Archive for the 'Ideas' Category

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Awesome Feedback

Published on July 24, 2008 in A Dover Dilemma, Computer Academy, Dover, Dover Carnival, Feedback and Ideas. 2 Comments Tags: , .

If you’re a Dover resident or a frequent visitor, you’ll find this post a particular treat. If not, it may be less relevant.

I’ve been so busy working at the Computer Academy and planning future endeavors that I haven’t had time to address the many awesome comments that you all, my readers, have posted. I always appreciate feedback, so I’ve made some time to highlight the recent comments on my blog. Individuals all across the spectrum have been leaving me their insightful thoughts, people who have been moving through my life this last year, and people who I have yet to meet in person.

Feel free to skip to the comments about the Dover Carnival Incident. If not, let’s get started.

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Day One, Year Two, Computer Academy

Rick (without a Y) wrote:

I was searching for the DCC Academy website and I came across this. Now I get to read up on Dover Drama! Woot! But if it makes you feel better, I was always blown away by how much Dover students were able to get away with. I subbed there for about six months (I think I subbed one of your classes once), and rarely did a day go by that my jaw didn’t hit the floor after seeing a student say or do something that I wouldn’t have DREAMED of doing.

I feel real old saying that, and I had to check myself before I typed it. Was it really that different for me? Or am I just remembering the good parts? That’s probably the case to a certain extent, but when a student jumps out of one of the windows in the middle of class and doesn’t even get a lunch detention… Well, something smells rotten. My mother vents to me aboutn it often.

Anywho, it’s good to have you in the program. Our approach seems to evolved into team-teaching, which is a fantastic method. Now we just pray that they all bring their parts in by Tuesday and it’ll be a perfect class.

-RT

Rick is the gentleman who taught the Computer Hardware class at the Computer Academy during the first two-week session. For those two weeks, I was his Teaching Assistant. We had a great time and got a lot of work done. I look forward to working with him again in the future.

It doesn’t make me feel better that it’s seemingly common knowledge about what “Dover students (are) able to get away with”. It’s just sad, really. I’m sure everyone agrees.

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AP Scores

Mike wrote:

Getting a 5 on either Calculus Exam is literally easier than passing it. For some odd reason, about 65 of the 110-or-so are necessary to get a 5 each yeah, though the results are always heavily skewed toward the high-grade end. The tests with more common results have about 10% 5’s, 30% 4’s, 30% 3’s, 20% 2’s, and 10% 1’s. Calc AB has about 30% 5’s, with more than 60% getting a 4 or 5. Calc BC is “worse”, with about 50% 5’s.

To me, this seems to be a grading contradiction on part of College Board. If I get a normal percentage score (earned/possible) of 80% on both my Calc BC and Language Exams, why do I get a 5 of the former, but a 3 on the letter.

That’s interesting, Mike. But, all tests have their own rules and curves – that’s just a part of life for an American mainstream test-taking student. I don’t mind.

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Kim wrote:

I’ve never seen a college accept 5s but not 4s. Granted I only actually looked into a few schools’ policies.

And the AP, like other College Board exams, is curved, which is why there’s a difference between the scores earned by different percentages on different exams. Whether or not that’s a good policy is another issue.

I saw a school or two who had an AP policy of only accepting “fives”, and I’ve heard of others, but they don’t really matter now. I wasn’t upset because I thought I wouldn’t get credit, entirely. I just felt that I had studied too long and too hard for the score I got; I was wrong, obviously.

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Reflections on the Dover Carnival Incident

J wrote:

Ricky,

I’m glad that someone is reporting about how the so-called “gangs” are popping up in this neighborhood. Quite frankly, I feel that this issue is being overlooked in our community, and I believe this is because nobody can take teenagers seriously these days. When people hear the word gang, they think of Bloods, Crips, Latin Kings, and so on. I believe that these “gangs” aren’t taken seriously because there have not been any issues. Until now. I believe the incident was a wake-up call, and it’s proof that something needs to be done now to prevent this from happening again, although it should have been prevented from happening at all.

Hello J! Welcome to my site; I encourage you to come back. Although I assume posting as “J” is to keep you anonymous, feel free to email me to claim your identity. I’d love to have a chat with you, really. This goes for any commenter in the community, always.

