November 15, 2023 • 23 mins
In this episode of the oneSMFC podcast, Superintendent Ochoa is joined by the Principal of College Park, Angienette Estonina, Teacher Yaou Liu, student Quincey and parent Helen. This culturally rich episode highlights the various events College Park holds to foster global citizens at their school. As a Mandarin immersion program, College Park embraces not just Mandarin as both the language and a culture, but makes time and space to include the diverse student body and the cultures they bring.
Meet the wonderful Principal at the annual Fiesta de Opciones | Festival of Options on Saturday, December 2, 2023! Our College Park team as well as our other magnet programs will be ready to welcome our community from 10:00 am - 2:00 pm at the College Park campus, 715 Indian Ave. San Mateo!
Interested in learning more? Check out our recent On the Road to Year 3 Annual Report!
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
We learn science in Mandarin and we also learn a lot
of phrases and we learn how towrite in Mandarin.
Speak Mandarin all theessentials.
Speaker 3 (00:09):
In the classroom I really do see the mingling of
students when it comes to theirlanguage abilities and also
their culture knowledge.
Speaker 4 (00:20):
It wasn't just mooncake making, it was mural
making and poster making.
There's just so much happening.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
I went to downtown San Francisco with a bunch of
kids from college mark andteachers and parents and I held
up a sign for what felt likehours and hours.
Speaker 4 (00:41):
What's this room called Conference room?
Yeah the principal's conferenceroom.
Yeah, the main officeconference room.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
I noticed when I come to this school it feels
different.
When I come to college parkelementary school, I see things
culturally on the walls that Idon't see at other schools.
What's your sense, as aprincipal, of the importance of
celebrating the culture, thatmulticulturalism, that you see
(01:15):
here at college park, because Igo to a lot of schools and I
don't see it at other schools?
For you, anjanette, as aprincipal, why is that important
?
Speaker 4 (01:24):
Oh, it's tremendously important to celebrate the
diversity in our school.
While our program is focused onpromoting multilingualism
through Mandarin, chineselanguage and culture, we
celebrate every month differentcultures and the way we show up
(01:48):
in the world.
The reason why it's soimportant is so that our
children, our staff and familieswill feel validated and welcome
.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
And then how about from the teacher perspective?
Just look at this room.
There's probably 50 artifactsin this one room.
I imagine that you hold a lotof meetings in here with either
teachers or parents.
From the teacher perspective,why is it important to have
these things all around us andthese things in our environment?
Speaker 3 (02:22):
I think it's important for our students to
see themselves reflected aroundour school and also for families
that come in to feel welcome,to feel part of the school.
Just like the artifacts in thisroom, they're accumulated over
the years so you really do seethe people that come through
(02:43):
college park with the programhave been here for over 10 years
throughout the years and thenhow long have you been here?
I've been here 8 years.
Speaker 2 (02:52):
This is my 8th year.
Two more years to get to 10.
And then just another 20 yearsafter that.
Isn't that like everyprincipal's dream.
Could you just stay here for 30years or so?
Speaker 3 (03:05):
Well, I love it here.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
Grow old with us, don't go anywhere else.
Speaker 3 (03:10):
And you see the families that come through and
the imprints they leave as partof the school community.
Speaker 2 (03:17):
Yeah, and then we're also joined here.
This is really exciting becausewe have one of our students
with us.
I do want to give you a chance,quincy, to introduce yourself
to everybody on the podcast.
Tell us your name and tell uswhat grade you're in here at
College Park.
Speaker 1 (03:30):
My name is Quincy and I'm in 4th grade gate and I
used to be in the Mandarinprogram.
Speaker 2 (03:37):
Yeah, and did you go to school here, starting in
kindergarten?
Speaker 1 (03:41):
Yeah, I started kindergarten.
Speaker 2 (03:43):
Yeah, and you have a lot of other kids that go to
school here.
I think it's like 455,something like that.
It's a lot of kids that go toschool here.
We talked about the things thatyou see on the walls, these
beautiful paintings and theartifacts that are in the room,
and your principal talked aboutcelebrating cultures from around
(04:06):
the world.
Do you do that in yourclassrooms too?
Is that something you talkabout with other kids and with
your teachers?
Speaker 1 (04:12):
Yeah, we talk about it and we have special days
where we celebrate Chinesecelebrations and you can do like
the traditions that you wouldusually do in.
Just China.
Speaker 2 (04:32):
Yeah, like what would be a tradition that you can do.
Speaker 1 (04:35):
You eat and you make and eat mooncakes and you would
like.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
I have one that somebody gave me one of those.
It was really delicious.
