STACI B. MARTIN, EdD
"Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world's grief. Do justly now. Love mercy, now. Walk humbly, now. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it."
- The Talmud
Philosophy Statement
“Collective freedom provides the basic conditions for people to narrate their own lives, hold power
accountable, and embrace a capacious notion of human dignity.” Henry Giroux in Pedgogy and Politics of Hope
You Belong
The six-year-old said, “No, you belong, here” as she held my hand and lead me into her house. I told her, “In order to paint the trim of your door, I need to be out there.” She held my hand tighter and insisted, “You belong here.” We sat down in the middle of the entryway. She handed me a book and promptly sat in my lap. As I started to read Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss, children came out the woodwork and I had four more children intently listening. I don’t remember how many books I read on that day but I remembered the feeling of belonging and purpose.
I was 15 and on a Sierra Service Project in Klamath Falls, Oregon. My local church joined a number of churches to paint houses on an Indian reservation. In the initial meeting there was something left unsaid, but somehow we all knew it: Do not enter their homes.
I had that thought in the back of my mind when she insisted that I enter her house. As she promptly sat in my lap and handed me a book, I realized my calling - I wanted to be invited into homes and communities and not only work alongside them but have them claim me as their own. I wanted to belong.
We Belong
Both children in the two stories knew they belonged to something. One grew out of love, the other grew out of hate. Both stories have colored my view of what I would like to see in the world - a just, hopeful and empathetic society.
This is what I believe - I believe the most important role as a learner and teacher is for me to give people the place, time and space to be seen, heard, and valued. As an educator, I am like a doula, moving barriers, bearing witness and offering guidance to birth an idea, thought, and/or deepening an understanding that my students matter in this world.
I am passionate, empathetic, and hopeful - the innate hope - that develops in each soul, in each person when they arrive in this world. I believe when I am invited to join people on their journey, often they see their life as one narrative with one outcome. I believe we can help reframe those narratives by expanding their ideas of themselves, their community and the world around us. Thus, resulting in multiple outcomes.
I Belong
In Meridian, Idaho I was ten at a water amusement park called, Wild Waters. I was standing in a line to go down a slide, in my two-piece red striped bathing suit, with pigtails and sepia brown skin. A little boy turned around with his father towering over me and said, “You don’t belong here. You are a ni**er.” His father smiled and stared at his son in deep admiration. I remained silent and took my turn. As I slid down the slide, tears emerged. It wasn’t the first time that I had encountered that word and it wouldn’t be the last however, when I went through the final tunnel, I emerged a different person.
