ASA Annual Conference

Mode of Program Participation

Community Organizing and Educational Programming

Participation Type

Panel

Session Title

The Extreme Single Story: Analyzing the Rhetoric of Applachia in an High School ELA Classroom

Session Abstract or Summary

Many high school students living in Appalachia today, still only know a single story of our region. Despite being a place of extreme beauty and diversity, young Appalachians tend by unaware of the complexity and richness of Appalachian literature, music, art, and activism. At Spring Mills High School in Martinsburg, West Virginia, students in eleventh grade Advanced Placement Language and Composition English confronted these extreme stereotypes of the Appalachian region in their introductory unit on rhetoric and argument. Students studied the poetry of Frank X Walker, Nikki Giovanni, and West Virginia poet laureate, Marc Harshman, watched the Appalshop documentary, Sludge, listened to Inside Applachia, and read essays like, “Appalachia: Who Cares and So What” to both identify and dispel stereotypes. In addition to content, students focused on form, analyzing the rhetorical situation of each piece, and identifying key rhetorical concepts in the poetry, prose, and media of this unit. Finally, students were asked to work in teams to pitch a presentation for the Appalachian Studies Conference. Teams were asked to think about the rhetorical situation of the conference, consider what we studied in class, and finally put together a presentation that consisted of what they thought the attendees at ASA would want to hear from high school ELA students living in and studying the region. The best proposals were selected to participate in this panel discussion.

The presentation is structured as follows:

• Introduction of speakers and explanation of the unit
• Presentation from each “team” of students
• Q&A/discussion with attendees

About the Presenter

Jessica Salfia, Berkeley County Schools WVFollow

Presentation #1 Title

Teaching Rhetoric through the Lens of Appalachia

Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary

This presentation will detail and explain the unit and learning activities students participated in leading up to writing their own proposals to present at this conference. Jessica Salfia will share her handouts, rubrics, and learning objectives that led students to the culminating activity of proposing a presentation for the ASA conference. Mrs. Salfia will then introduce the students and the student presentations that were selected to join the panel presentation.

At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1

Jessica Salfia teaches AP English, English 11, Mythology, and Creative Writing at Spring Mills High School in Martinsburg, WV, and also serves as an adjunct professor at Shepherd University in Shepherdstown, WV. Also an accomplished writer, Jessica was a finalist in the WV Fiction Competition in 2016, 2015, 2014, and 2013, and was winner of the WV Fiction Competition in 2016. You can check out what Jessica’s students are doing by visiting www.salfiaenglishclass.weebly.com, or by following her on Twitter, @jessica_salfia.

Presentation #2 Title

Extreme Education

Presentation #2 Abstract or Summary

One stereotype of Appalachia is that the citizens of the region are a low, blue collar class, and cannot achieve the same success of people other regions. This stereotype drives people to leave the mountains for other places. This stereotype exists because of the lack of quality schools. New schools tend to cause an influx an people due to their creation of new jobs and the desire of parents to send their children to a new, pristine facility. These new people tend to bring in small businesses and get the attention of larger corporations. Eventually, the former students go to college and return home as doctors, lawyers, teachers, and engineers, and they use their skills to advance their communities. This has already started happening in the northern portion of Berkeley County, West Virginia, where Spring Mills High School opened in 2013. However focusing on only improving schools would clearly be near impossible currently in the poorest regions of Appalachia, such as Logan and Boone Counties in West Virginia, where it would be wise to instead begin by improving internet access to make more online educational resources available to students there. That would allow these students to better their community and cause economic development, which would attract more people before new schools are built. Improvement to our educational facilities and structure will bring in more people and more business to an area, giving incentive to citizens to be a part of their communities, and not leave them.

At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #2

Jillian Cheek is an eleventh grade student at Spring Mills High School. Jillian attended a Morgan County school system from 2004-2013, and started attending Spring Mills Middle School in the 2013-2014 school year. Jillian won the Young Writer's Award in the 2012-2013 school year and was a Golden Horseshoe runner up in the 2013-2014 school year. In addition to academic success, Jillian was accepted into the regional honor band in 2013 and 2014, auditioned for the All-State Band in winter of 2015, and was accepted to the school Science National Society in 2016.

Zachary Hammersla is an eleventh grade student at Spring Mills High School. Zachary attended Martinsburg North Middle School, one of West Virginia's most diverse schools, from 2011-2014. Zachary was a recipient of the Golden Horseshoe award in 2014. Additionally, Zachary is the principle horn of the Spring Mills High School band, was accepted into the regional honor band in 2016, and auditioned for the West Virginia All-State Band in 2015.