Is that something you do inyour classrooms?
Speaker 1 (04:47):
We don't do it in our classrooms, but we do it like
in the multipurpose room.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
Okay, so there's there's, you know, to keep the
classroom super clean, obviously.
And then you, a big part ofyour day here at College Park is
learning a different language.
What's that like?
What's it like to be inclassrooms where you go from one
language to a completelydifferent language?
Speaker 1 (05:12):
It's confusing at first, but it gets easier,
simpler, you start understandingthe language more, and then you
just keep learning harder andharder stuff.
Speaker 2 (05:25):
Yeah, it does it become a little bit like a
challenge, like you kind of you?
You're like, oh, I'm at thislevel, I want to get to this
next level.
I want to.
Is that?
Is it a little bit like that?
Yeah, it's a lot like that,yeah and are you doing math in
in Mandarin?
Are you doing?
Are you learning words andwriting?
Tell me what you're learning inMandarin.
Speaker 1 (05:44):
We learn science in Mandarin and we also learn a lot
of phrases and we learn how towrite in Mandarin.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
speak Mandarin all the essentials, yeah you know, I
participated in a panel over atGilead Sciences.
As you all know, gilead is oneof our core partners in the
district and they're wonderful.
There's this big, multi-billiondollar company that's located
in Foster City and they broughtout basically their chief
scientist.
You know somebody that wasreally, really high up and she
(06:13):
was born in China and she gotinspired to do science in China
and she had a family member, agrandfather, who actually
studied in the United States.
So when she turned 20 she cameto the United States and she got
into that profession, goingdeep into her roots of being a
(06:36):
scientist, and she's now here inFoster City.
She tells her story about beingmulticultural, of having that
experience, and I think that'spart of what you're getting here
too.
It's not just learning science,it's really learning the
culture that you get exposed toin this program.
Speaker 1 (06:56):
Yeah, you learn science and it also you will do
it with the culture like notjust plain science.
Speaker 2 (07:05):
Yeah, you, it gets embedded with the culture.
Now, a couple of years ago, Iwent to downtown San Francisco
with a bunch of kids fromCollege Park and teachers and
parents and I held up a sign forwhat felt like hours and hours
and we have you participated inthat.
There's every year, there's abig, there's a big festival and
(07:29):
and some years we go and we, youknow, perform in the festival.
I think one of your teachersdoes a, is that right, prince
Westonina?
Speaker 4 (07:36):
So it's both, mr Milburn.
He composes the drumming andthen Mrs Wall, she composes the
dance routine, the fan dancingfor the Chinese New Year parade
in San Francisco.
Speaker 2 (07:49):
I can still do it.
I heard it so many times that,but he comes up with a new one
every year.
He's like I think he used to bea high school band director.
Speaker 4 (07:59):
Yes, he was.
Speaker 2 (08:00):
So it's in his blood.
Yeah, yeah, and then we go anddo that in San Francisco.
Have you been a part of thatbefore?
Speaker 1 (08:08):
It's hard to remember .
I think I have a few times, oneor two.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
Yeah, it's been a couple of years, I think.
If I recall, a lot of the kidswho participated were on the
younger side.
They were not in the fourth andfifth grade per se.
You've got this program thatyou've been in for many years.
You have your principal herewith you, but a big part of
being a student is having thatconnection between your family
(08:34):
and the school.
Your mom is with us today and Iknow, as a parent, you have
dreams for your child.
You have hopes for your childFrom the parent perspective.
What did you hope for?
What was your dream for Quincyin terms of what he was going to
experience here at College Park?
Speaker 5 (08:55):
Yeah, actually, quincy started off in Turnbull,
which is a Mandarin immersionprogram that's located right
next door.
It was a lottery, and the day Iwon the lottery for him to go, I
liked the happy dance, and thereason why I did that is because
Quincy is half Chinese and halfCaucasian and my parents don't
(09:19):
speak English well at all.
I'm an immigrant and so I wasreally afraid, as a mixed race
kid being in America, that hewould just go with the dominant
culture and forget about hisChinese roots.
And my hopes and dreams for himto be in this program here in
(09:43):
this district is for him to notforget that he has this cultural
connection to his Chineseancestry and that's why I really
enjoy that.
College Park isn't just aboutlearning Mandarin and there's a
lot of cultural components likethe mooncake and Chinese New
Year and mid-autumn, like allsorts of ways for him to be able
(10:05):
to communicate with my parentsover these cultural activities.
So I feel really validated as aChinese-American to see this
program in a public school andnot like a private place that
you have to pay for.
It's a validation that wecelebrate Chinese-Americans here
in the Bay Area.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
Yeah, and how's your Mandarin?
