TCS Student News November 17, 2023
November 17, 2023
This week’s edition of TCS Student News was researched, written, produced and anchored by Madison Hansel and Sam Meenan with technical production by Rhys Guilfoyle and advising by Megan Rivers.
As part of their World Geography studies, the students have been examining Brazil, learning about the physical geography, history, culture and current issues. We were fortunate to have Eduardo Viana come into class today to give a presentation and answer the students’ many questions about the country. Mr. Eduardo is from the northern area of Brazil where his family still lives. He is the Physical Education teacher for The GreenMount School and has worked with our students every week for many years now. The insights gained from having Mr. Eduardo share his personal experiences and observations are so much more than a book can provide. We deeply appreciate his work with our students.
We welcome educator and actor Grant Emerson Harvey as a Young Playwrights Residency Teaching Artist at TCS. Grant brings his considerable talents into our classroom for 7 weeks from November 7th to December 19th to help our students learn the art of play writing and for each to produce a 10 minute work for submission to YPF. Mr. Harvey teaches theatre courses at Morgan University and has acted and taught in both New York and Los Angeles. He is a welcome presence in our school.
The Young Playwrights Festival is an annual event where Baltimore’s own Center Stage supports young people from across Maryland with an open call to submit plays for their annual contest. The winners have their works professionally produced and performed by Center Stage. Two TCS students have won the competition – TCS Alum and UMBC student Ronan Guilfoyle and just last year our current 10th grade student Hector Rivas had his play performed at Center Stage.
We are grateful to Center Stage and their Learning and Social Accountability Department staff Janal Daniel and Emily Lettau for once again giving our students this unique opportunity.
https://www.centerstage.org/learning/young-playwrights-festival/
Award-winning American photographer, playwright, actor and writer Willy Conley was our guest for the “Conversation With…” series this week. Mr. Conley’s varied career includes work as a biomedical and creative photographer, actor in both theatre and television, and over 30 years as a professor at Gallaudet University. He spoke about his life growing up profoundly deaf with two hearing parents in a time before the American with Disabilities Act where there were few accommodations to enhance the lives of the deaf.
Mr. Conley came at the invitation of Lyric Education Director and TCS seminar teacher Denise Gantt who had been both a classmate and colleague with Mr. Conley. The students have been reading Mr. Conley’s award winning play The water falls prior to the Conversation. His visit made the play come alive and develop a richer understanding in the students of what it means to have inclusion in the arts that allows for the full engagement of both the deaf and hearing communities.
All of the students are familiar with American Sign Language through the weekly ASL seminars in the school taught by Peggy Lashbrook and introduced themselves using their language skills. However, the Conversation was enhanced through the presence of two ASL interpreters – Anessa Hughes and Krystal Goodrich.
After the Conversation, the students toured Mr. Conley around the school and expressed our gratitude for his generous and open sharing with them.