"Why did I attend this conference?" is why I attended

Once a week, the HRS Headmaster sends out a Headmaster's Letter that we all receive by email. In it, we find out who's decided to leave the school and who will take their place. There are always announcements for different workshops and conferences included. I usually give a cursory glance to the latter but just before Spring Break, there was an announcement for the 2nd annual Asian Educators Alliance to be held April 21-22nd at Lick-Wilmerding High School. In the past, I would have dismissed the thought of even attending. But for some reason, I was drawn to the idea of attending and so with the aid of the Math Department Conference Budget, I sent in my registration form and fee.

The critical question that kept rearing its head in my mind was why I was so resistant to the idea of attending something like this? The former reaction was not one of simply ignoring the conference's existence, but I would have turned my back on it. My conjecture as to why I slammed the door on even addressing my being Asian in the teaching profession within the Independent School world was twofold. First, I used to (and perhaps still to a degree do) associate affintity groups as a place where those students who belong to that group weren't able to assimilate to the culture of the school. Secondly, because I never really felt as if I were left out (little did I know that I totally was clueless as to an entire life of my class that I wasn't privy too) or treated unfairly or even misunderstood, that I therefore had no need to attend anything that identified purely by affinity group.

So there I was at 5:00PM on a Friday afternoon sitting in my small group or 15 Asian educators sharing our answers to the two questions, A) When did you decide to be a teacher? and B) How was it when you told your parents? As I sat there and listened to the answers of other people, I began to ask myself, "what is my role as an Asian teacher in that do I have some inherent responsibilities?", "am I automatically supposed to teach the Asian experience or perhaps my experience? Lastly, I wondered "what does HRS want to get back from having a teacher with my face on their campus? If I am able to start answering these questions, or at least know how to study and address them, before the conference ended, I would be truly excited.

On Saturday morning, we started in the same small group of 15 and we were sharing our feelings on "how we identify with the term Asian-American educators?" As I listened to the others answer, I came to the realization that my answer to the question at hand, might answer one of the big three questions I posed myself at the end of Friday. My answer was that I could use my Asian-American heritage to help all students who live in the dual worlds of school and home. I find that I am able to help students navigate through certain situations in which what the school said contradict one another. In addition, I'm not sure that when the school hired me that they overtly were presenting to the Asian (and other non-white minority) students the idea that they too could grow up and choose teaching as a profession. On a more global level, students can be whatever they choose to be. As I reminisce about my high school years at Lakeside, I had all Caucasian teachers for my five major courses for each and every one of the four years I spent in high school. I didn't think that teaching was even an option for someone like me.

Looking around my small group, I was struck by the ratio of female to male was about 5:1 or 6:1. Then looking across the entire group later on, there just aren't many Asian men choosing teaching as a profession. Why?

For the first workshop, I chose one entitled "Asians Are Elemental! Moving beyond tokenism in our schools". What we wanted to understand is that to make Asian issues and stories a true part of a curriculum by integreting it into the main curriculum and not just a supplemental add on at the end. Our presenters were humanities teachers who had found ways to bring this multicultural knowledge. For History teachers, class doesn't need to ordered chronologically, but with themes or patterns that will give students a context for what they are studying. The English teacher also has designed her courses on on themes.

The keynote speaker of this conference was Gus Lee He told great stories but admonished us teachers to 1) Honor All Persons 2) Seek Social Justice 3) Demonstrate Courage under Great Present.

A voicemail from my sister

"I just had to call to tell you that George Bush is helping me get $390 back. I'm very upset about it. I felt like I should do something with it but of course it's $390 so what am I going to do with it? Alright, anyhow I get money because he lowered the capital gains tax and that's why I'm getting money back. Otherwise, I'd have to pay money. BUT IT JUST DOESN'T FEEL VERY GOOD (caps relaying the emphasis in her voice). Just had to tell you."

--Marlene C (4/16/06)

I've just inadvertantly both pissed off a judge and found out a foolproof way to avoid jury duty

Last time we met, I was in the midst of jury duty selection. Remember that I had already rescheduled jury duty from sometime in February to my Spring Break. I wasn't called until Wednesday of that week and was informed that I was going to be a potential juror in a six week trial. From my experience two years ago where I was almost a juror for a seven asbestos trial, it was at that time the judge in the case who made it a blanket policy that teachers would have to serve regardless of their situation. Seeing as that I am serving in a San Francisco court and I teach at a private school in Alameda County, I concluded that my "hardship" request would have no sway with any judge. Thinking that I was going to have to go through the process of jury selection because of my belief that I either couldn't be excused nor reschedule a second time, I played the odds that in a group of about 100, there was a small probability that I would end up one of the 15 jurors or alternate jurors.

So I made the blog posting a couple posts back. Go back and read it to familiarize yourself with exactly what I wrote. You don't really learn much about the case, right? So on Monday after the lunch recess, the District Attorney and the defendents lawyers use their preemptory bumps to excuse certain jurors and a jury of 12 is seated, with the people in seats 24, 25 and 26 moving into the 1st, 2nd and 3rd alternate jurors seats, those being 13, 14 and 15. The clerk called names to fill up seats 16 through 26 and I was called to sit in seat 24.

Questioning occurred and it was going at a nice rapid clip. The judge adjourned for break and asked four of us jurors to remain behind. I was one of the four. I am called into the judges chambers and am immediately asked if I had made a posting about the case on a blog. My head is spinning. I had no idea this was going to be the topic. I had no recollection of what I wrote but I did know that I had revealed no details of the case. He then asked me why I wrote about it. After a couple moments, I remembered that I wrote about how pissed I was that I had to come back on Monday. At this point, it was basically mayhem between the judge and I. My quibble (if at this point one can say it was a quibble) was that I felt as if I was working without any information. He nailed me on the fact that I was playing the odds of not being seated. And this made him incensed. He lectured me like a little kid. I just sat there and took it because I end up getting what I wanted, which was off this trial and to serve jury duty at a different time, most likely June. The judge made it a point to not excuse me from service but I had to defer my service and come in again to fulfill this years obligation. At that point, I got up and walked into the courtroom and in front of the entire room, walked right out the door.

So, my mistake in all of this is that I didn't realize that on the first Wednesday I was called in that I was allowed a second postponement or to apply for a hardship excuse or deferral. Had I known this, I would have avoided this all together and not had to sit through two days of court.

BUT, now that we know that the lawyers are out there on the internet searching for us in the cyberworld, here's a pretty easy way to get yourself disqualified.

I want to now write about the substance of the trial, but I'm not sure if I can. Once bitten, twice shy they say. So, judge and lawyers, if you're reading this, you win. You have scared the bejesus out of me and I'm keeping my mouth shut.