Speaker 5 (10:27):
Horrible.
Ok, we need a parent program,so what do you?
Speaker 2 (10:32):
I'm from Hong Kong, so I speak Cantonese, so that's
why my Mandarin isn't good andthe thing is my.
Speaker 5 (10:36):
Well, that's a good explanation, I knew.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
I couldn't help Quincy with Mandarin.
Speaker 5 (10:43):
But my parents speak Mandarin.
I just want it.
My hopes and dreams was for himto not lose connection to his
Chinese culture and I don't careif his Cantonese or Mandarin,
and I'll take the Mandarinbecause it's here, yeah, and
many immigrant families thatcome to this country, they
(11:04):
experience that longing, thatnostalgia for home, that
nostalgia for you know, for Fortheir childhood, for their,
their grandparents.
Speaker 2 (11:20):
Right, you're your, your parents are thinking about
their grandparents and thinkabout what they Experience and
wanting to pass that on toQuincy, and I think there's
probably hundreds of kids thatgo to this school that are
thinking the exact same thing.
And then you have the flip side.
You have another couple hundredkids who have never been to
(11:41):
China and have zero ancestrythat has to do with China, and
they're here, maybe exploring.
They're here maybe saying IWant my child to have an
experience where the world opensup to them.
They pay attention to theculture that's all around them.
(12:03):
From a teacher perspective, youhave both students in your
class.
You have students who mightactually come with a fair amount
of of Verbal Mandarin andothers who are learning it for
the very first time.
What's that like as a teacher?
Speaker 3 (12:20):
We do have Numbers of students who come from Families
with the, with the background,the culture, and there are also
students, like you're saying,who are being exposed to
Mandarin and Chinese culture assomething that's really new to
them.
I think what we do really wellat College Park is that we make
(12:44):
sure that everyone feel included, everyone Are supported in
their learning journey.
It doesn't matter if they haveDoes the language support at
home or not, and in theclassroom I really do see the,
the mingling of students when itcomes to their language
(13:06):
abilities and also their cultureknowledges.
So it's a wonderful to see,wonderful thing to see here and
Principal is the Nina.
Speaker 2 (13:16):
You are in the very fortunate position you often get
parents together at the school.
So you see that real, that realdiversity in your parent
population.
Talk about the ways thatfamilies can connect at this
school.
How do we get that sense ofcommunity at College Park?
Because it, as as we discussedit, really is a True variety of
(13:40):
different backgrounds of parentsthat have their kids here at
the school.
Oh, Um.
First of all, I am incrediblyimpressed by the volunteerism
here at College Park Super high,among the highest I've ever
seen.
Speaker 4 (13:55):
They show up for recess duties, lunch duties.
They support in the classroomand the events, the amount of
community events.
It's pretty incredible.
We just had our Panda Fest,isn't that awesome?
I can't remember.
Speaker 2 (14:15):
Wait, tell me about it, don't you guys get past it?
Speaker 4 (14:17):
Yes, so Panda Fest, and this year it was the Panda
Fest, I think they said theMooncake Mid-Autumn, Mid-Autumn.
Speaker 5 (14:28):
Thank you for creating it.
Speaker 4 (14:30):
Mooncake is part of Mid-Autumn.
But, it's Panda Fest,mid-autumn Festival, and the
students.
I guess you're focusing on thefamilies and just, you can
actually do what?
Speaker 2 (14:47):
Well, I was just so impressed by it.
Speaker 4 (14:49):
It's just the way the families come together to
create this, just this fun event, and we had so many families.
We had one mother who wasinspired because of the
promotion of diversity andculture.
She said you know what?
We're going to have aninternational fashion show.
(15:10):
It was so amazing.
The parents invited.
Speaker 2 (15:18):
Do we have photos of that?
Yes, send them.
Speaker 4 (15:20):
We want them.
The taiko drummers from a localBuddhist temple came.
We had students performing.
Speaker 2 (15:30):
I was just Isn't it so interesting how it just
filled my bucket.
It is so interesting how themusic, the art, the dance, the
culture, it binds peopletogether.
Speaker 4 (15:41):
Right the food, oh the food and, I have to say, the
cultural from Shaolin.
I have to tell you, if you havenot seen a performance by them,
I was just floored by thetalent and we also had with
Shaolin.
They have students who havebeen at College Park who
returned to perform.
(16:02):
So yeah, there was incrediblefood.
There was a dessert contest,which I was so lucky to be a
judge.
Speaker 2 (16:10):
Yeah, and you see that regularity happening here
at College Park because youpointed out, the parent
involvement levels are reallyhigh at this group.
