Giving back outside the classroom
Angela Scioli teaches in the first trailer, right next to the bus lot. Inside, you may find her standing at her computer creating a lesson or in front of the whiteboard teaching. A very open and joyous teacher of American History II, AP Government and Politics and Civics and Economics, Mrs. Scioli stands out among effective teachers at LRHS, but not only for her teaching.
Her students always gather around her to listen to her talk about her acts of volunteering.
For Scioli, volunteering is not a one and done session, a single good deed. She volunteers regularly, year around, and always changes up the events she participates in. She reminisced about her volunteering in the past, including years ago when she took her students on field trips to Abbotswood at Stonehenge, a retirement center (a place she took them for multiple years). As our conversation continued, she explored her role as a volunteer in her community.
Always one to represent the community, Scioli recently had the opportunity to volunteer her time with Election Day in early November. As a political volunteer, Scioli finds advantages in her work as a history teacher..
One of the actions she takes as a political volunteer includes canvassing, the direct contact with members of a home, commonly used for political campaigning.
“Canvassing is usually more about mobilizing the vote, not converting the vote. You’re not just going to people’s houses and getting into political debates with them,” said Scioli. “You’re not trying to get someone to switch their ideas, you’re just trying to get the people with the same ideas as you to mobilize their vote and actually casts their ballot.”
She also uses poll greeting as a different way of helping out those who may be confused about their ballots, and she interacted with plenty of people during this past election.
“I stand at the polls as people come in to vote and make them understand what's on the ballot, especially if there different confusing reasons. The municipal elections are non-partisan, so that’s why when people go to city elections. They’re not sure who’s who,” said Scioli.
Her students always gather around her to listen to her talk about her acts of volunteering.
For Scioli, volunteering is not a one and done session, a single good deed. She volunteers regularly, year around, and always changes up the events she participates in. She reminisced about her volunteering in the past, including years ago when she took her students on field trips to Abbotswood at Stonehenge, a retirement center (a place she took them for multiple years). As our conversation continued, she explored her role as a volunteer in her community.
Always one to represent the community, Scioli recently had the opportunity to volunteer her time with Election Day in early November. As a political volunteer, Scioli finds advantages in her work as a history teacher..
One of the actions she takes as a political volunteer includes canvassing, the direct contact with members of a home, commonly used for political campaigning.
“Canvassing is usually more about mobilizing the vote, not converting the vote. You’re not just going to people’s houses and getting into political debates with them,” said Scioli. “You’re not trying to get someone to switch their ideas, you’re just trying to get the people with the same ideas as you to mobilize their vote and actually casts their ballot.”
She also uses poll greeting as a different way of helping out those who may be confused about their ballots, and she interacted with plenty of people during this past election.
“I stand at the polls as people come in to vote and make them understand what's on the ballot, especially if there different confusing reasons. The municipal elections are non-partisan, so that’s why when people go to city elections. They’re not sure who’s who,” said Scioli.
Scioli’s volunteering includes more than just political events and activities.
Recently, during the past election day, Scioli answered a lot of questions about the constitutional amendments. All around, Scioli loves to use the opportunity to help educate voters about what they’re looking for before they step in.
Her political volunteering goes past just helping strangers understand their ballots and take action to vote. With her own friends and family, Scioli has no problem looking up their ballot for them, with only an address. She then gives the certain family member or friend recommendations so they know who they’re looking for on the ballot and sends them through a simple text with her cell phone.
Scioli’s volunteering includes more than just political events and activities. At her church, Scioli leads a program that teaches teens about developing intimate --both physical and emotional -- relationships. She enjoys the work because she believes adolescents truly need the education and need adults to speak with them very frankly.
“My pastor wrote a book about intimacy education, and he and I created a curriculum. Now, I meet with our youth and do one big presentation, as sort of an intro of what we’ll be discussing for that session. About every three months or so, we’ll have an anonymous question box session, where the youth can ask any question they want,” said Scioli.
