Dan Camacho, The University of Michigan
The Generation Project’s relationship with Detroit Young Professionals, a regional nonprofit focused on professional development and civic engagement, began this summer with a soiree at Bora Bora UltraLounge in Dearborn, MI. This get-together was a great way to meet others in the metro Detroit area also at an early point in their careers who share a passion for the well-being of Detroit and public education.
Our November 11 screening of Waiting for Superman and subsequent Mix&Mingle, arranged incollaboration with DYP at the Main Art Theater in Royal Oak, was a wonderful opportunity to get together with other like-minded, concerned individuals and learn about the problems facing our schools nationwide. It was particularly special to share the movie-viewing experience with that audience for the warm camaraderie that developed and the quality of conversation that ensued throughout the evening.
As I was sitting through the documentary I couldn’t help but think about the grandeur of the film’s impact in comparison with the mechanism of my work with The Generation Project, which involves spreading the word about our organization’s mission on mostly a one-on-one basis. At this time of the year, when reflection is in order, it pleases me to observe that all of us – from Superman’s producers to our friends at DYP to my intern teammates at The Generation Project – compose a larger movement to ameliorate the dilemma of educational inequality in this country. Not only am I confident, looking out on the coming year and the future ahead, that our pointed conviction and perseverance will allow us to prevail, but I am reassured that with all this momentum we are not simply waiting, and we are certainly not waiting alone.