It's incredible.
Speaker 4 (16:23):
During the Mooncake Festival there were families
across cultures helping withthat event to make sure that
they set up, and it wasn't justmooncake making, it was mural
making and poster making.
There was just so muchhappening.
It's just a very vibrantcommunity that offers so many
opportunities for parents acrossdifference to work together.
Speaker 2 (16:46):
Yeah, and this is the time of year, the beginning of
November, where we startplanning all of our registration
for the upcoming year, andevery year we have what is it?
72 new learners that come toour school, to College Park, and
many attended the preschoolprogram, but some didn't, many
(17:08):
others didn't.
So what can we say, from theperspective of a principal, to
these parents who might beconsidering College Park as a
school for their child?
What's your message to thatparent of a four-year-old or of
a preschooler and getting thosekids into College Park?
Speaker 4 (17:29):
So I would say, if you would like your child to be
a global citizen who is alsocivic-minded because that's
another characteristic ofCollege Park is promoting giving
back to the community If youwish to be in a place where your
(17:54):
child can be a bilingual ormultilingual learner, and a
place that is filled with joy,college Park is the place, place
to be.
What do you think, quincy?
Speaker 2 (18:08):
Let's hear from Quincy Quincy.
You've got parents out therewho might want to send their
little ones to this school.
What would you say?
What makes College Park great?
Speaker 1 (18:17):
It's really great that College Park is diverse and
there's a lot of differentpeople and it's not just like
one type of, like one race.
It's a lot, it's diverse andit's also positive.
There's a lot of likeencouragement, like, oh, you
(18:41):
want to learn something and wecan help you learn it.
Speaker 2 (18:45):
It's encouraging the doors are open here.
That's amazing.
How about from the parentperspective?
What will you say?
There's other parents out there.
They've heard the name.
The school has a wonderfulreputation.
What could you say to parentsabout enrolling their child here
?
Speaker 5 (19:03):
It's, I think, a rigorous program here for the
parents out there that want yourkids to learn something.
Your kids definitely will learnsomething here.
I think it's great for childrento be able to learn two
languages at a time, and this isone of the bilingual programs.
(19:24):
I know we have another one.
I just think if you feel likeit would be beneficial for your
child to be exposed to theculture and language of the
Chinese community, it would befantastic.
Speaker 2 (19:38):
This is the place.
Speaker 5 (19:39):
Yeah, absolutely.
I again really just love that.
It isn't just about thelanguage.
There's the culture componentand I think they have shown
studies where if your child islearning another language, it
helps you be more empathetic,because you learn to see things
from other perspectives, becauseyou're code-switching.
Having your child come herealso can just help them see
(20:02):
things from other people'sperspective.
I think that's a huge plus.
Speaker 2 (20:05):
It helps shape their view of the world.
All right, we have got ourteacher perspective.
What do we say?
You've got 72 coming in,they're out there, they're
looking at all of it because, asyou know, we have multiple
magnet schools and this is oneof them.
What would you say to thoseparents who want to have their
kids here at College Park?
Speaker 3 (20:24):
I think one thing to note about College Park is that
we have a very dedicated staff,not just the teachers, but
everybody who's involved insupporting the students.
A lot of the staff or teachershave been here for many, many
years.
They know the community throughand through and they're very
(20:45):
dedicated.
We work very hard here and wealso collaborate the teachers,
because students in the Mandarinprogram has two teachers a
Mandarin teacher and an Englishteacher.
All of our teachers worktogether in collaboration to
support our students.
If you're part of the community, you really feel that sense of
(21:09):
support and dedication from thepeople that are around your
children every day.
Speaker 2 (21:14):
Yeah, powerful words from our staff.
One of the things that I loveabout the school is I think you
have just the sweetest mascotthat anybody could ever possibly
have.
This is just around the table.
I'll start with you.
Quincy, with the panda.
I want to put a couple ofoptions in front of you.
You can have a panda stuffedanimal or a panda poster or a
(21:37):
panda sticker.
Which one are you picking?
The panda stuffy, the poster orthe sticker?
Speaker 1 (21:45):
I think the poster.
Speaker 2 (21:46):
Yeah, you want to put it up in your room.
Yeah, the panda poster.
All right, principal the stuffy, Look, look at that panda Mom
the stuffy, the stuffy yeah, Iwould definitely choose the
stuffy, and I actually have onein my classroom.
And you have a big old oneright at the entrance of the
(22:08):
school.
It's the size of a human being.
Speaker 1 (22:11):
Yes, there's something.
There's something like one inthe library too, like really
huge yeah.
