Sounding Of Social
The See America In Color (SAIC) civic engagement campaign hit a milestone on March 7th by handing out scholarships, awards and recognition to NJ students, educators and public officials. It was sort of a coming-out party for the project that’s been in the works for 7+ years to include an essay contest, ‘MVP Club’ (Many Valuable Parents) and hometown forums celebrating all-round citizen excellence.
This event happened on the heels of a special bulletin issued by the campaign in February which asked the question “Should National Civics Day be a thing?” The message behind ‘SAIC 2020’ is to reboot civics education, refresh civic engagement, reset cultural messaging and revive social spirit.
SAIC is about how we update our civics to advance roots & culture and make us better. This gives a clearer picture of history, family, culture, country, civic and social issues for a higher level of citizenship. It also means adding ‘smarts’ to civics the way tech leaders do for gadgets. The campaign isn’t political. It’s aspirational so that we can be #HometownStrong as ever!
Founder/Creator Douette ‘Doc’ Cunningham shared his excitement for the project and the support provided by those across education, business, media, government and community. In telling the project’s backstory which came out of national news from 2012 to 2015, he said “We hope to expand the essay contest with new categories to include Arts, Science & Health, as well as engaging schools and communities across the country. This will build on the support shown in NJ, for a fired-up future.”
The list of student, educator and community awards is impressive. This achievement involved careful planning and collaborative leadership. Big thanks to Coca-Cola and Chick-fil-A for their donations in food/beverages. Those in attendance were reminded of Maya Angelou’s words who once said “A person is the product of their dreams. So make sure to dream great dreams. And then try to live your dreams.”
You can support our efforts to “See America In Color: With 2020″ Vision at the GoFundeMe crowdfunding page, search for ‘seeamericaincolor’ http://www.gofundme.com/f/seeamericaincolor
Student Awards
Middle School Level
- Bayonne Vroom School
- Oluwaseun Ilori (winner)
- Mikayla Camacho-Reciek (runner-up)
- Mt Holly Holbein School
- Elizabeth Curillo (winner)
- Chika Nlemigbo (runner-up)
- Hoboken School
- Jessida Urquiaga (winner)
- Alexys Sayaan (runner-up)
High School Level
- Franklin Township School (Somerset)
- Akshay Gokul (winner)
- Sam Gorczyca (runner-up)
South Jersey Middle School Rising Star
- Mt Holly Holbein School
- Elizabeth Curillo (winner)
- Chika Nlemigbo (runner-up)
North Jersey Middle School Rising Star
- Bayonne Vroom School
- Oluwaseun Ilori (winner)
- Mikayla Camacho-Reciek (runner-up)
Statewide Middle School Level
- Hoboken School
- Jessida Urquiaga (winner)
- Alexys Sayaan (runner-up)
Statewide High School Level
- Franklin Township School (Somerset)
- Akshay Gokul (winner)
- Sam Gorczyca (runner-up)
Educator ‘Civic Spirit Award’
- Giselle Torres: 6th Grade Social Studies, Bayonne Vroom School
- James E. DiDonato: Superintendent, Mt Holly Township School
- Dr. Tamika Pollins: Director, Diversity Equity & Inclusion, Hoboken School
- Justin S. Miller: Supervisor, History & World Languages, Franklin Township School
Community Awards
- Super Citizen Award: Senator Cory Booker
- Public Servant Award: Kari Osmond, Deputy Chief-of-Staff, NJ 12th congressional district
- Civic Media Award: Nicole Carroll, USA Today Editor-in-Chief
- School Innovator Award: Dr John Ravally, Superintendent, Franklin Township School
- Dream Team Award: Frankie Lynne, SAIC volunteer
- Business Leader Award: Sophie Stein, Chick-fil-A Operator
- Hometown Leader Award: Franklin Township Councilwoman Kimberly Francois
Tracks: Raleigh Ritchie – Stronger Than Ever – https://youtu.be/QoyMvE5g7f8
Grace Carter – Fired Up – https://youtu.be/kOfCuVDXjI0
See America In Color 