Meadow Elementary School students say 'hello'

Mister Rogers would be proud of the second graders at Meadow Elementary School in Baldwin, as the students showcased their Hello Neighbor project, expressing their hopes for the future on life-sized portraits.

“My dream is that everyone will feel loved,” one portrait read. “My wish is that people will stop littering because we want a clean world and happy animals.”

Those are some of the dreams and wishes on the minds of Meadow’s second graders, who unveiled their project to the school and community on April 16.

Influenced by Oregon-based artist Julie Keefe, Hello Neighbor’s goal is to introduce the neighborhood to its children and the neighbors to each other. Keefe was inspired to launch the project in 2007 after moving to Portland in 1991 and noticing that new neighbors weren’t talking to people who had spent years or decades in the neighborhood.

Baldwin district launched its project in the spring of 2021 at Brookside Elementary School and eventually expanded to Steele, Plaza and Meadow elementary schools. In June, Lenox will be the last of the five elementary schools in the district to participate in the project.

Baldwin High School’s Advanced Placement photography students participated in the project by shooting portraits of the young students. Each poster, 2-feet-by-3-feet, displayed a portrait accompanied by a poignant quote, encapsulating the essence of each child’s dreams for the future. The waterproof posters shared each student’s hopes and dreams and were hung outside the elementary school campus.

Keefe’s original project arose from her observation of the effects of children living in neighborhoods that were undergoing rapid gentrification. Witnessing the sense of alienation experienced by many youngsters as familiar faces departed and strangers arrived, she conceived a project to foster connections within the community. Her initiative invited the new neighbors to engage in mutual interviews, promoting understanding among the area’s diverse residents.

“In our social studies curriculum, we’re working on communities and neighborhoods,” Stephanie Cartier, a second-grade teacher at Meadow, said. “So they are learning about what it’s like to be part of a community and to be a good neighbor. We also build a lot of character education in the school. So they’re also constantly talking about how they can make the school and the community a better place.”

The New York State School Boards Association recognized Baldwin last year as the only school district in the state to implement the project. Superintendent Shari Camhi discussed the reason the district introduced the idea in 2021.

“I thought, what a really nice way for us to be able to get our community to know our AP photo students, to work with our high school and work with the second graders,” Camhi said. “They’ve been working with them all year long, interviewing them and taking their photos.

“In June, we will complete the cycle with Lenox,” she added.

As students gathered in front of the poster hanging on Meadow’s school fence, anticipation filled the air before they unveiled it. Second graders admired their creation while fellow students walked around, curious to glimpse their friends’ dreams and aspirations for the future.

“We built a lot of character education into the program, such as what they could do to help the world make a better place,” Christina Almona, a second-grade teacher at Meadow, said. “One child at a time, they could be world-changers.”