Speaker 2 (22:18):
And I think you know the joy that you see in the
faces at the kids in the schooland that sense of community.
The panda really does actuallybring people together.
I see it on t-shirts, on everyposter, on every door.
It does become thatrepresentation of the culture,
(22:38):
that representation of thecommunity that we see here at
College Park and I just reallywant to thank all of you for
spending time with me today onthe One SBC Podcast.
We learn science in Mandarin and we also learn a lot
of phrases and we learn how towrite in Mandarin.
Speak Mandarin all theessentials.
Speaker 3 (00:09):
In the classroom I really do see the mingling of
students when it comes to theirlanguage abilities and also
their culture knowledge.
Speaker 4 (00:20):
It wasn't just mooncake making, it was mural
making and poster making.
There's just so much happening.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
I went to downtown San Francisco with a bunch of
kids from college mark andteachers and parents and I held
up a sign for what felt likehours and hours.
Speaker 4 (00:41):
What's this room called Conference room?
Yeah the principal's conferenceroom.
Yeah, the main officeconference room.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
I noticed when I come to this school it feels
different.
When I come to college parkelementary school, I see things
culturally on the walls that Idon't see at other schools.
What's your sense, as aprincipal, of the importance of
celebrating the culture, thatmulticulturalism, that you see
(01:15):
here at college park, because Igo to a lot of schools and I
don't see it at other schools?
For you, anjanette, as aprincipal, why is that important
?
Speaker 4 (01:24):
Oh, it's tremendously important to celebrate the
diversity in our school.
While our program is focused onpromoting multilingualism
through Mandarin, chineselanguage and culture, we
celebrate every month differentcultures and the way we show up
(01:48):
in the world.
The reason why it's soimportant is so that our
children, our staff and familieswill feel validated and welcome
.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
And then how about from the teacher perspective?
Just look at this room.
There's probably 50 artifactsin this one room.
I imagine that you hold a lotof meetings in here with either
teachers or parents.
From the teacher perspective,why is it important to have
these things all around us andthese things in our environment?
Speaker 3 (02:22):
I think it's important for our students to
see themselves reflected aroundour school and also for families
that come in to feel welcome,to feel part of the school.
Just like the artifacts in thisroom, they're accumulated over
the years so you really do seethe people that come through
(02:43):
college park with the programhave been here for over 10 years
throughout the years and thenhow long have you been here?
I've been here 8 years.
Speaker 2 (02:52):
This is my 8th year.
Two more years to get to 10.
And then just another 20 yearsafter that.
Isn't that like everyprincipal's dream.
Could you just stay here for 30years or so?
Speaker 3 (03:05):
Well, I love it here.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
Grow old with us, don't go anywhere else.
Speaker 3 (03:10):
And you see the families that come through and
the imprints they leave as partof the school community.
Speaker 2 (03:17):
Yeah, and then we're also joined here.
This is really exciting becausewe have one of our students
with us.
I do want to give you a chance,quincy, to introduce yourself
to everybody on the podcast.
Tell us your name and tell uswhat grade you're in here at
College Park.
Speaker 1 (03:30):
My name is Quincy and I'm in 4th grade gate and I
used to be in the Mandarinprogram.
Speaker 2 (03:37):
Yeah, and did you go to school here, starting in
kindergarten?
Speaker 1 (03:41):
Yeah, I started kindergarten.
Speaker 2 (03:43):
Yeah, and you have a lot of other kids that go to
school here.
I think it's like 455,something like that.
It's a lot of kids that go toschool here.
We talked about the things thatyou see on the walls, these
beautiful paintings and theartifacts that are in the room,
and your principal talked aboutcelebrating cultures from around
(04:06):
the world.
Do you do that in yourclassrooms too?
Is that something you talkabout with other kids and with
your teachers?
Speaker 1 (04:12):
Yeah, we talk about it and we have special days
where we celebrate Chinesecelebrations and you can do like
the traditions that you wouldusually do in.
Just China.
Speaker 2 (04:32):
Yeah, like what would be a tradition that you can do.
Speaker 1 (04:35):
You eat and you make and eat mooncakes and you would
like.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
I have one that somebody gave me one of those.
It was really delicious.
Is that something you do inyour classrooms?
Speaker 1 (04:47):
We don't do it in our classrooms, but we do it like
in the multipurpose room.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
Okay, so there's there's, you know, to keep the
classroom super clean, obviously.
And then you, a big part ofyour day here at College Park is
learning a different language.
What's that like?
What's it like to be inclassrooms where you go from one
language to a completelydifferent language?
