Poster to Billboard Contest Winners

Milwaukee Fire Department Fire Chief Douglas Holton and Lt. Brian Smith are in a photo with the poster to billboard winners.


Aime B., first grader at Escuela Vieau School won first place with her poster project about fire safety...

Media Essay Proposal

For my final project, I want to focus more on the theme of arts & crafts and how it has helped me bridge the gap between cultures. I feel like if I showed more photos of the projects I’ve worked on with the children, activities we’ve done together, and added music that we sometimes listen to while working, I would be able to better demonstrate how the children and I interact with each other. Also, I might think about adding some pictures of the hallways of the school and surrounding community to build a sense of art and culture in everyday life. This will create a more central theme than my last project.

Hispanic Tips

Website for Hispanic News & Info about the Milwaukee Latino community

Immigration Protest

Milwaukee's Hispanic Community speaks out against anti-immigration legislation

Journal Entry 3

As I'm nearing the end of my Service Learning experience at Escuela Vieau, I'm starting to realize just how much of an effect the school has had on me and how much I'm going to miss volunteering there. Seeing the children every week not only makes me remember what it was like to be a kid but also helps me look to the future to when I have my own children. Feeling like a member of not only the school's community, but a member of the staff/student family has made an impact on me as well.

The last time I was at the school, we started working on a paper-mâché project with the first and second graders. They had already put their first coat of newspaper strips and glue/water paste on their blown up balloons, but now, it was time for them to begin adding second and third layers. When I watched the children ask each other to help and flick paste around the room, I sometimes got frustrated, but it made me realize how much of a handful I must have been in art class. The girls worked much quieter and were more polite when asking for help, but the boys loudly proclaimed their stories from the day. Volunteering at Escuela Vieau not only reminded me of memories from my childhood, but with the help of the staff and students, I made some of my own memories within the school’s walls as well.

Escuela Vieau Video

¡Adelante! | Program | #1113

Adult literacy program at Vieau School

Escuela Vieau Article

"Catholic high schools recruiting more Hispanics" article from The Business Journal

Easter and Playground

Additional Photos

Film Essay

Artist's Statement

Volunteering at a new place is always a bit scary at first, especially when you aren’t familiar with the neighborhood or speak the language well. But, working at Escuela Vieau made me feel as though I was part of a large, accepting family that was there to teach and guide me as much as I was there to help them. I worked with Ms. Rodriguez and her daughter, Jasmine, doing arts and crafts with the first-fourth graders in the after school program. Over the past few weeks, we have worked on several projects and gotten to know each other well. Ms. Rodriguez doesn’t speak perfect English, and I certainly don’t speak Spanish well, so this sometimes becomes a challenge for us when we’re trying to explain something to each other, but Jasmine is always willing to help translate or interpret our body language when we try to communicate. This feeling of willing and excited exchange is the same when I work with the children. The first and second graders are usually screaming and hitting each other when they come into the room, and Jasmine and I try to quiet them down and focus their attention on the task at hand. Most of the students are bilingual or are learning English quickly, and I noticed right away that they easily slip in and out of both languages while talking, sometimes without realizing it. Once in a while, some of the kids also try to whisper swear words in Spanish to each other, but I often catch them and give them a look (because I know enough Spanish to know that’s not allowed in school), so they usually giggle and keep doing their work. The children also try to teach me words in Spanish and ask me to tell them how to say something in English if I can remember what the translation is. Working with the kids made me think of the phrase “show, don’t tell,” which often happens when we use our hands or re-describe something while communicating with each other. When I started bringing my camera with me, I began photographing the outside of the building, projects from other classes, and signs in the workroom. As I started to get to know the kids better, they began asking me to photograph their projects, take pictures with them, and let them take pictures with my camera. This added another dimension to our communication because we now had a new language of images through which to communicate. The camera let me see a new side of the students and capture moments I had shared with them. Volunteering in a new community and thinking of my camera as a new language immersed me in another culture, and I can’t wait to continue on my growing journey with the students and staff of Escuela Vieau.