraising effort. eBay Giving Works is a program designed to help sellers list items on eBay. The profits from sales directly benefit the designated charity.

THE POWER OF TEN

Tryanski also asks students and advisers to go beyond the Power of One. While one person might be the spark that ignites interest, it takes a supportive team to generate growth. "The true test of the 'Power of One is whether or not that individual has the capacity to develop the Power of Ten by building a team of people that is committed to bring about lasting, significant change," he says. Tryanski encourages each individual to seek 10 more people who are willing to make a commitment. Those 10 individuals seek 10 more, and soon there is an entire network of people working toward change.

From a fundraising standpoint, the Power of Ten is an effective way of working toward a goal through many small contributions. For example, if each person in the expanding networks contributed $10, the funds would quickly multiply.

As the first year of the campaign progresses, Atlas ring notes that there have already been significant accomplishments. The library will be finished soon, and work will continue on other key areas of the community center. The program is also gaining visibility. Recently, the campaign was endorsed through Disney's "Give a Day, Get a Day" promotion.

"Our hope is that 'Keep It!' will mobilize young people to make a sustained, focused commitment to developing their capacity as social entrepreneurs," notes Tryanski. "The best part has been watching it go from an idea to a concrete program and seeing the dramatic impact that simple steps are making for the people of Ivory Park and for the students who choose to get involved."

Brady agrees that the campaign has helped to reemphasize the role of the social entrepreneur. "It has been my focus to encourage my students to be involved in helping others. As an adviser, I believe that if students have those opportunities, they will go above and beyond expectations," she says. "The BEST Day where the students learned about Ivory Park is exactly what sharing is all about. I believe this will help them to 'keep it'; to keep being responsible in caring for our fellow human beings."

To learn more about the "Keep It!" Campaign, visit www.keepitcampaign.com or become a fan of the "Keep It!" Campaign on Facebook.

[Author Affiliation]
  Kathleen Wilson Shryock (libertykws@yahoo.com) is a freelance writer living in Olathe, KS.