Speaker 1 (05:12):
It's confusing at first, but it gets easier,
simpler, you start understandingthe language more, and then you
just keep learning harder andharder stuff.
Speaker 2 (05:25):
Yeah, it does it become a little bit like a
challenge, like you kind of you?
You're like, oh, I'm at thislevel, I want to get to this
next level.
I want to.
Is that?
Is it a little bit like that?
Yeah, it's a lot like that,yeah and are you doing math in
in Mandarin?
Are you doing?
Are you learning words andwriting?
Tell me what you're learning inMandarin.
Speaker 1 (05:44):
We learn science in Mandarin and we also learn a lot
of phrases and we learn how towrite in Mandarin.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
speak Mandarin all the essentials, yeah you know, I
participated in a panel over atGilead Sciences.
As you all know, gilead is oneof our core partners in the
district and they're wonderful.
There's this big, multi-billiondollar company that's located
in Foster City and they broughtout basically their chief
scientist.
You know somebody that wasreally, really high up and she
(06:13):
was born in China and she gotinspired to do science in China
and she had a family member, agrandfather, who actually
studied in the United States.
So when she turned 20 she cameto the United States and she got
into that profession, goingdeep into her roots of being a
(06:36):
scientist, and she's now here inFoster City.
She tells her story about beingmulticultural, of having that
experience, and I think that'spart of what you're getting here
too.
It's not just learning science,it's really learning the
culture that you get exposed toin this program.
Speaker 1 (06:56):
Yeah, you learn science and it also you will do
it with the culture like notjust plain science.
Speaker 2 (07:05):
Yeah, you, it gets embedded with the culture.
Now, a couple of years ago, Iwent to downtown San Francisco
with a bunch of kids fromCollege Park and teachers and
parents and I held up a sign forwhat felt like hours and hours
and we have you participated inthat.
There's every year, there's abig, there's a big festival and
(07:29):
and some years we go and we, youknow, perform in the festival.
I think one of your teachersdoes a, is that right, prince
Westonina?
Speaker 4 (07:36):
So it's both, mr Milburn.
He composes the drumming andthen Mrs Wall, she composes the
dance routine, the fan dancingfor the Chinese New Year parade
in San Francisco.
Speaker 2 (07:49):
I can still do it.
I heard it so many times that,but he comes up with a new one
every year.
He's like I think he used to bea high school band director.
Speaker 4 (07:59):
Yes, he was.
Speaker 2 (08:00):
So it's in his blood.
Yeah, yeah, and then we go anddo that in San Francisco.
Have you been a part of thatbefore?
Speaker 1 (08:08):
It's hard to remember .
I think I have a few times, oneor two.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
Yeah, it's been a couple of years, I think.
If I recall, a lot of the kidswho participated were on the
younger side.
They were not in the fourth andfifth grade per se.
You've got this program thatyou've been in for many years.
You have your principal herewith you, but a big part of
being a student is having thatconnection between your family
(08:34):
and the school.
Your mom is with us today and Iknow, as a parent, you have
dreams for your child.
You have hopes for your childFrom the parent perspective.
What did you hope for?
What was your dream for Quincyin terms of what he was going to
experience here at College Park?
Speaker 5 (08:55):
Yeah, actually, quincy started off in Turnbull,
which is a Mandarin immersionprogram that's located right
next door.
It was a lottery, and the day Iwon the lottery for him to go, I
liked the happy dance, and thereason why I did that is because
Quincy is half Chinese and halfCaucasian and my parents don't
(09:19):
speak English well at all.
I'm an immigrant and so I wasreally afraid, as a mixed race
kid being in America, that hewould just go with the dominant
culture and forget about hisChinese roots.
And my hopes and dreams for himto be in this program here in
(09:43):
this district is for him to notforget that he has this cultural
connection to his Chineseancestry and that's why I really
enjoy that.
College Park isn't just aboutlearning Mandarin and there's a
lot of cultural components likethe mooncake and Chinese New
Year and mid-autumn, like allsorts of ways for him to be able
(10:05):
to communicate with my parentsover these cultural activities.
So I feel really validated as aChinese-American to see this
program in a public school andnot like a private place that
you have to pay for.
It's a validation that wecelebrate Chinese-Americans here
in the Bay Area.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
Yeah, and how's your Mandarin?
Speaker 5 (10:27):
Horrible.
Ok, we need a parent program,so what do you?
Speaker 2 (10:32):
I'm from Hong Kong, so I speak Cantonese, so that's
why my Mandarin isn't good andthe thing is my.
Speaker 5 (10:36):
Well, that's a good explanation, I knew.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
I couldn't help Quincy with Mandarin.