Usually, Scioli’s program takes place over six consecutive Sunday afternoons, or at times the program uses an entire day on a retreat to educate the youth.
Even as a parent, Scioli engages in minor volunteer activities constantly. Her kids take part in extracurricular activities after school, and she helps with what she can for them, whether it be donating money to their program, or help set up.
She discussed Leesville Middle School, how the Leesville Middle Parent Athletic Association (LMPAA) was created, but no parents volunteered to help run the organization, and it therefore failed.
Her political volunteering goes past just helping strangers understand their ballots and take action to vote. With her own friends and family, Scioli has no problem looking up their ballot for them, with only an address. She then gives the certain family member or friend recommendations so they know who they’re looking for on the ballot and sends them through a simple text with her cell phone.
Scioli’s volunteering includes more than just political events and activities. At her church, Scioli leads a program that teaches teens about developing intimate --both physical and emotional -- relationships. She enjoys the work because she believes adolescents truly need the education and need adults to speak with them very frankly.
“My pastor wrote a book about intimacy education, and he and I created a curriculum. Now, I meet with our youth and do one big presentation, as sort of an intro of what we’ll be discussing for that session. About every three months or so, we’ll have an anonymous question box session, where the youth can ask any question they want,” said Scioli.
Usually, Scioli’s program takes place over six consecutive Sunday afternoons, or at times the program uses an entire day on a retreat to educate the youth.
Even as a parent, Scioli engages in minor volunteer activities constantly. Her kids take part in extracurricular activities after school, and she helps with what she can for them, whether it be donating money to their program, or help set up.
She discussed Leesville Middle School, how the Leesville Middle Parent Athletic Association (LMPAA) was created, but no parents volunteered to help run the organization, and it therefore failed.
"I think any kind of volunteering that meets someone’s immediate need, and they feel the effects of that, it gives a meaning of thinking globally, acting locally," said Scioli.
“You couldn’t buy season passes because no one was selling them. You couldn’t buy spirit wear because there was no one that was selling them... I can’t really say enough about how important those parental volunteer roles are. The PTSA parents volunteers are unbelievably valuable,” said Scioli.
Scoli noticed that in current society, the pool of people who have the time to volunteer continues to shrink, for multiple reasons: more job opportunities for women in the workplace and a decrease in the number of single income families, where both parents devote most of their time to the workplace, resulting in less time to participate in other activities .
“I don’t think we, as a society, realized how dependent we were on volunteered labor. Now we’re struggling because we’re finding it really too hard to find that volunteer labor,” laughed Scioli.
Even on the Leesville campus, Scioli believes that more adult figures should be present inside the school in order to give emotional, social or academic support to students who need it. There is an abundant number of students who would benefit from the presence of those adult bodies there to assist them. Having available mentors to students that go beyond counselors presents its challenges, however. She brings up the point that those kinds of jobs are harder spots to fill in, as they are jobs that would be presented to volunteers, who become harder and harder to find as time goes on.
With the experience Scioli gains with every opportunity to volunteer, she knows the impact is varied depending on those who benefit from her at the event.
“There are definitely some types of volunteering that are much more impactful than others. I’m not quite sure that political volunteering is that impactful...I think any kind of volunteering that meets someone’s immediate need, and they feel the effects of that, it gives a meaning of thinking globally, acting locally,” said Scioli.
Scioli continues to be a cheerful and ecstatic volunteer in her community. The teacher realizes her work does matter to the people who she affects, and for that she’s grateful. To Scioli, anything as simple as a smile to the people she assists is more than enough of an impact on the people that need it. For Scioli, she’s prompted to feel there is a “restoration in the faith of humanity” from volunteering, no matter the project or event she participates in. Scioli will always find a sense of joyfulness from her work of volunteering no matter how colossal or tiny the job may be.
Scoli noticed that in current society, the pool of people who have the time to volunteer continues to shrink, for multiple reasons: more job opportunities for women in the workplace and a decrease in the number of single income families, where both parents devote most of their time to the workplace, resulting in less time to participate in other activities .
