Elo antonyan
All the paths of my life...
A Mother of three boys
An Administrator
An Educator
A Designer
A Multi-Tasker
Merge into...
An All-Around 'Difference Maker'
A Mother of three boys
An Administrator
An Educator
A Designer
A Multi-Tasker
Merge into...
An All-Around 'Difference Maker'
MY WORK/COMMUNITY CONTEXT
I have to start off my work/community context with the word “Pilibostzi”. I know this does not make sense to anyone, so let me explain. Pilibos is the name of the school I work in and the suffix “tzi” is Armenian. You add it to any word to imply membership or belonging to a group of some sort. So when I say “Pilibostzi” I mean that not only do I feel like I belong to the school I work in, but I feel as if Pilibos IS MY school.
My history with Pilibos began in 1979. My parents and I had just emigrated from Armenia into America, what seemed like a strange and foreign land. My parents had fled from a country overrun by Communism and corruption in hopes of providing a brighter and better future for me, their only child. As they were trying to acclimate themselves to this new land, new culture, and new life, one thing was certain, they were going to send me to an Armenian School, no matter the cost, so I may hold on to my Armenian roots as best I could in this foreign land. And so my education began at Pilibos as I entered Kindergarten. The school quickly became my second home; a place I felt safe and knew would be there for me when I needed it.
It was right there and then in 1979 that I became a Pilibostzi. As a result, when I returned to Pilibos to work as a teacher, I knew that after all those years; it was my turn to give back. And ever since then, I have been working as a Teacher, Mentor, and Director of Administration and Outreach. Having those titles however, has not limited my scope of work. Everything I do in that school I do with love and much enthusiasm. I relish in taking on any job, duty, or task, as long as I know it is somehow benefiting the students of Pilibos.
Pilibos is located in the heart of Hollywood, in the “Little Armenia” district. It is one of six Prelacy schools under the Western Armenian Apostolic Church. And as of this year, it is one of the only two schools among the six that is K-12.
At one point, the school consisted of 800+ students that resided anywhere from the neighboring communities in Hollywood to communities that were up to 10-15 miles away. However, these days because of more choices and increase in traffic, the population has dwindled down to about 550 students, most of who are from the immediate areas surrounding the school. That translates to kids from lower income families, who most of the time cannot pay their tuition (which translates into an almost non-existent budget), and families who themselves are not educated and cannot truly help their children with their studies.
I work in the main office of our school. It is a pretty small campus with two main buildings for classrooms, a gym, and a library. The people who work in the office are myself, the receptionist, the accountant, the Dean of Students and the Principal. It is safe to say we are a pretty tight knit group. Right in front of my office door is the door that leads to the teacher’s room. So whenever someone from the faculty room walks into the office, I am the first person they see, and the first person they approach with their issues. I am usually very receptive to any and all of their questions. I love being able to help them with their schedules, deadlines, understanding how to complete a task, etc.
The faculty is made up of a mix of Armenian and non-Armenian teachers, young and old, male and female. However, despite the variety of teachers, an “old-school” kind of culture seems to prevail. Most teachers are very accustomed to doing things a certain way, their way. When a new program is introduced most are pretty resistant to accepting a change. Sometimes I find myself in the same predicament… “but that’s not how we do it”. Stepping outside of one’s comfort zone is not something that is expected, done, or even appreciated by most. But some forward thinkers do accept it and make an effort. I believe we are stuck in a culture of ‘how things used to be’. I truly hope however, that through the work I have done in my Action Research, we can move out of that kind of thinking into a culture of ‘how things can be’!
As Director of Administration and Outreach it is my goal to get our school to a place of forward thinking and moving toward change. I am lucky enough to work for an Administration who is open to change and willing to take risks for the benefit of students. It is because of this Administration that I was able to also teach a Digital Media class to the sophomores and juniors this year. I based my Action Research on this class incorporating social media into our curriculum.
