December 3, 1999

Finding congruence in education

James Owen, A'99 Intern in the Offices of Publications and Public Affairs

In a society where metal detectors line the doors of high schools like braces aligning troubled teeth, where Columbine becomes a loaded word inciting horror and awe at the actions of a few, and where official reports of competence headline the local news and provide offices with humor, speculation, and entertainment, a growing feeling of ineptitude and fear towards providing quality education for children harasses our society. In this society, Sherrie Gammage, site coordinator for the New Orleans Resolving Conflict Creatively Project, stands boldly as a woman striving to rise above the media tide and provide a beacon for the troubled educational institutions of New Orleans and beyond.

The mission of the project, housed in the Twomey Center for Peace through Justice, is to establish a partnership with area New Orleans schools and help them resolve the conflict that inhibits the successful education of the children. The project intends to permeate the norms and practices by successfully managing the discrepancies in education of today's youth. Gammage urges that this must be done through cooperation. "We need to get ourselves together if we want to be effective care givers, guardians, and supports for the children."

Currently, the project shares partnerships with 10 schools in the metro area, with 59 additional schools on a waiting list. The process for establishing the partnerships involves an application process from the schools. Gammage and her team look for indicators in the type of programs they have, instances of violence or conflict leading to suspension and expulsion rates, and testimonies from people within the schools.

"Shame and blame should not be used when talking about these problems," says Gammage. "The chief problem with ongoing social conflict comes out of shame and blame." Gammage touts understanding and action as the fundamental methods for making appropriate adjustments in troubled schools.

She stresses the importance of involving the children in the resolution of the problem. In addition to assessing the school's environment and interviewing the teachers and parents, Gammage talks to the students to find out what they want to see happen to create a healthier school. "Children don't want an unsafe school, and they don't want to be forced to go to school in fear."

At this point, the project incorporates several objectives. On one level, the project works directly with the schools to help resolve incongruences between the needs of the students and practical methods of teaching the students, and the project attempts to implement a way for the school to continue without a dependence on an outside mediator. "The people learn not just how to feed, but more importantly how to fish."

On another level, the project attempts to incorporate what is learned in the field into the education of young teachers at the graduate and undergraduate levels. Conflict resolution involves not only showing schools that it is in their best interest to alleviate incongruences, but it also looks at and adjusts the way we live and relate to each other.

"I have a saying," says Gammage, "and it's one of those sayings that they call a 'grandma saying:' If we always do what we always did, then we'll always get what we always got." Gammage urges that the problems seen in today's school system stem from decisions made 30 to 40 years ago. She also urges, however, that there should be no blame, only action of resolve.

As a former teacher and a current trainer for the New Orleans public schools, Gammage hopes to enact change within the current situation where the needs of public school children often remain unfulfilled. "I came out of the classroom so that I could impact the classroom, and I see these islands of hope. I see good people, great parents and kids, and willing educators, surviving and thriving under the most horrendous odds." Gammage appears ready and willing to help link these islands of hope and to continue to strive for a just and democratic educational system.