PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION COVERAGE - Holyangelsalumnae.org

faculty corner
every angel’s vote counts!
Gail Fair, Social Studies department chairperson, has been at AHA since
1997 and has been the chairperson of the department since 2002. She is
also the coach of the debate team and teaches AP Government & Politics,
AP US History and US History I – High Honors. Gail spent this past summer
team teaching with Nancy Schneberger in the summer program in Austria.
The election excitement that has swept our
country over the past year has also been
present at AHA. It all began last January on
Super Tuesday when the angels from the
class of ’08, who were students in the AP
Government & Politics class, had a sleepover.
This extraordinary group of young women
spent this school night together to witness
the results of the primary in California.
The election, which is traditionally thought
of as a topic only covered in Social Studies
classrooms, has overflowed into other areas
of the curriculum at Holy Angels. The Social
Justice and Statistics classes have been
using the election to further enhance their
curriculum. In fact, there has been much
cross-curriculum teaching between the Social
Studies department and other departments
as many first time voters were preparing to
cast their ballots on Election Day.
Fair says “we are preparing students to
make independent decisions as women
and they need to know both sides to every
issue.” In Fair’s AP Government and Politics
class, the students had been covering
the election from the perspective of all
50 states. Each student was assigned
two states and had to read the daily state
newspaper to stay on top of the key issues.
Never before has technology played a more
important role than now; students were
literally able to take the pulse of the country
throughout the school day. Because of this,
Fair states “Our students will not be living in
a vacuum; they need to think critically and
instead of memorizing dates we encourage
them to ask the questions ‘Why did this
happen?’ and ‘What was the long range
impact of people’s decisions?’”
In early October, prior to the debates, Mr.
Erwin Lara and his Statistics class set up an
online poll to collect data from students and
faculty. The poll questioned: If the election
were held today, whom would you vote for?
In addition to this information, the voter
was asked to prioritize how the issues of
the economy, war, and homeland security
impacted their decision. The results of this
sampling mirrored the national polls that
were taken that same week – a dead heat.
The number one issue that floated to the
top was the economy. The class compiled
the information, then shared the results
with everyone during the morning
announcements the following day.
“We are preparing
students to make
independent decisions
as women, and they
need to know both
sides to every issue.”
Faculty members in the Social Studies
department have always guided students
through the study of the past as they make
comparisons to current events. In the
Economics class, taught by Theresa Young,
students have been contrasting the current
economic situation to their studies of the
Depression. As they witness history being
made daily, teachers are taking advantage
of these teachable moments.
Recently Fair put the books aside so that
her students could watch the live coverage
of President Bush 2nd from the Sopranos White House
7
discussing the economy. The students
have instant access to breaking news.
Fair says “students are very aware of what
is happening and are excited.” They even
were the first to share with her when the
House of Representative passed the bill
for the bailout. “Students are aware that
there are issues that will impact them
personally, such as the student loan
situation.” Fair says we need to ask students
to consider the questions “What leads
to your decisions; what persuades you?”
Although only a small percentage of
students could cast their vote on Election
Day, students were able to make their vote
count at AHA. A virtual poll for students
and faculty remained open throughout the
school day on November 4. Even if this was
a mock election, there was no dampening
the sense of excitement throughout the
building as everyone executed the right to
vote. The hope is that this enthusiasm will
not end on graduation day. Based on news
received from some of the recent graduates,
that spirit is alive and well. The angels are
making their mark on college/university
campuses as they continue their pursuits in
Social Studies with some choosing to major
in Political Science, while others have chosen
to be very involved in civic organizations,
whether for a political party or by assisting
with “get out and vote” efforts.