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Sitting down with Northside’s black belt
3 November 2010 No Comment
Jacob Laden-Guindon talks about his long time passion for Martial Arts
by Bushra Kabir

Jacob Laden-Guidon, Adv. 307, strikes a Martial Arts pose during one of the Martial Arts Show Team’s training sessions. Photo by Bushra Kabir.

Jacob Laden-Guindon, Adv. 307, a junior black belt, has been practicing Martial Arts for over nine years. Utilizing his experience in Martial Arts as an advantage for society, Guindon works with disabled children at his Karate school. His interest in Martial Arts takes Guindon to Germany every summer, where he began to learn Kung Fu, one of the many disciplines of Martial Arts.

What kind of sports or activities are you involved in?
“Well, no sports; I do martial arts. I don’t think that counts as a sport.”

What would you categorize it as?
“Art. It’s an art.”

How do you usually present martial arts through music?
“Well, it’s Capoeira1, which is kind of different.”


What other Martial Arts interpretations to do you practice?
“Karate and Kung Fu.”


How long have you been involved with Karate and Kung Fu?
“I started Karate, here in Chicago, right before I turned 6, and have been practicing ever since. I started Kung Fu three years ago, but my school is not in this country. Three years ago, my dad was offered a fellowship from a university in Frankfurt to come study, give talks, and write a book. We all lived in Berlin for one year. We had to find a Martial Art [class] to practice during that time. One day, we find a Shaolin temple of all things, run by monks from the actual Shaolin temple in China. They spoke barely any German [and] neither did we, [but] the place really spoke to us, so my siblings and I started Kung Fu. I have been going back every summer since then to train with the monks. All told, I have been practicing Martial Arts in general for over 9 years.”

What is your position in these practices called?
“Well in Karate, they called me sempai, but that just means student. I was taught Kung Fu by monks, so they didn’t have titles for me.”

What got you started in Martial Arts?
“When my little sister was born, my parents wanted me to have a ‘big boy’ activity. They had heard about [the] great place where I [currently perform] Karate and they got me started. I have come to really, really love it (martial arts). That’s a part of my life now.”



Where do you usually practice?
“Here in Chicago. My dojo is called Thousand Waves Martial Arts and Self-Defense Center. The address is 1220 W. Belmont. The closest intersection is Belmont and Racine; [the dojo is] a tad west of that. The Shaolin Temple Deutschland is in Berlin.”

Do you teach martial arts to other people?
“A little bit. This performance (International Day and International Night) thing only started last year. I have never really performed like that. That’s not what Martial Arts is about. It’s about working hard to make yourself a better person…”

Where and how do you work with disabled children in terms of teaching Martial Arts, specifically Karate?
“My Karate school has a special outreach program affiliated with the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago. Our members are encouraged to volunteer to go down to the Drucker Center/ Menomonee Club every Sunday afternoon to teach kids with disabilities. They all have a physical disability, and some are mentally disabled as well. For those with minor impairments, we can teach a pretty regular class, only slower, with lower kicks, sometimes helping them to balance. Some kids however can barely move at all. It’s [trickier] to teach them. I don’t do it personally because it takes a much more experienced teacher … With the less mobile kids, it’s pretty much like physical therapy [as] we work a lot on core strength. We also teach everybody empowerment skills … I really love working with these kids. They’re very affectionate, funny, and they have the most admirable spirit. They really show what ‘giving your all’ means …”

How has Martial Arts benefitted you?
“It made me very strong [and] pretty flexible. I guess it has helped me focus.”

Which art do you prefer? Karate or Kung Fu? How does your opinion about them differ?
“Kung Fu looks a lot cooler. It’s big and circular [and] the movements are almost dance-like. However, my karate dojo here, Thousand Waves, is a really incomparable place. I could not do without it; it’s the main reason [why] I am who I am today.”

What are you some of your accomplishments?
“Well, I tested for junior black belt because I’m not old enough to get an adult black belt yet, but that’s about to change. [I received] the second degree junior black belt and [it was a] pretty amazing [and] really hard test.”

Do you plan on continuing Martial Arts?
“Yeah. Of course.”

How much time do you dedicate to practicing Martial Arts?
“I don’t have as much time as I would like to, but three, maybe four hours a week.”



Why did you participate in International Day last year?

“Well, I had a bunch of friends from my karate school and Zoe [Netter, Adv. 108] was one of them. [She] told me that there was a martial arts performance for some event, so I was like ‘Wow, I totally want to be in that,’ and I got here [and] it didn’t happen and it didn’t happen, so I just said ‘you know what, I’m going to do this myself.’ I got Zoe and … two other people to join and put on a show, and it was a lot of fun.”

