by Aziah Siid
When the massive Eaton and Palisades wildfires swept through areas of metropolitan Los Angeles earlier this month, they consumed or severely damaged 10 schools in the Pasadena and Los Angeles Unified School Districts. Evacuation orders and poor air quality forced schools to remain closed, reminiscent of lockdowns during the COVID-19 pandemic.
But families of displaced students are seeking alternatives to ensure their children’s education won’t backslide into learning loss. L.A.’s Black churches are stepping up to help.
That includes West Angeles Church of God In Christ, a longtime staple of the city’s Black worship community. The Crenshaw Boulevard megachurch is providing educational opportunities for students while schools are closed, helping them stay focused on their work — and offering a distraction from the ongoing disaster.
Deacon John Wilson, director of West Angeles’s Education and Enrichment Program (EEP), says the church is going above and beyond to open its doors to both returning and new students whose education has been disrupted by the fire. The goal, he says, is to be a lifeline for families and students dealing with a series of traumatic events.
This week, West Angeles will “have at least 12 Black students who go to Palisades High School come in,” Deacon Wilson says. “We have a group of Black kids over there, and I reached out to the parent group, and we had some we already knew about who were in our program already on the way.”
Students from neighboring districts will be able to come in from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. for meals, homework help, technology assistance if their schools are open remotely, and additional emotional support if necessary.
Decades of Serving Students
Beginning in 1991 as a faith-focused program for West Angeles teens, the ministry has evolved to emphasize “academic excellence and enrichment” and has expanded its services beyond church members to include all community residents.
The EEP is specially designed to help middle and high school students navigate the difficult teen years and get the academic and social support they need to go to college. They provide after-school tutoring, summer bridge courses, personal finance seminars, information about STEAM-based careers, and more.
“We have all this technology for them, and we’re gonna have activities,” Wilson says of students affected by the fires. “We are gonna help you with your homework before you go home, and it’s gonna be a good situation. You’ll meet some new friends. A lot of them will meet people they didn’t know in their schools.”
In an executive order, California Gov. Gavin Newsom has allowed displaced students to attend school outside of their district, making it easier for students of schools damaged or destroyed in the fires to use temporary facilities. The governor has also vowed to help schools avoid penalties for not meeting minimum school year requirements. The order explicitly directs state agencies to work with destroyed or damaged schools to “develop a plan for serving displaced students and rebuilding.”
Keeping Students’ Spirits Up
While parents might want to protect their children from the pain and uncertainty the disaster has wrought, Wilson believes children don’t need to be shielded from difficulties. Rather, he says, parents must be compassionate but realistic: “You know this is a tough situation. We know you miss your friends, but we’re going to try to work this out.’”
At the same time, instead of allowing their kids to languish in unstructured time away from school, Wilson says parents “should try to design time they can spend with their old friends away from the school. Not knowing when they can return to their old routine can be triggering for young people who have just put the pandemic lockdowns behind them.
“This is really tough on kids. You should see what they’re saying on social media,” Wilson says. “They’re saying, ‘Oh, shoot, it’s just like the pandemic. Here we go.’ It’s not a good thing.”
Most importantly, the deacon encourages families to “talk, talk, talk, talk” to their kids. Conversations — even on difficult topics — are better than trying to shield them from the challenges the whole family may face.
“Don’t isolate your kids, and if they’re old enough to understand what’s happening, let them see the news,” he says. “Let them understand what’s happening. That’s what I’ve told a couple of families already.”
Source: Seattle Medium
