The Art of
Collaboration: An EAST S tu dent Perspective
A
t EAST headquarters we may not get the day-to-day interaction with the amazing EAST students right now, but we definitely love to hear the stories of how they impact each other, community partners, and facilitators. Ella Layton, EAST alumna, and Ashlea MacAlister EAST facilitator, of Valley View High School, shared a little bit of their unique journey and how collaboration and support helped them be successful!
+ How it all begin... Let me start by explaining what was going on in my life when I was hired as the Valley View High School (VVHS) EAST facilitator. It was the end of Summer 2020, and the world as we knew it was drastically changing. After ten years as an on-again-off-again college student, I virtually graduated with a Bachelor of Science, Engineering degree in English, and a minor in Writing Studies. I planned to stay at home with my two-year-old and continue my college journey with a Master’s of some sort. My friend and mentor teacher told me about the EAST position opening - but I had no clue what EAST was, or what the class was about. One Zoom interview later and just like that, I became the VVHS EAST Facilitator. I don’t think I had time to stop and be scared or nervous, because everything happened so quickly. It was a whirlwind experience, to say the least. The former EAST facilitator and I met to discuss the job and he informed me there was one person I could count on, Ella Layton. I wrote her name in my notes and immediately felt relieved when I learned this would be her sixth year in EAST. It was like a weight being lifted off my shoulders learning there was someone who had that much experience, but to then find out how dedicated Ella was to EAST was the greatest surprise. I can confidently say our EAST program would not be what it is without Ella. Her commitment and passion let me know that she would always be a friend of EAST. Ella was much more than my Student Champion, she was my biggest supporter, confidant, right-hand woman, and friend when I needed it. I was learning along with my students every day, and Ella made that special.
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EAST QUARTERLY | EASTinitiative.org
+ When Ashlea met Ella... I’m very proud to say I’ve been in EAST for six years. During my time in EAST, I had five different facilitators, and three of them were brand new. Being experienced in EAST, it was a goal to share things I’d seen be successful, and things that were not so successful. For example, at the beginning of the school year, some students are also new to EAST and still need to get an understanding of what EAST encompasses. Outside of helping the facilitator figure out what an average day in EAST looked like, I made sure to help them plan for events like the EAST Conference. I suggested introducing projects very early to the class. Students are more interested at the beginning of the year and want to start something fun or new. Next was the brainstorming period; team-building activities helped us as students become closer to each other and the facilitator. Once projects start to pick up, the facilitator is typically less handson.Then I’d begin helping them become familiar with the class inventory and teaching them about some of the technologies. The first semester of EAST can be a challenge, but it is smooth sailing once we get a rhythm. I first met Mrs. McAlister at the open house meeting before school started, and I said I would be there to help with whatever I could. Once the year started, I learned that she was only hired a few weeks before then and had not had any training or even knew what EAST was. She was the first facilitator I had worked with that was not familiar with EAST. Along with learning what EAST was, we together had to find a way for students who were virtual to have an EAST experience. It was a challenge at first to find the balance between virtual assignments and projects in class and to have some uniformity with students who opted to do virtual school. We worked together to tackle the strangest school year ever. The most important thing I have learned is that new facilitators will have many questions, and being there as a resource for all things EAST had to be my goal. My advice to any new facilitator reading this is to take things one step at a time and find a student with experience in EAST to guide you through your first year. Having someone by your side will make things much easier.