Is there any club at Northside for Martial Arts?
“Well, I started [a club] this last year. Last year, I didn’t want to teach anybody anything, I just wanted people with experience so we can just get right into performing, but this year, we’re going to teach people with no experience.”

What do you do in your free time?
“When I do have free time, I make beaded jewelry and I draw, but that’s when I do have free time which I don’t [have] right now. [I also] hang out with my family.”

Where did your interest in making beaded jewelry come from?

“There is a bead shop a couple blocks from where I live. A few years ago, … my mom was taking a walk around the neighborhood, [went] into the store, and [came] back home with a starter kit. She [said] to my little brother and me that we should try it out with her. We did. She eventually lost interest [as] she couldn’t see the small beads anymore, and she didn’t have the patience. My brother and I stuck to it though. We’ve taken a couple of classes, but we’re pretty much self-taught. We figured out all the designs in the magazines and instruction books we had, and it became a beloved hobby.”

What made you interested in drawing?
“I guess it’s something I do well enough and enjoy. It’s something that has grown with me. Everyone draws in preschool. So when other kids moved on to TV or video games to feed their imagination, having neither, I kept drawing. It was and still is a way to get my imagination on paper. I created other worlds, [wrote] stories [about] parallel universes, and drew all the characters with their costumes and accessories. It was how I told and continue to tell make-believe stories: through pictures. I don’t think I’m that great at drawing. Sure, I can sketch a pretty realistic human body, and put believable clothes on it, but that’s about it. My drawing is at least decent enough to have helped me get into art cubed last year.”

Do you plan on pursuing a career related to martial arts?
“There is a tiny possibility that I want to become some kind of [action] movie director … Maybe something like that, but otherwise, not really. This is just something that’s part of my life; a hobby, but more than that.”


Is there anyone else in your family who practices martial arts?
“Yeah, my brother and my sister.”

What is your plan in terms of Martial Arts, after you receive an adult black belt?
“A common misconception is that black belt is an end-point in training. You get your black belt, you’re a master, and you can kick butt. I can’t emphasize enough how wrong this is. Martial Arts should be all about the way, the path. The Chinese call it Dao, like from Daoism, the Japanese say do, like budo, judo and aikido. Achieving the rank of black belt is nothing; getting there is what matters. More important though is continuing, because black belt is only a beginning. After I get my black belt, I’ll just keep training like I’ve always done.”

1Capoeira: A style of martial arts developed by Brazilian slaves in the 1700s. Capoeira was developed surreptiously, with practitioners pretending that they were taking parts in dances, when in fact they were practicing their kicks and blows. Thus, there is also a whole style of capoeira music which goes along with the martial arts culture. This definition was attained from http://www.slipcue.com/music/brazil/brazilterms
.

Northside Hoof Beat Article from April 2009

Review of Ballas Hough Band's Debut Album




It's a little blurry since my scanner wasn't working and I had to take a picture of it.

Article Illustration



















Illustration by Bushra Kabir

To view the written article which corresponds to the illustration, follow this web link: http://greeninthecity.ning.com/page/no-picnic-in-the-park

Article from the Dow Jones Community Journalism Program at Columbia College Chicago

Picture this

Gallery Guichard

3521 S. Martin Luther King Dr.

Hours: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday; noon to 4 p.m. Sunday

Call: (773) 373-8000

Online: www.galleryguichard.com

By Bushra Kabir


Gallery Guichard, which displays art of the African Diaspora in a historic building in Bronzeville, celebrates its fifth anniversary in August. Though gentrification of the area has slowed with the recession, the gallery is flourishing, owners say. The gallery welcomes visitors with lovely music playing in the background and vibrant colors from the various paintings.


Pieces sell from $250 to $35,000, with most between $1,500 and $2,500.


“I think everyone is still embracing us” said Frances Guichard, “and hopefully we’ll be around for a very long time no matter how the neighborhood changes.”


In a three-story sandstone building almost blending in with the apartment buildings around it, Gallery Guichard is located on the broad street of King Drive in the Bronzeville community of Chicago.


African-American artist Andre Guichard and his wife Frances Guichard, partnered with Stephen Mitchel, a collector of African American art, and Stanley Stallworth to open the gallery in 2005 — the same year the Guichards married. Their hope was to promote works by artists of the African Diaspora — and to introduce their art to the community and the wider society.


Today, Gallery Guichard represents more than 40 artists of African heritage. Two solo shows are displayed at a time, rotating every few months. The works of Chicagoans Kevin Okeith and Paul Branton are on display through Aug. 14.


