Students in Kelly Barkevich and Mike Bellizzi’s English Language Arts classes at Sand Creek Middle School recently completed a powerful unit on activism and social impact, one that pushed them beyond the walls of their classroom and into real-world conversations about change.

As part of the project, students were tasked with researching individuals and organizations that have influenced political, global, or social movements. But rather than simply presenting their findings, Barkevich and Bellizzi encouraged students to take the next step: reaching out directly to these organizations.

Students composed formal letters introducing themselves, explaining their projects, and requesting additional resources to support their final presentations. The results were remarkable.

Not only did students receive responses, they were met with enthusiastic support and valuable materials from organizations across North America. Contributors included the American Red Cross of Northeastern New York, Blue Jays Care Foundation in Canada, the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights in California, Helen Keller International in New York City, the Jackie Robinson Museum, and the Terry Fox Foundation in Canada.

“We’re so proud of the initiative our students showed throughout this project,” said Mr. Bellizzi. “Seeing the kids engage so thoughtfully and respectfully with real-world organizations made the experience especially impactful and helped bring their research to life.”

Ms. Barkevich added, “This kind of assignment empowers students to find and explore their passions. More importantly, it shows them how to communicate with purpose and how their voices can contribute to meaningful conversations about change. We also want to give a special thanks to our switch teachers Gregory Sherwin and Matthew Maes and our aid Holly Spinosa for their efforts and support with this project.”

Projects like these reflect South Colonie’s commitment to engaging students with real-world learning experiences that build empathy, critical thinking, and communication skills. 

As these Sand Creek students demonstrated, when given the chance to connect with the world, they rise to the challenge.