Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • University Statements
  • Syracuse University Impact
  • |
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • University Statements
  • Syracuse University Impact
  • |
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community

University, South Side Initiative Help Local Youth ‘Write Their Lives’

Wednesday, September 3, 2014, By Kelly Homan Rodoski
Share
School of Education
Sisters Na’eema and Jameira Harry work on rhythms under the direction of Syracuse University doctoral student Blair Smith, left, as part of the Writing Our Lives workshop held this summer at the Southside Communication Center.

Sisters Na’eema and Jameira Harry work on rhythms under the direction of Syracuse University doctoral student Blair Smith, left, as part of the Writing Our Lives workshop held this summer at the Southside Communication Center.

School may not have been in session, but learning was happening at the South Side Communication Center this summer. On a weekday afternoon, sisters Na’eema and Jameira Harry sat at a table, thumbing through magazines to find images that would reflect how they see themselves. A short time later, they sat at a sound mixing board with headphones on, working on rhythms under the direction of Syracuse University doctoral student Blair Smith.

The Harry sisters, a junior and 8th grader in the Syracuse City School District, respectively, were among several local students who took part in “Writing Our Lives,” a four-week workshop collaboration of the South Side Initiative and Marcelle Haddix, Dean’s Associate Professor and director of English education programs in the School of Education. The workshop was held for four weeks in July and geared toward students ages 12-18, although no student who wanted take part was turned away.

Haddix and Syracuse University graduate students worked with the youth on music production, creating rhythms and beats and writing lyrics; using social media to create memes and/or websites; and writing TV scripts, screenplays and mini documentaries. Students held an exhibition of their work on the final day.

The workshop evolved from a larger Writing Our Lives conference that Haddix has held annually in the district since 2009. She started the conference and other programming after experiencing dissatisfaction with the abilities of some students in the community to read and write. “I wanted to be part of the solution,” she says.

Haddix has offered other afterschool programming in the district, but this is the first time the programming has been offered in the summer. Conversations between Haddix and Linda Littlejohn, associate vice president of Syracuse University’s South Side Initiative, brought forth the idea of an organic collaboration for youth on the South Side.

“There is a group of children who fall through the cracks when it comes to summer programming. They may be too old to attend programs like Say Yes, that are geared toward elementary students. And, they are too young for youth summer employment,” says Haddix. “We wanted to provide a safe space for those young people to learn about and try different writing genres and to continue developing their academic skills.

“Professor Haddix and I have had several conversations about the necessity for incorporating the use of technology into culturally relevant curriculum that is aimed at strengthening both the writing and critical thinking skills of the young people who participate in activities at the South Side Communication Center,” says Littlejohn. “It’s especially important to provide interesting educational activities for the kids during the summer months. I very much appreciate the dedication and competency of Professor Haddix’s students this summer, and look forward to adding this as another regular educational activity at the center.”

For this year’s summer workshop, as she has in previous offerings, Haddix drew on the experience and expertise of Syracuse University students. Her co-teachers were Tyeisha Thomas, a junior in the School of Education; Blair Smith, a Ph.D. student in the School of Education and Delicia Greene, a Ph.D. student in the School of Information Studies.

For the Syracuse students, this summer’s workshop offered the chance for them to use their expertise in teaching while gaining valuable insights important for their own studying and research. Smith is exploring how her personal journey of making music fits in with her scholarly work. Greene, a doctoral student in library and information sciences and education, is researching the learning that takes place in out-of-school spaces and how that can inform what happens in formal school settings. Thomas, who has worked with youth since age 14, is studying learning spaces and social media.

“The Syracuse University students who get involved with Writing Our Lives are looking for opportunities to give back to their communities,” says Haddix. “They comment that programs like these provide real-life applications of some of the theories and ideas that they’re learning about in the classroom.”

This year’s fall Writing Our Lives Conference is scheduled for early November. For more information, visit http://writingourlives.syr.edu.

  • Author

Kelly Rodoski

  • Recent
  • VPA Announces New Drama Department Chair
    Tuesday, July 1, 2025, By Erica Blust
  • Syracuse Views Summer 2025
    Tuesday, July 1, 2025, By News Staff
  • 250 Years Later, Declaration of Independence Still Challenges, Inspires a Nation: A Conversation With Professor Carol Faulkner
    Monday, June 30, 2025, By Kathleen Haley
  • Philanthropy Driven by Passion, Potential and Purpose
    Monday, June 30, 2025, By Eileen Korey
  • Libraries Receives Grant for Book Repair Workshop
    Monday, June 30, 2025, By Cristina Hatem

More In Campus & Community

Libraries Receives Grant for Book Repair Workshop

Syracuse University Libraries’ Department of Access and Resource Sharing received a Central New York Library Resources Council Catalyst Grant for $2,000 to provide train-the-trainer workshops on book repair to local school district media specialists. Preservation librarian Marianne Hanley submitted the…

Boom! Where to Watch Fireworks in CNY This Fourth of July

Get ready to light up your Independence Day with a bang! From lakeside launches to park-side pyrotechnics, Central New York (CNY) is bursting with fireworks displays to celebrate the Fourth of July. Here’s your guide to the best local shows…

Retiring University Professor and Decorated Public Servant Sean O’Keefe G’78 Reflects on a Legacy of Service

For most of his time as a public servant, Sean O’Keefe G’78 adhered to a few guiding principles: Step up when someone calls upon you to serve. Be open to anything. Challenge yourself. Those values helped O’Keefe navigate a career…

Jorge Morales ’26 Named a 2025 Beinecke Scholar

Jorge Morales ’26, a double major in history and anthropology in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs with a minor in English and textual studies in the College of Arts and Sciences, has been awarded the highly competitive…

Registration Open for Esports Campus Takeover Hosted by University and Gen.G

Syracuse University and global esports and gaming organization Gen.G have opened general registration at campustakeover.gg for its first Campus Takeover Sept. 20-21. The two-day conference will bring students and administrators to Syracuse to highlight career opportunities within the esports industry…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • X
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
Social Media Directory

For the Media

Find an Expert Follow @SyracuseUNews
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2025 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.