Speaker 5 (10:43):
But my parents speak Mandarin.
I just want it.
My hopes and dreams was for himto not lose connection to his
Chinese culture and I don't careif his Cantonese or Mandarin,
and I'll take the Mandarinbecause it's here, yeah, and
many immigrant families thatcome to this country, they
(11:04):
experience that longing, thatnostalgia for home, that
nostalgia for you know, for Fortheir childhood, for their,
their grandparents.
Speaker 2 (11:20):
Right, you're your, your parents are thinking about
their grandparents and thinkabout what they Experience and
wanting to pass that on toQuincy, and I think there's
probably hundreds of kids thatgo to this school that are
thinking the exact same thing.
And then you have the flip side.
You have another couple hundredkids who have never been to
(11:41):
China and have zero ancestrythat has to do with China, and
they're here, maybe exploring.
They're here maybe saying IWant my child to have an
experience where the world opensup to them.
They pay attention to theculture that's all around them.
(12:03):
From a teacher perspective, youhave both students in your
class.
You have students who mightactually come with a fair amount
of of Verbal Mandarin andothers who are learning it for
the very first time.
What's that like as a teacher?
Speaker 3 (12:20):
We do have Numbers of students who come from Families
with the, with the background,the culture, and there are also
students, like you're saying,who are being exposed to
Mandarin and Chinese culture assomething that's really new to
them.
I think what we do really wellat College Park is that we make
(12:44):
sure that everyone feel included, everyone Are supported in
their learning journey.
It doesn't matter if they haveDoes the language support at
home or not, and in theclassroom I really do see the,
the mingling of students when itcomes to their language
(13:06):
abilities and also their cultureknowledges.
So it's a wonderful to see,wonderful thing to see here and
Principal is the Nina.
Speaker 2 (13:16):
You are in the very fortunate position you often get
parents together at the school.
So you see that real, that realdiversity in your parent
population.
Talk about the ways thatfamilies can connect at this
school.
How do we get that sense ofcommunity at College Park?
Because it, as as we discussedit, really is a True variety of
(13:40):
different backgrounds of parentsthat have their kids here at
the school.
Oh, Um.
First of all, I am incrediblyimpressed by the volunteerism
here at College Park Super high,among the highest I've ever
seen.
Speaker 4 (13:55):
They show up for recess duties, lunch duties.
They support in the classroomand the events, the amount of
community events.
It's pretty incredible.
We just had our Panda Fest,isn't that awesome?
I can't remember.
Speaker 2 (14:15):
Wait, tell me about it, don't you guys get past it?
Speaker 4 (14:17):
Yes, so Panda Fest, and this year it was the Panda
Fest, I think they said theMooncake Mid-Autumn, Mid-Autumn.
Speaker 5 (14:28):
Thank you for creating it.
Speaker 4 (14:30):
Mooncake is part of Mid-Autumn.
But, it's Panda Fest,mid-autumn Festival, and the
students.
I guess you're focusing on thefamilies and just, you can
actually do what?
Speaker 2 (14:47):
Well, I was just so impressed by it.
Speaker 4 (14:49):
It's just the way the families come together to
create this, just this fun event, and we had so many families.
We had one mother who wasinspired because of the
promotion of diversity andculture.
She said you know what?
We're going to have aninternational fashion show.
(15:10):
It was so amazing.
The parents invited.
Speaker 2 (15:18):
Do we have photos of that?
Yes, send them.
Speaker 4 (15:20):
We want them.
The taiko drummers from a localBuddhist temple came.
We had students performing.
Speaker 2 (15:30):
I was just Isn't it so interesting how it just
filled my bucket.
It is so interesting how themusic, the art, the dance, the
culture, it binds peopletogether.
Speaker 4 (15:41):
Right the food, oh the food and, I have to say, the
cultural from Shaolin.
I have to tell you, if you havenot seen a performance by them,
I was just floored by thetalent and we also had with
Shaolin.
They have students who havebeen at College Park who
returned to perform.
(16:02):
So yeah, there was incrediblefood.
There was a dessert contest,which I was so lucky to be a
judge.
Speaker 2 (16:10):
Yeah, and you see that regularity happening here
at College Park because youpointed out, the parent
involvement levels are reallyhigh at this group.
It's incredible.
Speaker 4 (16:23):
During the Mooncake Festival there were families
across cultures helping withthat event to make sure that
they set up, and it wasn't justmooncake making, it was mural
making and poster making.
There was just so muchhappening.
It's just a very vibrantcommunity that offers so many
opportunities for parents acrossdifference to work together.