I agree with J’s contention that this issue is being overlooked in the community. I too have noticed that people have a hard time taking teenagers seriously. I’ve made it my last year’s work to change that perception, but there’s only so much one person can do in isolated incidents.

And really, if this vocal minority of teenagers keep causing public trouble, this misconception will never be changed.

If a Dover student finds the need to affiliate himself or herself with a “gang” of any type, it’s a sad statement on his or her life. That isn’t to say it’s his or her fault; the nurture side of the nature v. nurture debate comes to mind. All I know about the psychology of gangs comes the book Freakonomics and episodes of This American Life, which isn’t much.

These students should and must be taken seriously. They must never be dismissed as people not worth our time. That’s all I know – I’m not sure where to go from here.

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John Morello wrote:

What a tragedy! The violent acts both immediate and brewing. To see a beautiful thing deteriorate like that…To feel helpless. Awful.

Thinking of you Ricky and wishing you and your community well.

“Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.
Surely some revelation is at hand; ”

THE SECOND COMING
W.B. Yeats

Despite the somber mood running throughout the threads of my website’s discussions recently, I was so glad to see John’s comment. For anyone who doesn’t know, John spoke at the Dover High School “Leadership Rally” earlier this year. I fought for several months to secure the funding for this normally-routine assembly to be held. The fact that John and I have been keeping touch after the ordeal is rather impressive.

Finally responding to John’s comment, I couldn’t put it any better. Watching something I’ve loved so much crumble in front of my eyes was painful. I appreciate your thoughts and wishes, John.

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Christopher S. Penn wrote:

Dover is not alone.

As the economy goes in a capitalist nation, so goes the society.

My condolences still to the community breaking apart.

I’ve been giving this a lot of thought and I’m starting to think that Chris is right. My generation has grown up in a time of relative prosperity and safety. It’s only now that I’m starting to internalize that this can change, will change, and is changing. Knowing something and internalizing it are two different concepts.

Within hours of reading Chris’ comment, I had a phone conversation with one of my former history teachers. We talked about AP scores and the Carnival Incident. Not surprisingly, he said exactly the same thing. If the United States’ economy reflects the peace in Dover Plains, we’re in for a rough decade.

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Meg wrote:

I agree with what you wrote. The carnival use to be a fun place to go and hang with friends, meet up with family and have a good time but this year it did feel different. Walking around with my 2 younger sisters, 9 and 13, I felt like I needed them by my side at all times. It never use to be like that, I could take them and let them go off with friends and enjoy themselves but this year it just felt very unsafe. From the mexican’s who stood around and starred and checked out a 9 year old as well as myself who is clearly very pregnant to the drunken teenagers fighting with each other, I just felt like I could have spent my money elsewhere. Its really sad but this town is slowly becoming a place I do not want to be associated with But how do we, and the town as a hole turn things around?!?! There really is no way and that is horrible. The event on Saturday was the last straw. I returned to see the fireworks like I always do and then to witness a stabbing only 50 feet from where I stood was incredible. I can not stop thinking of what would have happened had I walked that way a few moments earlier. We shouldn’t have to fear our town or watch our backs at a place that is suppose to bring joy and excitement. This year marks the last year of the carnival for me and sadly I think for quite a few others.

Hey Meg! It’s nice to see another new face around here.

I obviously agree with Meg’s belief that this carnival was tangibly different than those of the past, but again, I don’t have the answers for turning it around.

Regardless, I’m willing to throw out some ideas. We need to keep doing what we do. We must move through our daily lives propping ourselves up in society while never forgetting to help others. Over time, things may improve. If they don’t, I’m not sure if it’s feasible to think our actions can change the lifestyles and values of others. It may be, but I have my doubts.

I hope I will attend the carnival again. I look forward to writing about my joy on the fairgrounds sometime in the future.

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Anne Castro wrote:

Why doesn’t the Dover community promote AA rather than open another liquor store? It has been to my observation that Dover and the surrounding communities are socially reclusive, impoverished, and in denial. Been here six years, can’t wait to move because there is no productivity or prosperity. I’ve been noticing that the general consensus of the neighborhood is “alcoholism, and compulsive television/video game involvement!” Not a very intelligent community, VERY LAZY.

