Planting Seeds, Growing Communities: Training and Educational Resources for Children (T.E.R.C.)

Training and Educational Resources For Children (T.E.R.C.)
Planting Seeds, Growing Communities

T.E.R.C. is a ten year-old organization founded by Joann Tate who is the President. T.E.R.C.’s mission is to promote educational programs that inspire young people to develop entrepreneurial skills. These programs incorporate prevention and intervention practices through the arts, culture, horticulture, and environmental betterment.

T.E.R.C. believes that children require guidance and positive experiences to become successful adults. With a positive, intensive experience in entrepreneurship, we give young people the keys to success at critical times in their lives. They learn through our caring and our guidance. They learn by experiencing what it takes to become good citizens, employees, and leaders. Ultimately, they will appreciate and adopt these key values: Discipline, Commitment to shared vision, Teamwork, Integrity, Pride, Leadership, Education, and Quality work. We anticipate that they will assimilate these values in their lives and become ambassadors of their community.

Typically, T.E.R.C. engages in projects that are developed by involving community participants in collaborative workshops where the group interacts to encourage long-term memory of their experiences. These programs are designed as workshops in the community, training residents and youth on improving their environment. The workshops are interactive, demonstrating to participants how to identify and create opportunities that better themselves and their community.

One of T.E.R.C.’s most successful projects to date is an eight year-old urban gardening program. The Bronzeville Cultural Garden, a community garden in the Washington Park Community, is a lot transformed into a positive and productive training site for youth apprenticeship and internship programs in urban gardening. Youth are trained in garden designing, horticulture, organic farming, vermiculture, leadership development, and community building.

T.E.R.C. coordinates a second phase to the program, where youth are hired for a six-week summer program. Youth are trained in career exploration which includes: completing applications, resume writing, career ethics and etiquette, and interviewing skills along with the hands-on experience of working in the garden to maintain and manicure it.

The interdisciplinary nature of the program enhances the youth’s skills in mathematics, science, language, art, sociology, and history. At the same time, they are taught new skills in problem- solving, leadership development, decision making, community organizing, teambuilding, and entrepreneurship. They gain a sense of civic responsibility and accomplishments as they contribute to the stabilization and improvement of their community. This program allows participants to gain marketable skills which may lead to employment in a wide range of fields.

T.E.R.C. has created and implemented numerous other programs that address community service, environment prevention and intervention practices, and community archaeology and preservation. For example, CSAT (Community Service and Training), is a service learning/community service, and community volunteers’ program for residents, Chicago Public Schools, Cook County Juvenile Justice Department and the Cook County Penile System. Program participants have completed 45,000 hours of service.

Buffy, the Lead-Buster, Integrated Lead Awareness Initiative is a contextual-designed curriculum that transforms lead prevention, and intervention practices to the level of interpretation for children ages 2 to 10. This initiative integrates discussion, demonstration, and interaction to create internal development to promote long-term memory for the target audience. Buffy, the Lead-Buster -- the mascot for lead-poisoning -- symbolizes a hero in the children’s eyes: one they can mimic in both ideology and action.

We have a program that we want to spotlight that is currently being developed: The Phyllis Wheatley Home Rebirthing Project. The Phyllis Wheatley Home Rebirthing Project will be set in the 110- year-old Phyllis Wheatley home located in Bronzeville, one of the oldest, historical neighborhoods in the city. The Phyllis Wheatley Home for Girls was once a charitable organization founded by Elizabeth Lindsay Davis, a notable black woman. The home provided a wholesome environment for women migrating from the South. They learned social refinements, acquired knowledge of economics, were enhanced spiritually, intellectually, and much more.

T.E.R.C. plans to recreate this social philosophy by providing education, public awareness, cultural diversity, social development, community stewardship, youth and adult partnerships. Social change will only occur by building the infrastructure from the ground up. The Rebirthing of the Phyllis Wheatley Home will assist community residents and visitors to become more responsible and accountable for their community and their cultural legacy.

The Phyllis Wheatley Home will be the home of T.E.R.C. and The Phyllis Wheatley Home Museum of Chicago Black Woman. These organizations will impact the lives of all who visit the Home by recognizing the positive and productive achievements of the noteworthy Black women who established the home and the women recognized in the museum. They will remind and inspire visitors and program participants to live a higher and eminent life by precept and example.

TERC is building a collaboration to preserve the building, to create a historical museum, and to plan and implement the rebirthing of the Home. In the summer of 2006, a press conference was arranged to announce the project and to highlight the archaeological dig conducted by Depaul University. The dig took place on the grounds of the Phyllis Wheatley Home.

Anyone interested in participating in The Phyllis Wheatley Home Rebirthing Project or any other T.E.R.C. program may contact Joann Tate at terc5128[at]yahoo.com or 773-924-1328.