| This edition of Viewpoint is excerpted from the Nov. 2, 2005 issue of the Adoption Film Project E-mail newsletter. Sign up to receive updates. |
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Viewpoint Judith Vecchione, Executive Producer |
Though the kids have been back in classes for a while now, I know that school is still on our minds, and so I'd like to talk to you about schools and adoption.
When I first thought about this message, I realized that no matter how old I get, September to me is "Back to School" month. I remember planning what I'd wear that first day, looking forward to seeing my friends after a summer's break, worrying about new teachers and classes. To me, this underlines how very influential the school environment is for children, and how important it is that school be a positive experience. We've learned that it's important to "educate the educators" about a spectrum of issues, from race and gender to disabilities. It's equally critical to educate them about adoption and the people it touches. That's why I thought I'd use this column to mention our plans for educational outreach on Adoption: An American Revolution. In partnership with the Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute, a non–partisan research organization, we plan to develop and publish resource brochures for elementary and middle schools.  The lessons will set the tone for understanding adoption as a mainstream, valid way to build a family. They will model sensitive, positive language that shows respect for birth parents, adoptive parents, and adopted children, and offers suggestions for school policies that support adoptive families.
They will present activity sheets for new, inclusive lessons to replace assignments that focus only on "traditional" families. The Adoption Project's senior advisor, Adam Pertman, is executive director of the Adoption Institute, and he'll be taking our materials to test sites before we put them into broad distribution. Our goal, with both the outreach to schools and our community–based outreach plans (more on that in a later column!), will be to expand the reach of our PBS project well past the initial broadcast. We're looking forward to starting work on these campaigns—and the film—once we've completed our fundraising. And thanks to you, we're off to a great start. Please remember to let your friends and family know about www.adoptionfilm.org. We'd like to welcome them into our circle of supporters, too. Next month: Comments from you, our Adoption friends. Thanks again, Judith P.S. Send us your comments and suggestions. |
