Celebrating student writers with a book launch!

The students at Oakland International High School have just published their latest comic anthology of immigration stories titled WE ARE OAKLAND INTERNATIONAL.

Come by the Oakland Public Library main branch on Thursday, February 23 from 5:30 to 7:30pm for a very special art exhibit and book launch. The event is free and open to the public.

Meet the students, staff and supporters, see digital stories created by the students, and buy your own copy of WE ARE OAKLAND INTERNATIONAL. All proceeds from the book go directly to the school to continue its mission of providing quality alternative public education to recently arrived immigrants.

An in-depth interview with the students will air on KQED's The California Report on Feb 24. The book is also for sale online at Amazon.

Volunteers of the Week - Jane Win-Thu and Jennifer Discar

This week we have a Volunteer of the Week dual feature! Jane and Jennifer are two friends and amazing volunteers at our after-school program at Oakland International High School (OIHS). They've gone above and beyond the program's requirements - not only volunteering their time tutoring during the after-school program, but also offering to organize and chaperone field trips for the OIHS students who attend the program!

Thanks to Jane and Jennifer for your great work - we hope to see you at OIHS once the school year starts up again! Read below for both of their interviews.

Name: Jane Win-Thu

Neighborhood: Berkeley/ Santa Clarita, CA

Job: Library Associate at NRLF

RT programs/events you've participated in: OIHS after-school tutoring and field trips.

What are your hobbies? I like to listen to music, write, and be outdoors (going to the beach, hiking, swimming, walking my dog).

If you could have dinner with anyone, past or present, who would that person be? I would dine with Malcolm X, he's fascinating.

What is your favorite book? Right now, The Wind-Up Bird Chronicles by Haruki Murakami.

If you could travel anywhere, where would you go, and what would you do? I would travel to remote villages in Burma and visit the Thailand-Burma border to document the people's lives and possibly help educate the children and women.

If you could instantly learn how to do anything, what would that be? I would learn how to play the violin or piano like a professional.

Who has been the most influential teacher in your life so far? Susan Chen, my old church youth advisor. No other teacher stands out to me, but she taught me how to be patient, humble, and caring. Plus she's a genius.

What has been your favorite/most rewarding moment as a volunteer with RT? I loved taking the students to the Asian Art Museum and seeing their enthusiasm when they took the initiative in joining an arts and craft table and creating clay "reflections of art". Although I thought it would be my job to engage them in the art and make a boring museum trip fun, they did all the work for me and seeing their enjoyment made me feel very rewarded! I also enjoyed being able to take the extra funding money and portioning it out to buy prizes and gifts for the students. Thinking of what they would find useful and actually having the means to get those things for them, that was a very good feeling.

Name: Jennifer Discar
Neighborhood: Berkeley
Job: Student
RT programs/events you’ve participated in: After-school tutoring; OIHS field trip program

What are your hobbies? Reading, running, skiing, cooking
If you could have dinner with anyone, past or present, who would that person be? Katie Davis of Amazima, who was only 19-years-old when she founded a feeding and sponsorship non-profit for children in Uganda, where she continues to live and mother thirteen adopted girls.
What is your favorite book? Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
If you could travel anywhere, where would you go, and what would you do? I would scuba dive off an island in the Pacific.
If you could instantly learn how to do anything, what would that be? I would instantly learn how to play the piano or violin.
Who has been the most influential teacher in your life so far? One of my high school teachers, Paul Hicok, who challenged me to think for myself and taught me how to dig deeper.
What has been your favorite/most rewarding moment as a volunteer with RT? One of my favorite moments as a RT volunteer was when a student I had been working with for awhile came to me asking for practical preparation (i.e., role playing for potential conversations he might have to have, etc.) for bringing his younger brother to the doctor's office. I felt like I had come to be trusted, and was making a practical and immediate difference in someone's life. Another rewarding moment was when some of the students who went on the Oakland Museum of California field trip told me that that was their very first time in a museum.

Volunteer of the Week - Nancy Oanh Tran

Nancy has been an irreplacable member of the RT team, starting off three years ago as a volunteer in our after-school program at Oakland International High School (OIHS), and for the past two years as a crucial member of our office! Her energy and enthusiasm is contagious - whether she's assisting Nakachi at OIHS or handling paperwork and database entry in our SF office, Nancy is always ready to handle anything. Thanks so, so much for all the amazing work that you do, Nancy - we don't know what we'd do without you!

