| carl sagan foundation |
The Carl Sagan Foundation is a non-profit entity established to continue the planet-wide campaign of public science education that was so brilliantly conducted by its namesake throughout his career. It seeks to further public understanding of the goals, methods and findings of science; to identify and challenge the misuse of science and high technology; to inspire the young to think critically and to consider career pathways in science. It sees its mission most urgently in those communities where exposure to science is likely to be minimal. Our society is increasingly dependent on science and high technology. We believe that preserving and enhancing its democratic nature requires a citizenry of informed decision-makers. The Carl Sagan Foundation, through its sponsorship of innovative approaches, institutions and individuals, aspires to help meet this pressing need. The inaugural project of The Carl Sagan Foundation is The Carl Sagan Discovery Center at The Children's Hospital at Montefiore, Bronx, New York. The Carl Sagan Discovery Center will be the nation's first science learning initiative developed in conjunction with a major children's health care system, and housed within the walls of a children's hospital. The defining philosophy of The Children's Hospital at Montefiore will be a commitment to the principles of Family Centered Care - the belief that the well being of children is dependent upon a respectful, collaborative partnership between families and the health care provider. The Carl Sagan Discovery Center will be a vital staging ground to advance the concept of family centered care at Montefiore, by empowering the young patients and their families with knowledge not only about their own health, but of the world and the universe around them. The Carl Sagan Discovery Center The Carl Sagan Foundation chose as its inaugural project, to build The Carl Sagan Discovery Center at the Children's Hospital at Montefiore in New York City. Our partner in this project is The Children's Health Fund, a non-profit organization that is second only to the federal government in providing health care to the under-served children of the United States. When completed next fall, it will not only be the first pediatric hospital to be built in the Bronx, but, also, the first children's hospital anywhere that incorporates the consciousness made possible by science into both its design and its program of family-centered care. Perhaps, most significantly, no child residing in the area the hospital serves will be turned away for lack of funds or insurance. Ann Druyan worked closely with Irwin Redlener, MD, longtime friend of both her and Carl's and president of the new Children's Hospital - as well as some of America's esteemed scientists, science educators and artists to design a place that conveys something of the great story of cosmic evolution. The hospital has been built on the highest elevation in the Greater New York City Area. Most of the patient rooms will have spectacular views of the surrounding topography; the Palisades of New Jersey, the Hudson and East Rivers and more. When the shade is pulled down over the big picture windows, you will see the exact same view as it would have looked a hundred million years ago. The Sagan Center will be integrated throughout the hospital - from the lobby and patient rooms, to the information technologies. Every bed will have a computer and a 42" high-definition wall-mounted flat screen monitor. Bonds have been forged with local scientific institutions to bring inspired teachers as well as permanent staff to show the kids and the families the ropes of exploration. We don't envision this hospital as a worshipful temple of science or technology - but rather a place that communicates the wonder of the glorious continuity revealed by science and opens new pathways for the people it will serve. Carl died on December 20, 1996, after waging a courageous battle for his life that included three harrowing bone marrow transplants. There were many times when it troubled him that he was getting the best medical treatment on Earth by virtue of his renown. Many members of the medical staff remarked that it was something he wrote or said that had inspired them to pursue a scientific career. Carl thought of all people who had life-threatening diseases who would be denied the care he was receiving and he wrote: "When I realize what extraordinary health care I have received in these many months of illness, I know what is possible. When I think of how many children do not have access to even the most basic of health services, it breaks my heart." Carl's forty year campaign for public science education was rooted in his dream of a wise and just society. Before anyone else, he recognized that a society wholly dependent on science and high technology could not hope to become a democracy if only a fortunate few possess the secrets of science's methods, laws and language. There are 400,000 children in the Bronx, a place both medically and educationally under-served. Education is a human right. As a society, we are obligated to provide a quality education to all children equally and to provide this education free of charge. The Humanists of Florida Association (HFA) is concerned with the quality of education provided to the young people in our state, and so, we are committed to improving the quality of the schools in every district - especially in areas that are economically disadvantaged. Opening a middle school in an economically disadvantaged area should have a significant effect in the long term with the student population, and in the short term with the parents and guardians of the students. The Carl Sagan Academies' educational program builds on the educational philosophies and practices of John Dewey, Carl Rogers, Abraham Maslow and other twentieth century humanists and scientists. Establishing additional charter schools is a natural next step in HFA’s educational reform efforts. By law, HFA is allowed to operate up to 15 charter schools in the state. Looking to the Future HFA wants to popularize science and its peaceful applications in the tradition of Carl Sagan through education and to encourage individual growth - aimed toward achieving a more progressive, enlightened and sane society. Contact HFA at info@floridahumanist.org to receive a copy of the 10-year CSA expansion plan. |