Presentation #3 Title

Appalachian Music: Extreme Diversity

Presentation #3 Abstract or Summary

Even though Appalachia is such a large area, a body of behaviors and cultural identities based upon speech and dialect, folk music and dance, crafts, and religion link them all together. Being students that live in West Virginia, we feel that it is important to inform ourselves and others and become more aware of the complexity of what Appalachian culture really means, instead of being labeled by a stereotype. In our eleventh grade Advanced Placement Language and Composition class we discussed many of these extreme stereotypes and discovered that the traditional music associated with this area was one of the most important. The Appalshop documentary, Sludge, and the Inside Appalachia podcasts were perfect examples of how we could really analyze the musical stereotypes with this area and prove that they were incomplete. In addition to this, analyzing the sound and lyrics of the traditional music allowed us to understand the rhetoric in the songs. Traditional music is often associated with Appalachia, and we believe that this music clearly proposes a tone about the region.

At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #3

Chloe Rizzardi is an 11th grader at Spring Mills High school.

Presentation #4 Title

Appalachian Come Back

Presentation #4 Abstract or Summary

Abstract/Summary:

What does being a West Virginian mean to you? Is it just an address or is it a way of life? Most people believe in the West Virginian stereotype, where all residents are uneducated rednecks, that is, even if they know that West Virginia exists at all. This is possibly one of the reasons why high school graduates don't want to stay in state for college, but here in West Virginia most kids stay only because they don't really have a choice. In state tuition can be a struggle for most families, let alone out of state tuition. Drugs such as heroin plague the families of Martinsburg, WV, giving it the nickname, Little Baltimore. Many people see this image of West Virginia and it makes it unappealing to go to school here. School's don't give much information about colleges other than WVU, Marshall, and Shepherd University. This is why we want to survey high school students in Berkeley County to see if they plan to stay in state for college and if not, why do they want to go out of state? Is there anything that would make them stay? If they left, would they plan to come back and settle or just to visit?

At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #4

Corrina Hunter- Corrina Hunter is an 11^th grader in Mrs. Jessica Salfia's AP English Class. She participates in multiple clubs such as Diversity Club, Rotary, and Tri-M Music Honors Society. Corrina plays basketball for the Spring Mills Cardinals. She also plays the violin in the SMHS Orchestra. Her favorite subject is Psychology and she loves to write in her free time.

Jillian Linton- Jillian Linton is an 11^th grader in Mrs. Jessica Salfia's AP English class. She is also an Ambassador of West Virginia, and is a member of Spring Mills High school's FBLA, Student Government, Rotary, Science National Honor Society, Diversity Club, and the DECA Treasurer. Jillian is also the team captain of Spring Mills High School JV Volleyball team. She enjoys reading and playing tennis.

Cecil Keel III- Cecil is an 11^th grader in Mrs. Jessica Salfia's AP English class. He is also a member of the Spring Mills Cardinal marching band. Cecil also plays basketball for the Cardinals. His favorite subject is English class and he plays video games in his free time.

Ally Masterson- Ally Masterson is an 11^th grader in Mrs. Jessica Salfia's AP English class. She attends Spring Mills High School in West Virginia. She is the Layout Editor for the school newspaper. Ally enjoys English class, reading, and Sociology class.

Presentation #5 Title

The Extreme Effects of Narcotics in the Lives of Appalachians

Presentation #5 Abstract or Summary

Throughout the Appalachian region, drugs have become a prominent part of our communities. The drug problem has risen tremendously over the past ten years, and it has spread to affect everyone in the area. Drug issues impact many aspects in society including the crime rates, the economy, and the education of the youth. Most importantly however, the results of drugs affect our personal lives. As high school students living in the Martinsburg, West Virginia, we have experienced, dealt with, and seen a larger quantity of drug related incidents compared to others. The city of Martinsburg itself has been nicknamed "Little Baltimore" as a result of the devastating amount of narcotics that pass through the area. According to the National Drug Threat Survey, 16 out of 34 state and local law enforcement agencies reported that the most violent crimes to be drug related, and in West Virginia alone, there were approximately 33.5 overdose related deaths out of 100,000 residents. This figure is almost triple the national average, which is only about 13.4 deaths. Unfortunately, many residents in the area personally know someone who has dealt with or been killed in a drug related incidence. In the past year alone, we as students have lost both a teacher and a classmate. These were people we knew personally and cared about. The death of both deeply impacted our lives, and the reality that they are no longer here with us is a harsh one.

At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #5

Madison Kersten

Madison Kersten is currently a junior attending Spring Mills High School. She is an active member of several clubs including Student Government, Science National Honor Society, and Rotary Interact. Though Madison grew up in the Midwest, she has been living in the Appalachian region for four years.

Marie-Clare Ofoegbu

Marie-Clare Ofoegbu attends Spring Mills High School in Martinsburg. She is an active member in SGA, Student Leadership Board, and Leadership. She has lived in the Appalachian region for ten years.

Sierra Hoffman

Born and raised in the heart of Martinsburg, Sierra Hoffman currently attends Spring Mills High. She is a member of several school clubs and activities, and works to stay informed about issues in today's society.

Kimberly Gray

A hardworking junior who is attending Spring Mills High School. An active member in the National Science Honors Society and member of multiple clubs. Although she was no born in West Virginia, she has fallen in love with the Appalachia Region.