Name: Oanh Tran (but I go by Nancy)
Neighborhood: I've lived in Vallejo (North Bay) for the past 11 years
Job: Student Library Assistant, Academic Assistant/Tutor at OIHS After School Tutoring Program, and a data entry master for Refugee Transitions
RT programs/events I've participated in: 2010 World Refugee Day in Oakland and OIHS tutoring

What are your hobbies? I love shopping, watching Asian dramas, and eating
If you could have dinner with anyone, past or present, who would that person be? I would have dinner with my mom and I would cook a delicious dinner for her. I love her so much. =)
What is your favorite book? Harry Potter Series
If you could travel anywhere, where would you go, and what would you do? I would travel in France. I took 3 years of French in high school and would love to go tour Paris! I would try all the good food there!
If you could instantly learn how to do anything, what would that be? I want to speak fluent Chinese/Spanish/French instantly!
Who has been the most influential teacher in your life so far? My most influential teacher would be Mr. Brown from high school who was my math teacher for 2 years. He made me realized that I don't have to be the smartest student to be the best.
What has been your favorite/most rewarding moment as a volunteer with RT? The most favorite moment was when I had to make a 3-5 minutes speech in front of potential volunteers at one of their training night. I had no idea I had to do it, so I was really scared. But when I finally did it, I think everyone loved me. It felt really awesome.

Volunteer of the Week - Esther Slaman

Name: Esther Slaman
Neighborhood: Orinda, California
Job: Optometric Technician
RT programs/events you’ve participated in: After-school tutor at Oakland International High School

What are your hobbies? I train a few times a week in aikido, a Japanese martial art. I love the community that comes with it; we have a lot of fun, but it's also demanding and challenging. I also run with my dad - we're training for my first 10k race in a couple months. If I'm not running or doing aikido though, I'm probably the happiest on the couch watching movies.
If you could have dinner with anyone, past or present, who would that person be? As a concerned student of the California public education system, I think I'd like to chat with our governor. But for a fun dinner, I wouldn't mind getting some hair tips from Veronica Lake.
What is your favorite book? Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger is definitely on my list, but my favorite author is Mark Twain, and I'd read pretty much anything written by him. I think it's the sarcasm.
If you could travel anywhere, where would you go, and what would you do? Lately I've been fantasizing about going to an archaeological dig in Israel. Unofficially, I'm studying to go to optometry school, but my official major is anthropology. I feel like I should embrace the fact that it's a great excuse to travel all over the world.
If you could instantly learn how to do anything, what would that be? Sew. I prick myself literally every time I try, so I guess I stopped trying. I can't even patch my own gi for aikido. It's embarrassing.
Who has been the most influential teacher in your life so far? I had an English teacher in high school who was the first person to help me believe I was smart, and that I could do anything if I put enough hours of sustained effort into it.

What has been your favorite/most rewarding moment as a volunteer with RT? My first week at OIHS there was a girl there who spoke primarily Spanish, and a teacher was trying to communicate with her in English. I took Spanish in high school and freshman year of college, and it was the second time in my life I used it in a real situation (the first being at a restaurant). Being able to talk to her in Spanish was hugely rewarding for me, and I could tell she appreciate my effort, even though my Spanish grammar is mildly atrocious. It's always a good feeling to walk in and be greeted by the kids I've worked with regularly, as well as by the kids I know less well. They are smart and hardworking and it's fun to work with them.

Meet Courtenay Houk - RT Winter Intern

My name is Courtenay Houk, and I am presently a sophomore studying liberal arts with a focus in French and Chinese languages and cultures at Bennington College in Vermont.

As a requirement for my school, I am fulfilling an annual internship we call "Field Work Term," and this year I am incredibly fortunate to have a place at Refugee Transitions. I chose to spend this time with Refugee Transitions because it is an organization that encompasses my passions for language, culture, and helping others.

Though I am native to Pennsylvania, I have also lived in Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province, People's Republic of China and the Navajo Nation in New Mexico. For the past eight years, I have been living in southern Vermont.

Both of my parents are teachers, and have always inspired and encouraged my love for learning - especially regarding foreign peoples and cultures. In the future, I hope to hone the skills necessary to become a translator and interpreter so that I might find work as a "cultural bridge-builder" in order to help relieve misunderstanding between people of differing cultural and linguistic backgrounds.

Name: Courtenay Houk
Neighborhood: Bennington, Vermont
Job: RT Intern/ESL Tutor
RT programs/events you’ve participated in: I will be tutoring at the after-school programs at SFIHS and OIHS, and plan on attending volunteer trainings and the volunteer happy hour on January 26th :)

What are your hobbies? Reading, running, photography, LGBTQ activism/awareness-raising, learning about foreign languages, cultures, and customs. 
If you could have dinner with anyone, past or present, who would that person be? My grandfather. He died before I was born, and I have always wondered what sort of person he would be today and what my relationship with him might have been like. 
What is your favorite book? Whatever book I am currently reading...presently, it's The Wrestler's Cruel Study by Stephen Dobyns. 
If you could travel anywhere, where would you go, and what would you do? I am hoping to study abroad in Kunming, Yunnan Province, People's Republic of China in Fall 2011 and in Grenoble, France in Spring 2012 for my junior year of college.
If you could instantly learn how to do anything, what would that be? Acquiring immediate and long-term fluency in French and Chinese - the two languages I am presently learning in school. 
Who has been the most influential teacher in your life so far? My parents.

Yesterday was my first day at RT, and I already feel so much at home. I am very excited to start working with students at the San Francisco and Oakland International High Schools, and to do whatever I can to help make their transition into the American school system an easier process.