The Carl Sagan Foundation Donations to The Carl Sagan Foundation are tax deductible. Please make checks payable to The Carl Sagan Foundation. |
|
A message from Virginia Kohl, PhD: Curriculum Director for Carl Sagan Academies Providing a Caring Environment for Learning I recently interviewed several of our seventh grade upperclassmen and listened to how they learned about Carl Sagan Academies, why they came and what their experience has been. We were somewhat surprised that we so easily filled a seventh grade class last summer during our eleventh-hour recruitment because middle school begins with sixth grade. Only one of these students began the school year with us on August 4. Regardless of the amount of time spent at CSA, all recognized its caring atmosphere. Deanna Revere will be 15 years old this spring and aspires to be a model. She lives a short walk down the street from CSA and discovered it when she and her mom drove past and saw the newly erected sign last summer. Initially her mom was the one with a piqued interest. In fact, Deanna reported that she retreated to her bedroom when "Ms. Kelly" (as the students call the executive director) drove to her house to talk with her mom about the school. Despite being pulled out of bed, she didn’t have a desire to attend CSA until she and her brother helped out around the school over the summer and sensed that the school would be different. "I like different," she admitted with a grin. Before starting CSA in August, Deanna had attended two other middle schools in east Tampa. Distinguishing CSA from the others, she says: "It’s more peaceful than any other school I went to – there’s not as much drama or fighting. The attention to learning is 100%," she continues, because "teachers are there to help." Although her mom at first thought CSA would be better for her, Deanna now agrees: "People believe in me. They think, ‘Deanna’s going to change; she’s going to do better.’ It’s not like the other schools – they didn’t care about me and I know that." A major thing she appreciates is how things are talked out after an altercation instead of immediately being suspended for arguing. Fletcher Williams turned 15 last March and joined us in October after his mom found CSA on the Internet. Reflecting on his prior east Tampa school, he laments, "Things were really rough. I kept getting into a little bit – a lot – of trouble, getting referrals, acting up in class, hanging out with the wrong kind of people." Although he still talks with his old friends on the phone, he doesn’t call them friends now – "I call them associates." He tells them that CSA is a wonderful school, where "you get a chance to learn more and do more. You learn about things you’ve never even known about." He most appreciates "less kids and less drama" and the way that math is taught on the board rather than having to struggle and learn it from a book. Fletcher is making mostly "A"s and "B"s and received the second Citizenship Award bestowed upon a CSA student. Receiving the award felt great: "I feel like I’ve accomplished so much and came from a long way – and I don’t have any intention of going back to my old ways," he beamed with pride. Jeremy Gile turned 13 last October after moving from place to place after Hurricane Katrina decimated his hometown of New Orleans. He and his family finally joined his "auntie" in Tampa, following a month-long stay at a church shelter. While with his aunt he attended a school in east Tampa but searched for another because there wasn’t room for everyone at his auntie’s house for the long term. Jeremy proudly exclaims that he found CSA through a flier he saw at church. What attracted him was the picture on the flier; he acknowledged: "It looked like they [the students] were all having fun." Jeremy continues, "I tell my friends that it’s a great place to be, have fun and learn." He finds CSA to be much like his old school, where he enjoyed football and thought that his classes were "pretty good." Also, he likes that CSA is "so small" and "so many people care about you." His favorite subject is American History; he considers the Boston Tea Party a most significant event "because if it weren’t for that, we wouldn’t be here now doing what we’re doing." Alston Smith will be 13 years old in the spring of 2006. His mom sent him from New Jersey to live with his aunt and grandmother in the previous November. He and his grandmother leave at 5 or 6 o’clock every morning on a 25-mile bus trip to reach east Tampa for Alston to attend Carl Sagan Academies. Despite the long daily trek, he’s delighted that his aunt heard and read about the school, where he’s made new friends and enjoys his studies. Alston describes his school in Newark as bad – "garbage everywhere, not swept, a lot of fights, people don’t care about you." His mom was most concerned about the guns. "She didn’t want me to get hurt," he explained. In contrast, his favorite things about CSA are, "It’s cleaner, people care about you, the personal attention, it makes me study more, there are no fights, it’s in a nice setting, it’s just good." |