It was snowing as we made our way over to J.O. Wilson Elementary School in Washington, DC’s Ward 6. Coming off of a DCPS two-hour delay, a frantic energy was in the air as we dodged students and staff on our way to the office of CIS Site Coordinator LaTroy Bailey.
LaTroy has been working in J.O. Wilson for the past year and a half and her colorful office reflects her bubbly personality. There is a constant stream of young students coming in-and-out, each of whom she refers to by a personalized nickname. The nicknames have become her signature, she tells us, with students going out of their way to find her in the morning just to see what nickname she will give them that day.
The first student we meet is Lauren, a second-grader who fancies herself LaTroy’s office assistant. Originally working with LaTroy on Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) techniques, Lauren is also a proud participant in CIS’s tutoring partnership with the United States Court of Appeals. Today she came in with her father to collect a reward for having zero unexcused absences: two donated tickets to that night’s Capital City Go-Go game.
Once Lauren and her father leave, tickets in hand, LaTroy tells us about Cory, a fifth-grader on her caseload. A hardworking student with great attendance, Cory first came to her attention when he suddenly started to miss class. LaTroy learned that Cory’s family was facing housing instability, and that his poor attendance was a result of his family being forced onto the street. She sprang into action, working with Cory and his family to secure stable housing and clean clothing. She also allowed Cory to stay after school to wash his clothes and store his valuables in the Communities In Schools office. With LaTroy’s support, things have started to turn around. Today, Cory’s family once again has a safe place to sleep and Cory is back in school and happier than ever.
The next student to enter looking for LaTroy is Richard. Richard is more than happy to share with us details about his relationship with his site coordinator, describing himself as hot-headed and a trouble-maker. “She helps me cool down, keeps me from getting in trouble,” he tells us, “you don’t even need to ask anything, Ms. Bailey just does it. That’s why I like her, she’s nice.” LaTroy explains that all Richard needed was an outlet. He’s a very intelligent and capable student who thrives when given responsibility. She started having him help out at J.O. Wilson’s Early Childhood Education Lab, and having the opportunity to be a model for the younger students helps him stay focused.
As Richard returned to his classroom, LaTroy informed us that she had to leave. It was 2pm, and as part of an ongoing initiative to improve attendance through positive reinforcement, students with good attendance were allowed to participate in an AttenDANCE. LaTroy had organized the dance, and she had to be there to kick it all off. We watched as she made her way into the school cafeteria, slipping through a throng of students, each one vying for her attention trying to find out their nickname for the day.