“I don’t think we, as a society, realized how dependent we were on volunteered labor. Now we’re struggling because we’re finding it really too hard to find that volunteer labor,” laughed Scioli.
Even on the Leesville campus, Scioli believes that more adult figures should be present inside the school in order to give emotional, social or academic support to students who need it. There is an abundant number of students who would benefit from the presence of those adult bodies there to assist them. Having available mentors to students that go beyond counselors presents its challenges, however. She brings up the point that those kinds of jobs are harder spots to fill in, as they are jobs that would be presented to volunteers, who become harder and harder to find as time goes on.
With the experience Scioli gains with every opportunity to volunteer, she knows the impact is varied depending on those who benefit from her at the event.
“There are definitely some types of volunteering that are much more impactful than others. I’m not quite sure that political volunteering is that impactful...I think any kind of volunteering that meets someone’s immediate need, and they feel the effects of that, it gives a meaning of thinking globally, acting locally,” said Scioli.
Scioli continues to be a cheerful and ecstatic volunteer in her community. The teacher realizes her work does matter to the people who she affects, and for that she’s grateful. To Scioli, anything as simple as a smile to the people she assists is more than enough of an impact on the people that need it. For Scioli, she’s prompted to feel there is a “restoration in the faith of humanity” from volunteering, no matter the project or event she participates in. Scioli will always find a sense of joyfulness from her work of volunteering no matter how colossal or tiny the job may be.
Photos used by permission of Angela Scioli
Pursuing passions through volunteering
On most days, you can find Yvonne Anderson in her classroom located in the main building, where she teaches English I and AP English III. Posters of Shakespeare decorate her classroom, she frequently talks about theatre while teaching. But in her free time, Anderson volunteers as the President of the Board of Directors at North Raleigh Arts and Creative Theater.
“I started volunteering 16 years ago,” said Anderson via email. “At first, my involvement was to support my family in performances. Now, I work to keep the theater growing and meeting the needs of the local arts community”.
Along with being the President of the Board of Directors, Anderson volunteers her time as a director and producer. In 2019, she will be producing several shows and directing one, all at NRACT.
Anderson also volunteers at Camp High Hopes, a YMCA Outreach Program. “This amazing camp impressed me so much that I instantly decided I wanted to support it in some way,” said Anderson. “During September and October, I captained a team of volunteers to raise funds for the Finley Y’s “Power of Us” campaign.” She plans to continue her volunteering at the camp next year.
Anderson believes that her volunteering has impacted the targeted community. “I met a single-mom whose son participates in the YMCA Outreach programs. Her story, where she shared how working with Y counselors changed her son's life convince me that this program truly reaches the community,” said Anderson.
Anderson says that volunteering gives her a chance to be more involved in my community.
“When you teach, it's very easy to make the school your whole world, and I did that for many years. However, when you volunteer, your perspective widens.”
“I started volunteering 16 years ago,” said Anderson via email. “At first, my involvement was to support my family in performances. Now, I work to keep the theater growing and meeting the needs of the local arts community”.
Along with being the President of the Board of Directors, Anderson volunteers her time as a director and producer. In 2019, she will be producing several shows and directing one, all at NRACT.
Anderson also volunteers at Camp High Hopes, a YMCA Outreach Program. “This amazing camp impressed me so much that I instantly decided I wanted to support it in some way,” said Anderson. “During September and October, I captained a team of volunteers to raise funds for the Finley Y’s “Power of Us” campaign.” She plans to continue her volunteering at the camp next year.
Anderson believes that her volunteering has impacted the targeted community. “I met a single-mom whose son participates in the YMCA Outreach programs. Her story, where she shared how working with Y counselors changed her son's life convince me that this program truly reaches the community,” said Anderson.
Anderson says that volunteering gives her a chance to be more involved in my community.
“When you teach, it's very easy to make the school your whole world, and I did that for many years. However, when you volunteer, your perspective widens.”