Welcome, Anne! Yet another new face? You commenters have me overjoyed.

These thoughts are very insightful and I think there’s some merit here. I’m not quite sure how a community “promotes” Alcoholics Anonymous over opening another liquor store. Doing some research, I’ve learned that there are AA meetings in our community and in nearby communities. The open market dictates the opening and closing of stores, so any liquor stores that open will be regulated by capitalism.

You’re hinting at something that’s always disturbed me about the Dover Carnival, which is its dependance on alcohol. I don’t mind when adults get together for a few drinks in public, but I clearly saw my former classmates, those who I just graduated with, drinking during the four nights. I doubt they brought their own beer.

I had a chat with a coworker of mine today about Dover’s social problems, and Meg’s comment came to mind. We talked about shifting populations and the eventual influx of new residents as a result of future residential projects. Will these new populations, likely coming from wealthier districts of the nation, clash with the “VERY LAZY” community? Again, I don’t have the answers, but I bet that social dynamic will be interesting.

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I love my blog’s community. I can always count on you guys to have an intelligent conversation that I can’t find elsewhere.

The Leadership Rally

Published on May 30, 2008 in A Dover Dilemma, Dover, Ideas and Ricky. 1 Comment Tags: , , .

It’s over. Months of personal panic and political positioning finally led to today’s assembly, the Dover High School Student Council’s annual Leadership Rally. Our guest was the fascinating John Morello, who performed his one-man-show, Dirt. In a word, John was awesome. Before giving a more in depth review of the show, my opening remarks set this post up well.

Welcome to the 2008 Dover Leadership Rally, Student Council’s traditional springtime gathering with the goal of entertaining you while making you think. Before we start, I sincerely thank Superintendent Dr. Onofry and Assistant Superintendent Mr. Prill for making this assembly possible. Without their help, we wouldn’t be here today.

For those of you who don’t know who I am, I’m Ricky Mondello, your Student Council President. It is with great enthusiasm that I introduce our guest speaker this morning.

He’s been on stage for 15 years as an actor, comedian, and educator. He holds a BA in Theatre Arts and has performed in numerous professional productions throughout New England. Most notably, he has toured the United States and Canada as a headlining comedian. Although he has spent most of his time making people laugh, he has always found himself working with people whose everyday realities are anything but funny.

Born in Detroit and raised in Boston, our speaker considers himself a survivor of a “high risk” childhood. As a teenager, he witnessed friends and family lose their lives to drugs and alcohol. As a teacher in a treatment center for teens, he witnessed students repeating the family cycles of self-neglect and self-abuse.

I am very pleased to welcome John Morello to our school today. Student Council hopes that all of us can internalize his message and make intelligent decisions – tomorrow, Prom – and ever day after. Please give John the respect he deserves and enjoy the assembly. Thanks.

John’s performance tells a story of complex characters whose lives all cross. Masterfully, he crafts how their decisions affect each other in both beautiful and disastrous ways. The show juxtaposes seriousness and humor, keeping an audience on its toes. By sprinkling in pop culture references and very intelligent comedy, everyone in the auditorium was seen laughing.

The defining characteristic of John’s show is its theme. Unlike many speakers who condemn and condescend to troubled teens, John’s message is that of understanding and empathy. It’s not solely a show about drug or alcohol abuse; rather, it explores what motivates us all, including seemingly well-adjusted individuals.

I didn’t need to solicit the feedback of my peers after the assembly – it was everywhere. People all day said, “Good choice, Rick!” or “Great speaker!”. One usually quiet student, a senior, told me that this was the first assembly in his high school career that he truly enjoyed. A group of teachers believed that performance was, “The high point of our year.”

Personally, I’ve been having a hard time coping with the direction Dover High School has been heading. In this time of great hope and fear about its future, Dover needed John’s presentation; I needed it as well. As a teenager, I was touched, and as a veteran at selecting motivational speakers, I’ve never been more pleased. I give John my highest recommendation and hope he keeps spreading his great message for years to come.

Finding Happiness

Published on May 6, 2008 in Ideas and Links. 4 Comments Tags: .

