Virtual school students give Face to Face support during pandemic

Each year the student council members at Minnesota Connections Academy will perform several community service activities to support local charitable organizations. This enables the online school students, who come from all parts of the state, to come together and collaborate on a project to help others in need.

Emily Johnston, MNCA’s faculty advisor to the 26-member student council, said the school believes it is important to incorporate an element of service among its student council members. It builds empathy within the student community and provides another opportunity for the students to work together.

“With this group, all it takes is the mention of helping our communities and they are on board,” Ms. Johnston said. “We do a lot of other events for the school purely to bring students together and have fun. But it's really these service events that defines the student council.”

For the past six years, the student council has included Face to Face among the community service organizations it will support during the school year. Face to Face provides comprehensive medical care, mental healthcare, housing support, case management, employment training and support, and other social services to low-income and insecurely housed youth ages 11 to 24 in Ramsey County. Last year Face to Face served more than 2,500 youth with the vast majority (85 percent) being people of color and 17 percent identifying as part of the LGBTQ+ community.

According to Ms. Johnston, in a typical year, the student council members will hold two in-person events to support Face to Face. Their “Winter Warm-up” event brings the students together at the MNCA learning center in St. Paul in their pajamas for a hot cocoa bar and treats. The students bring with them coats, blankets, and other warm clothing donations for Face to Face. In the spring, the students collect personal care items to package and deliver to Face to Face during a field trip to the facility for an in-person tour.

Unfortunately, this year has been anything but typical as the COVID-19 pandemic has changed everything -- but not the student’s desire to make a difference for others in the community.

For the past two months, the Minnesota Connections Academy student council members hosted its “Winter Warm-up: Heart to Heart Edition” which started with a virtual Valentine’s card making party in February. The students made and sent hundreds of Valentine’s Day cards to local senior care facilities. The students then held a virtual fundraiser through GoFundMe and raised more than $1,000 for Face to Face.

According to Joa Sevlie, Community Outreach and Volunteer Coordinator at Face to Face, these activities not only give the students the opportunity to help others, but it gives them a better understanding of the impact each one of them can have on their community.

“The money keeps us going, but making community connections is even more powerful, especially at the youth level,” Sevlie said. “The students that took part in this experience will help us on our mission to get the word of our services out there.”

Student Council members describe helping others:

Maddie, a Minnesota Connections Academy student council member said volunteering and helping others gives her a feeling of joy that she doesn’t find in many other things.

“I don't really know how else to describe it, but when you help others, it feels warm and fuzzy on the inside,” she said. “It has taught me how to be a more thoughtful person and showed me the importance of putting others before myself.”

Another member of student council, Massa, said through the “Heart to Heart” event, she found it especially rewarding being able to give to others who aren't in the best situation.

“We were able to raise more than the expected goal and during our virtual tour, I noticed that it touched a lot of people who were inspired to go make changes themselves,” she said.

Catrielle believes helping others is the most rewarding thing, and it has inspired her to look for other ways she can make a positive impact on others. She has started working with Minnesota Connections Academy teachers to help students in other classes.

“Being a part of the Student Council has allowed me to connect with people that want to help others and their school,” Catrielle said. “It has been such a fantastic opportunity to see new students join and volunteer their time to activities that will better their school and community.”

Remi said she enjoys being part of the student council and the opportunity to help others. She believes every year the service projects they perform get more rewarding each year.

“Every year we try our hardest to support the community and give the student body an opportunity to help,” she said. “With COVID, our usual tactics have changed but we were still able to do so much from our homes to help the Saint Paul community.”

Minnesota Connections Academy is hosting online information sessions for families interested in learning more about virtual education. For more information about Minnesota Connections Academy or to begin the enrollment process, please visit www.MinnesotaConnectionsAcademy.com or call (800) 382-6010.