Learn Somali with pride

About Maddy Wegner Maddy co-taught Somali Ethnic Studies at Heritage Academy with Abdirizak in 2019-2020, focusing on a writing workshop that ran throughout the classes. The middle school students wrote bilingual (Somali/English) children's books for younger students -- a need the librarian had identified. The high school students interviewed community leaders, learning the journalistic practices of interviewing a primary source, summarizing, and quoting the subject to develop a profile. By the end of the school year, they had produced a booklet entitled Conversations with Somali-American Leaders -- a practice fostered through this curriculum. (An example is available on the "Newsletters" landing page.) She has taught middle and high school ELA in public and independent schools from Vermont to California, and has developed curricula rooted in experiential approaches such as service-learning, civic engagement, and peace-building for agencies ranging from the National Youth Leadership Council to Amnesty International. She has a B.A in American Studies and master's degree in journalism and is certified to teach secondary Language Arts.