I just read one of the greatest blog posts ever, linked to by @Pistachio, and felt that I had to share it. It’s titled Let Me Save You $40: Here’s How to Be Happy. Its approach to happiness is so pragmatic that it’s shocking. Go ahead, take three minutes and give it a read.

My favorite part? I agree with Laura (Pistachio):

There are 7 billion people on the world. You can afford to not hang out with that one again.

Objective Decisions or Relationship-Driven Decisions?

Published on April 19, 2008 in Ideas and Rants. 3 Comments Tags: .

I read an interesting question on Stever Robbins’ blog from twitter user @stephenparker.

Is it better to be objective in our decision making, or should our relationships play a role? Is it better to be right or loyal?

Stever gave his answer to the question, but I felt compelled to give my perspective. It took me a few days to get my thoughts together on the subject, but here’s what I formed…

There’s no answer to this question that applies to everyone. The right answer is whatever lets that person sleep at night. Just like a productivity or organizational system, there’s no “one size fits all” solution. As long as the person using the system has confidence in it, it works.

Of course, that answer is a complete cop out, so I’ll try to make it personal. Those are two uncomfortable questions to ask myself, but I can’t improve unless I challenge myself. Is it better for me to be right or loyal?

In a perfect world, these two items aren’t diametrically opposed. In this fantasy land I just referenced, being loyal to one’s relationships is the right thing. We wouldn’t have to ask ourselves the tough questions or make decisions that challenge our values; regrettably, this world doesn’t exist. When found, it’s often short-lived.

I’d like to think I wouldn’t violate my moral principles for the benefit of a relationship. But, what if that relationship was more important to me than morality at that time? What if the relationship delivered more value to me than ethics would have? Suddenly, the world isn’t in black and white as emotion and reason collide.

I’ve regretted betraying my principles for relationships in the past, but I’ve also regretted sacrificing the people in my life for my values. A lot of people can’t even imagine themselves stealing from others, but if the situation was desperate enough, they might. Likewise, when the situation is dire, people may throw away their values to help another person or forfeit a relationship for the sake of their values, quite contradictory to what they thought they’d do in such a situation.

Not too long ago, I had this status message on twitter, facebook, and AIM.

People are the most important things in our lives. Put them above everything else.

At the time, I believed that. Now, with some consideration, I’m wavering. It’s not that I suddenly not value people anymore; honestly, I do. It’s just too easy to say something as absolute as “put them above everything else” without being tested. Values, personal beliefs on what is right and wrong, are just thoughts unless translated into actions. Asking a question like this is an interesting thought exercise, but as you can see from my ranting, I cannot answer it right now. It raises too many questions, too many what ifs without a specific situation to think about.

I hope to find the answer the next time I’m put to the test. When that trial happens, I’ll try to do what will let me sleep at night.

Readers, what do you think? Try answering that question for yourself and post what you come up with in the comments.

Event Horizon

Published on March 23, 2008 in College Admissions, Dover, Ideas, Monthly Resolutions, Ricky and Tympanoplasty. 8 Comments Tags: , , , .

Rough weeks trigger lengthy and significant blog posts, it turns out.

Due to many personal stresses, including recent developments on the college admissions front, I have dug myself into a temporary sadness and a currently persisting physical sickness. I’ve spent my weekend trying to nurse myself back to happiness and health; my attempts have had variable success. If you’ll bear with me though this lengthy post, I’ve reached a turning point that I’d like to share with you. I’ll break down the recent events of my life and try to tie them together.

The End of High School

This last Thursday marked “100 days” left until my high school graduation, an event I’m eagerly dreading. I haven’t been an officer for my class in two years due to taking a position as Student Council President, but I’ve always offered my support. On account of this, I was pleased when I was asked to put together a slideshow of photographs consisting of members of my class. This slideshow was to be shown at a breakfast to celebrate the number of days left until graduation.

Although I’m glad I put it together, it was a very difficult process. Scanning photos with my friend Matt took hours, and cropping them into a slideshow was tedious. More than that, though, I saw pictures of my friends and acquittances as they grew up, all together, in this small town. It hardly felt fair for me to put the presentation together, seeing as though I had only lived in this town for six years of the twelve years of public education. It was an emotional hurdle I hadn’t anticipated.