“Everyone has a different fingerprint,” says Frances Guichard. “Each artist has its own unique style. They can be from the Caribbean, they can be from America, and they can be from Europe, anywhere around the world as long as they have that connection back to Africa.”


Branton, a native of the South Side, is a visual artist, filmmaker and writer who had his first showing at Gallery Guichard in spring 2009.


"It's one of the more popular galleries," he said. "I've really been concentrating on getting more recognition, and it's been very good for that."


The gallery, he adds, gets both local and national attention and is trying to increase its profile globally as well. "To have a gallery of that stature on the South Side gives me a sense of pride," he said. "I'm happy that I'm a part of that."


Each piece of art at the Galley Guichard tells a unique story, she adds.


“I think what makes any artist unique is their experience,” she says. “Whether you’re African, Indian or Native American, you’re going to have a different experience. There will be times when they will put their African heritage into their artwork, and you will walk around and you’ll see something that is representative of our African culture. At times you’ll see a painting of how they were feeling that day, or something about love, or a beautiful person.”


Within Bronzeville, Gallery Guichard promotes the concept of variety and diversity within the African culture.


“We’ve always talked about artwork being the livelihood or the backbone of your community,” Frances Guichard says. “Art is very necessary because of the culture that it brings.”


The gallery space is in a landmark building, she adds: “It goes back to the early 1900s when the first African-American insurance company was housed in these buildings.”


To reach out to the community, Gallery Guichard presents opportunities to mingle with the artists through discussions and educational programs that are open to the public. It is also a stop on the Bronzeville Art District trolley tour, which visits major art centers in the neighborhood one evening per month.


“We’re very happy to be here,” says Frances Guichard, “and been very well supported by our community in addition to others who come to visit from around the world.”

Article from the Dow Jones Environmental Journalism Program at Columbia College Chicago

Willis Tower renovation

By Bushra Kabir

Illustrations courtesy of Willis Tower


The Willis Tower, Chicago’s 1,451-feet-tall global icon, is creating its own green power generation.


The first building in the United States taller than 100 stories, the Willis, formerly known as Sears Tower, is undergoing a five-year renovation project to become environmentally efficient. The plan includes the construction of a 50-story hotel right beside the tower, which also will be built with the environment in mind.


The transformation is being designed by Chicago-based Adrian Smith and Gordon Gill Architecture. The project will cost $350 million, resulting in 80 percent less electricity consumption. There will be changes involving its exterior walls, mechanical systems, lighting, vertical transportation, water supply, hot water, roofs, operations and maintenance. The most visible changes will be noticed on the roofs of the building, which will consist of gardens, solar panels and wind turbines.



“The changes made and benefits realized through the bold sustainable initiatives at the tower serve as an example that a sustainable future is more than a concept, it is within our reach,” John Huston of American Landmark Properties, who represents the building ownership, said on the Facility Blog of Today’s Facility Manager.


A tremendous amount of energy is used in indoor heating especially for large commercial buildings like the Willis Tower. Therefore, part of the plan is to reduce the amount of heating energy consumed by replacing the 16,000 single-paned windows with double-paned windows that have insulating films in between. The window insulation of the 110-story building will promise cooler summers and warmer winters. The successful completion of this change will result in the usage of 60 percent less heating energy.


These days even in daytime, the lights in most buildings are always on. The new green plan for the Willis Tower will find a more energy-efficient and advanced way to power those lights, and also let in more of the natural daylight so that the electric lights are not needed at all. The installation of solar panels on the roofs will help bring in more of the natural energy to run the mechanical systems in the building and save 40 percent of lighting energy in the process. Just as much water usage will be reduced through water-efficient fixtures that will be included. Even the 104 elevators and five escalators will be upgraded to cut their energy usage by half.


The solar panels will not only be used to supply electric power, but also to provide the hot water for the building. The highest level the solar panels will be situated on is the 90th-floor roof. Along with the solar panels on the roofs, several wind turbines will be added to convert kinetic energy into mechanical energy, which will contribute to the electric supply for the tower. Approximately between 30,000 to 35,000 square feet of gardens will be planted on the rooftops to create green roofs, with the intention of reducing storm-water run-off. The rooftop gardens will also help in improving the insulation of the tower, while creating astonishing viewing areas of the city.


“If we can take care of one building that size, it has a huge impact on society,” said Adrian Smith, partner of Adrian Smith and Gordon Gill Architecture, told The New York Times. “It is a village in and of itself.”


