On Blast

Abu Kanu is a radio producer for On Blast. In this segment, Abu explores the complicated nature of student-teacher relationships. At the Philadelphia Student Union, we support students AND teachers.

On Blast Radio Producer, Jeremy Olivieri, created a radio piece about the lack of nurses at Benjamin Franklin High School in Philadelphia. With more budget cuts looming, schools in Philadelphia stand to lose even more nurses. Students want nurses and students want nurses to keep their jobs. The Philadelphia Student Union chapter members at BFHS are organizing a campaign to keep nurses in their school.

Young People's Oppression might not be something that you have heard of. But for members of the Philadelphia Student Union, it is a part of daily life. When young people are stereotyped as unruly and violent it keeps us all down. In this piece, Tiana shared her experiences of young people's oppression and lays down the basics of the steps in the cycle of oppression.

The School-to-Prison Pipeline is a disturbing national trend wherein children are funneled out of public schools and into the juvenile and criminal justice systems. Members of the Philadelphia Student Union created the Campaign for Nonviolent Schools (CNS) to work towards improving school climates and ending the School-to-Prison Pipeline.

On Blast youth radio producer, Julian Roessler, explains a youth perspective on the School-to-Prison Pipeline. Julian interviews Josh Glenn, an organizer with YASP (Youth Art & Self-Empowerment Project) and Decarcerate PA. Josh is also a member of CNS. Together, they explore the deeper roots of the School-to-Prison Pipeline.

One of the root causes of the conditions and problems that we see in Philadelphia's public education system, that has now resulted in the potential for school closures, is the chronic and systematic underfunding from the state.

Members of the Philadelphia Student Union traveled to Harrisburg to hear Governor Corbett's budget address on February 5th, 2013. On Blast radio producers asked other attendees why they came to Harrisburg as well.

Tiana Stokes, Basil Hasan, and Marquan Bond are all new PSU members. Hear what they have to say as they share their experiences and thoughts on PSU.

School closings have become an epidemic across the nation. Reporting for On Blast, Nuwar Ahmed and Julian Roessler discuss violence as a possible result of the new wave of school closings that may happen in Philadelphia.

The Philadelphia School District released a plan to close schools, dismantle the school district as we know it, eliminate union jobs & and privatize schools.The people who are the most affected by school reforms -- parents, teachers and especially students -- had no say in designing this plan.So what do parents, students and teachers think about the proposed plan? Kim Reed Hyman went to a recent SRC community meeting to find out. Listen now.

The School District of Philadelphia is proposing a plan for drastic changes to our schools. There was no student, parent, teacher or community input on this plan. Come out to this meeting and speak up!Community Meeting with District OfficialsThursday, May 10.  6 - 8 p.mWest Philadelphia High School, 4901 Chestnut St.

SIGN THE PETITION TO RESTORE SAFE NUMBERS OF SCHOOL NURSES.

In Philadelphia, young people are starting a crucial conversation about how to make schools safer for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) students.  Youth from the Attic Youth Center are working with the Campaign for Nonviolent Schools to identify the root causes of why LGBTQ students are being pushed out of schools. In this radio piece, we hear from a few of the youth who are organizing to create student-centered solutions; Timothy Miller, Tevin Kirk and Azeem Hill.

Shayla Johnson, a senior at Overbrook High School, produced this piece.