Regardless, the breakfast ceremony wasn’t a disaster. In fact, it’s had me thinking about my future. My class’ officers asked a few influential teachers and faculty members to say a few words at the ceremony. One of those people gave us this wisdom about Dover Plains:

You guys all know that there’s nothing for you here. Get out, come back, and tell us how you did. Make us all proud.

I’ve known this for years. The town I live in, unfortunately, is a dead end. Regardless, I love it to death. I even wrote one of my essays for MIT on it, and truly meant every touching word I said. (I’m considering posting that essay on the blog. Let me know if you’re interested.)

What the speaker said had me think about all of the work I’ve done to try to improve Dover High School. I’ve had successes due to hard work, and I’ve had failures due to improper planning, the actions of others, and the bureaucracy characteristic of a public school.

I have a few projects, “unfinished business”, on my list of “help Dover” endeavors. Recently, I’ve been wondering whether or not to scrap that list. I’ve gone through the system and put in more work and hours than most people do. I’ve been thinking, why not just let it rest?

I can’t let it rest. I’ve gone through my time at Dover High School believing that I must always try to make the environment better for the next person. It’s the idea that’s defined my career thus far, and I can’t quit now. It’s why I’m alive, isn’t it? I’ll have some interesting stories involving my final hurrah to share, I bet.

Ear Surgery

In the midst of my normal routine, I’ve been wondering if or when I’ll claim an unknown “amount” of hearing back after my surgery almost one month ago. Since my last appointment with my surgeon, when he took a lot of “packing” out of my ear, I’ve been picking up high-pitch sounds, like a female’s voice. The sensations are very sharp and painful, but I expect them to get better.

It’s been my March Resolution to dedicate myself to healing. I haven’t done that as well as I would have liked to. My “can do” lifestyle hasn’t been kind to me, but I’ve been trying to adjust.

College Admissions

In the last week and a half, I was accepted to Lafayette and RPI. Lafayette’s acceptance letter didn’t come with a complete financial aid package; the big envelope only delivered the news that I had been selected to receive the school’s highest merit scholarship, the Marquis Scholarship. RPI’s letter came with a financial aid package that I consider to be lackluster.

Last Thursday, as I was about to start my last hurrah on the Senior Slideshow, my Mom gave me a letter from MIT – a small envelope. My heartbeat instantly quickened as I rushed to open the letter which I knew would bring me bad news. It started:

We have finished the selection process for MIT’s Class of 2012, and while we are unable to offer you admission at this time, we have placed you on our Wait List.

That was my bitter introduction to the proper noun, “Wait List”. The remainder of the letter told me I could either choose to remain on or withdraw from the list.

I’ve come this far, so I’ve decided to stay. Although I know the odds are impossibly small, I would never forgive myself if I didn’t stick around to see what happens.

Turning Point

I’ve had a frustrating week, one which has plunged me into feeling ill. If you’ve been monitoring my presence online, I haven’t been overwhelming positive. The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated, and I hope to play my cards the best I can. Essentially, I’m not really going to change anything in my life right now. I’m just going to keep going, doing my best. It’s a very faux turning point, isn’t it?

Just bare with me as I get back on my feet. It’s easier to write a blog post than to put thought into action, but it’s a step.

Another thought: A huge thanks to the people who have given me their kind words while I’ve been working through this. 

Jill Bolte Taylor

Published on March 15, 2008 in Ideas. 0 Comments Tags: , .

My new favorite pastime has been watching videos from the remarkable TED conference. Before I go off to college, I hope to have watched all of the videos available on the TED website. I’ve watched 24 so far and have many times that number to go.

Yesterday, while I was having a uniquely bad day, I put on a talk from Jill Bolte Taylor. Here’s the summary on the TED website.

Neuroanatomist Jill Bolte Taylor had an opportunity few brain scientists would wish for: One morning, she realized she was having a massive stroke. As it happened — as she felt her brain functions slip away one by one, speech, movement, understanding — she studied and remembered every moment. This is a powerful story about how our brains define us and connect us to the world and to one another.

I beg you to watch this video. Not only did it cheer me up, but it’s changed the way I view the human spirit. Jill brings a type of genuine inspiration to her talk that’s rare today. Block out nineteen minutes and watch it below, or download a higher quality movie file (recommended). I cannot say enough good things about it.