Notes from a Community Partner
The Next Step domestic violence project is excited to be collaborating with Mano en Mano and to be establishing goals as well as activities in our work to build a stronger and safer community in Downeast Maine. Next Step supports and empowers those affected by domestic violence, while striving to prevent and end the cycle of domestic violence through education and social change. Next Step
Meet New Program Assistant Mikayla Dana
Meet Mikayla Dana. To the position of Migrant Education Program (MEP) Assistant, Mikayla brings a strong desire to become a teacher to the youngest children (and their parents) in her community, to mentor those children as they grow and evolve into students and young adults, and to act as a role model for young people who want to fulfill every bit of their potential.
Mano en Mano Welcomes Plansowes Dana as New Program Assistant
Plansowes Dana brings a wide range of life experience and experience teaching students to the unique demands of a Migrant Education Program (MEP) Assistant in Pleasant Point. She will provide services to a caseload that is spread across a very wide range of ages: Kindergarten to Out-of-School Youth (OSY). Her experience as a Youth Worker for the Wabanaki Youth Program and the Work Force
Comienza en Casa Parents Get to Work in the Library!
This week several parents participating in the Comienza en Casa | It Starts at Home program will be assisting the new librarian at the Milbridge Public Library, Amanda Fickett, with processing the newly acquired bi-lingual and Spanish language books. A large number of Spanish books were donated last Spring by Mano en Mano, but with limited volunteer support at the library, many are still
From Client to Ally: Mano en Mano’s Evolving Relationship with Community Members
Merriam-Webster dictionary defines “client” as “a person served by or utilizing the services of a social agency”, for example, “a welfare client”. “Client” is derived from the Latin word cliens, which implies the individual as a follower or retainer. Essentially, a client is one who followed his patron and was a dependent to some extent. When one asks Google for the definition of client,
Migrant Education Students Hike Petit Manan
Just before school started again, the Maine Migrant Education Program staff at Mano en Mano organized an outing for migrant education students as a way to close out the summer. On a warm, late summer day, what better activity than a hike down at Petit Manan Wildlife Refuge in Steuben, Maine? The Hollingsworth Trail at Petit Manan is a 1.5 mile loop that winds its
Bowdoin Freshmen Visit Downeast Maine
For the third year running, a group of new freshmen from Bowdoin College in Brunswick made the trek to Downeast Maine as part of their Freshmen Orientation. Incoming freshmen have the option of going on adventure and hiking trips or participating in community service work in various locations around Maine. The McKeen Center for the Common Good organizes these service trips from the Bowdoin campus, and they
A Fun Summer for the Blueberry Harvest School
The Blueberry Harvest School, a project of the Maine Migrant Education Program and run by Mano en Mano, just wrapped up three weeks of busy classes, outdoor activities, field trips, and learning in Downeast Maine. With the overall theme of “Learning Maine,” the weeks were divided into three different themes with corresponding lessons and excursions. Other enrichments included art, music, and cultural studies with
Meet Our New Scholarship Recipient
Meet Cristina Perez, a rising sophomore at the University of Maine at Orono, who is majoring in Elementary Education and is the new recipient of the Julia Robiola Gigena Memorial Scholarship. Cristina was born in Mexico and moved to Milbridge during elementary school. She graduated from Narraguagus High School in 2013 and said she always knew she wanted to be a teacher. “When I
Hip Hop Artist Comes to Downeast Maine
Frank Waln, Gates Millennium Scholar, College Graduate, and 3-Time Native American Music Award (NAMMY) Winner came to Downeast Maine on August 9th. Frank Waln is Sicangu Lakota, born 25 years ago an one of the poorest communities in the United States, the Rosebud Sioux Reservation in South Dakota. Raised by his mother, Frank graduated as the Valedictorian of his high school class, and was