A sense of community

I usually don't get a chance to tag along on someone else's assignment but this morning I got that chance. I tagged along as my fellow education reporter Nicole Blake Johnson covered a celebration at Linear Leadership Academy. The kiddos out there increased their bench mark scores so the Grambling State University music department paid them a visit.

As the bands played, I couldn't help but notice the members of the audience, other than the kids. So many Linear Middle School alumni were in the audience.

Usually when someone tells me, the higher education reporter, about support coming from alumni it's on the collegiate level and involves money. This was the first time where middle school alumni and no money were involved. This support was about presence, about unspoken words ringing clearer than bells or music from any band.

The alums are many: Mayor Cedric Glover, Representative Patrick Williams, GSU band director Larry Pannell, Author Louise Hicks, even Principal Bill Minix. There are more I'm sure I'm missing and didn't get a chance to meet. These alums contributed to a sense of community to a school that was taken over by the state a year ago.

They represent a legacy, paying it forward and bringing back a sense of community by trading stories. Some were classmates, others were team mates. But all learned lessons.

"Learn to be a leader here, learned to be a follower here, and I learned there was nothing I could not do if I set my mind to it, right here at Linear," Glover said.

So do you need money to make an impact? That's a different discussion for a different post. But we'll keep a look out to see if today's unspoken message soaked in.

To hear some of the revelry here's some audio.

Linear Leadership Academy Musical Celebration

Icess Fernandez's Podcast

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