Speaker 2 (16:46):
Yeah, and this is the time of year, the beginning of
November, where we startplanning all of our registration
for the upcoming year, andevery year we have what is it?
72 new learners that come toour school, to College Park, and
many attended the preschoolprogram, but some didn't, many
(17:08):
others didn't.
So what can we say, from theperspective of a principal, to
these parents who might beconsidering College Park as a
school for their child?
What's your message to thatparent of a four-year-old or of
a preschooler and getting thosekids into College Park?
Speaker 4 (17:29):
So I would say, if you would like your child to be
a global citizen who is alsocivic-minded because that's
another characteristic ofCollege Park is promoting giving
back to the community If youwish to be in a place where your
(17:54):
child can be a bilingual ormultilingual learner, and a
place that is filled with joy,college Park is the place, place
to be.
What do you think, quincy?
Speaker 2 (18:08):
Let's hear from Quincy Quincy.
You've got parents out therewho might want to send their
little ones to this school.
What would you say?
What makes College Park great?
Speaker 1 (18:17):
It's really great that College Park is diverse and
there's a lot of differentpeople and it's not just like
one type of, like one race.
It's a lot, it's diverse andit's also positive.
There's a lot of likeencouragement, like, oh, you
(18:41):
want to learn something and wecan help you learn it.
Speaker 2 (18:45):
It's encouraging the doors are open here.
That's amazing.
How about from the parentperspective?
What will you say?
There's other parents out there.
They've heard the name.
The school has a wonderfulreputation.
What could you say to parentsabout enrolling their child here
?
Speaker 5 (19:03):
It's, I think, a rigorous program here for the
parents out there that want yourkids to learn something.
Your kids definitely will learnsomething here.
I think it's great for childrento be able to learn two
languages at a time, and this isone of the bilingual programs.
(19:24):
I know we have another one.
I just think if you feel likeit would be beneficial for your
child to be exposed to theculture and language of the
Chinese community, it would befantastic.
Speaker 2 (19:38):
This is the place.
Speaker 5 (19:39):
Yeah, absolutely.
I again really just love that.
It isn't just about thelanguage.
There's the culture componentand I think they have shown
studies where if your child islearning another language, it
helps you be more empathetic,because you learn to see things
from other perspectives, becauseyou're code-switching.
Having your child come herealso can just help them see
(20:02):
things from other people'sperspective.
I think that's a huge plus.
Speaker 2 (20:05):
It helps shape their view of the world.
All right, we have got ourteacher perspective.
What do we say?
You've got 72 coming in,they're out there, they're
looking at all of it because, asyou know, we have multiple
magnet schools and this is oneof them.
What would you say to thoseparents who want to have their
kids here at College Park?
Speaker 3 (20:24):
I think one thing to note about College Park is that
we have a very dedicated staff,not just the teachers, but
everybody who's involved insupporting the students.
A lot of the staff or teachershave been here for many, many
years.
They know the community throughand through and they're very
(20:45):
dedicated.
We work very hard here and wealso collaborate the teachers,
because students in the Mandarinprogram has two teachers a
Mandarin teacher and an Englishteacher.
All of our teachers worktogether in collaboration to
support our students.
If you're part of the community, you really feel that sense of
(21:09):
support and dedication from thepeople that are around your
children every day.
Speaker 2 (21:14):
Yeah, powerful words from our staff.
One of the things that I loveabout the school is I think you
have just the sweetest mascotthat anybody could ever possibly
have.
This is just around the table.
I'll start with you.
Quincy, with the panda.
I want to put a couple ofoptions in front of you.
You can have a panda stuffedanimal or a panda poster or a
(21:37):
panda sticker.
Which one are you picking?
The panda stuffy, the poster orthe sticker?
Speaker 1 (21:45):
I think the poster.
Speaker 2 (21:46):
Yeah, you want to put it up in your room.
Yeah, the panda poster.
All right, principal the stuffy, Look, look at that panda Mom
the stuffy, the stuffy yeah, Iwould definitely choose the
stuffy, and I actually have onein my classroom.
And you have a big old oneright at the entrance of the
(22:08):
school.
It's the size of a human being.
Speaker 1 (22:11):
Yes, there's something.
There's something like one inthe library too, like really
huge yeah.
Speaker 2 (22:18):
And I think you know the joy that you see in the
faces at the kids in the schooland that sense of community.
The panda really does actuallybring people together.
I see it on t-shirts, on everyposter, on every door.
It does become thatrepresentation of the culture,
(22:38):
that representation of thecommunity that we see here at
College Park and I just reallywant to thank all of you for
spending time with me today onthe One SBC Podcast.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!