Everything I do at the school is done, not because it is my job, but because I truly, wholeheartedly want to do it. I want to help my school flourish, my students succeed, my teachers evolve, and my school to be not one of, but the best school of its kind. There is surely a long road ahead. The future holds many changes in curriculum, staff, procedure, use and integration of technology, etc. However, I believe all the work and effort will ultimately bring about the kind of change the school and its students are worthy of.
My history with Pilibos began in 1979. My parents and I had just emigrated from Armenia into America, what seemed like a strange and foreign land. My parents had fled from a country overrun by Communism and corruption in hopes of providing a brighter and better future for me, their only child. As they were trying to acclimate themselves to this new land, new culture, and new life, one thing was certain, they were going to send me to an Armenian School, no matter the cost, so I may hold on to my Armenian roots as best I could in this foreign land. And so my education began at Pilibos as I entered Kindergarten. The school quickly became my second home; a place I felt safe and knew would be there for me when I needed it.
It was right there and then in 1979 that I became a Pilibostzi. As a result, when I returned to Pilibos to work as a teacher, I knew that after all those years; it was my turn to give back. And ever since then, I have been working as a Teacher, Mentor, and Director of Administration and Outreach. Having those titles however, has not limited my scope of work. Everything I do in that school I do with love and much enthusiasm. I relish in taking on any job, duty, or task, as long as I know it is somehow benefiting the students of Pilibos.
Pilibos is located in the heart of Hollywood, in the “Little Armenia” district. It is one of six Prelacy schools under the Western Armenian Apostolic Church. And as of this year, it is one of the only two schools among the six that is K-12.
At one point, the school consisted of 800+ students that resided anywhere from the neighboring communities in Hollywood to communities that were up to 10-15 miles away. However, these days because of more choices and increase in traffic, the population has dwindled down to about 550 students, most of who are from the immediate areas surrounding the school. That translates to kids from lower income families, who most of the time cannot pay their tuition (which translates into an almost non-existent budget), and families who themselves are not educated and cannot truly help their children with their studies.
I work in the main office of our school. It is a pretty small campus with two main buildings for classrooms, a gym, and a library. The people who work in the office are myself, the receptionist, the accountant, the Dean of Students and the Principal. It is safe to say we are a pretty tight knit group. Right in front of my office door is the door that leads to the teacher’s room. So whenever someone from the faculty room walks into the office, I am the first person they see, and the first person they approach with their issues. I am usually very receptive to any and all of their questions. I love being able to help them with their schedules, deadlines, understanding how to complete a task, etc.
The faculty is made up of a mix of Armenian and non-Armenian teachers, young and old, male and female. However, despite the variety of teachers, an “old-school” kind of culture seems to prevail. Most teachers are very accustomed to doing things a certain way, their way. When a new program is introduced most are pretty resistant to accepting a change. Sometimes I find myself in the same predicament… “but that’s not how we do it”. Stepping outside of one’s comfort zone is not something that is expected, done, or even appreciated by most. But some forward thinkers do accept it and make an effort. I believe we are stuck in a culture of ‘how things used to be’. I truly hope however, that through the work I have done in my Action Research, we can move out of that kind of thinking into a culture of ‘how things can be’!
As Director of Administration and Outreach it is my goal to get our school to a place of forward thinking and moving toward change. I am lucky enough to work for an Administration who is open to change and willing to take risks for the benefit of students. It is because of this Administration that I was able to also teach a Digital Media class to the sophomores and juniors this year. I based my Action Research on this class incorporating social media into our curriculum.
Everything I do at the school is done, not because it is my job, but because I truly, wholeheartedly want to do it. I want to help my school flourish, my students succeed, my teachers evolve, and my school to be not one of, but the best school of its kind. There is surely a long road ahead. The future holds many changes in curriculum, staff, procedure, use and integration of technology, etc. However, I believe all the work and effort will ultimately bring about the kind of change the school and its students are worthy of.