The surroundings of the tower are being altered as well. The granite wall on Adams Street will be replaced by a digital display of news and upcoming or current events. Accompanying that, more trees will be planted around the tower and a landscaped terrace will be built, which will help in the natural filtration of carbon dioxide.


Willis Tower already holds the Leadership in Energy and Environment Design (LEED) rating. The reduction in the annual energy consumption after the five-year-long greening project will be equal to saving five million miles of highway driving, 50,000 barrels of crude oil and 10 million light bulbs. The annual energy consumption saved can provide energy for 2,500 average Chicago homes. Finally, the tower will be sharing its knowledge about the environment and how everyone can help bring green to the city through a public showcasing of its green efforts in the lobby.


"Our plans are very ambitious. Our plans are groundbreaking in many respects" and will "set new standards for the greening of existing buildings," Huston told the Chicago Sun-Times.

Northside College Prep. Print Newspaper - "The Hoof Beat"



Northside College Prep. Print Newspaper - "The Hoof Beat"


Northside College Prep. Print Newspaper - "The Hoof Beat"


Northside College Prep. Print Newspaper - "The Hoof Beat"


On The Hoof Beat Website

Mr. Belcaster: “Integrity, intelligence, and energy”
7 December 2009

Mr. John Belcaster shares his life experiences
by Sony Kassam and Bushra Kabir



















Mr. Belcaster currently teaches the AP Microeconomics and Sustainable Engineering and Economic Development classes at Northside. Photo by XXXXXXXXX


A can of diet coke is usually seen atop his desk in room 224, which houses a “The Office” poster on the bulletin board near the door of the classroom. He religiously reads the New York Times and is also a fan of faux- political newscaster Stephen Colbert. He is often thought of as the man with the power “to make the world a better place” one small step at a time. He was awarded the 2009 Yale Educator Award, an award sponsored by Yale University’s Office of Undergraduate Admissions, displaying his ability to inspire and support his students. Additionally, he received the Teacher Tribute Initiative from Stanford University for his “exceptional teaching.” This man is more commonly known as Mr. John Belcaster, social science department.

Mr. Belcaster currently teaches AP Microeconomics and Sustainable Engineering and Economic Development at Northside. He also sponsors several clubs that include Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Northside Students for Sweatshops, and National Organization for Women (NOW).

Majoring in history and economics, Mr. Belcaster graduated from Northwestern University. After college, Mr. Belcaster began to work at Anderson Consulting, a company that has since gone out of business. He wrote software for Anderson Consulting between 1986 and 1988, a period in which the company was at its highest peak, becoming “the largest information system in the world” at the time.

Mr. Belcaster then went on to attend both graduate school and later law school at Yale University, working towards a master’s degree in both history and economics. Following his graduation from Yale, he worked for a federal judge and then worked on a political campaign around 1994 for then-State Treasurer Pat Quinn “who at the time … [was] running for Illinois governor.”

Afterwards, Mr. Belcaster began working at a civil rights firm for ten years in Chicago before he began teaching at Providence St. Mel, a private school on Chicago’s west side, where he taught mathematics for about half a year.

“[Providence St. Mel was a] terrific place [with] terrific programs going on there,” Mr. Belcaster said. “ … I had all incentives for spending the next year there. I came close to signing on a contract until Tim Devine came knocking at my door and asked me to take a look at Northside.”

The more Mr. Belcaster became aware of Northside’s offerings, the more appealing a teaching position at the school became to him. He faced several obstacles, all of which he handled successfully, considering that he is now starting his fifth year as a Northside teacher.

“I gotta tell ya this was one of the most difficult jobs that I’ve ever attempted to obtain,” Mr. Belcaster said, “which again is another measure of success to those who built this school. The hurdles I had to climb [over] as a teaching applicant was quite pronounced in terms of submitting writing samples, coming in and teaching a lesson, being observed by department colleagues, [and] interviewing. I was [also] asked to grade some papers. It was one of the toughest jobs to obtain that I ever had to work for. But it made it all worthwhile once I was invited to join the faculty.”

Although Mr. Belcaster enjoys teaching, he sometimes considers teaching at Northside “a fake teaching job,” explaining the difference between the relaxed setting at Northside and the difficulties of teaching elsewhere.

“This is a place where teachers can come into the classroom and teach,” Mr. Belcaster said, “because students come into the classroom desirous to learn. This is a building where lots of magical things take place. Students who are obviously off the charts, who are smart and have more tremendous initiative, tremendous energy, and tremendous curiosity about the world, and are passionate about solving the world’s problems. As a result of that, we have classes that are filled with a context of learning. This is not a building where we’re looking out for discipline issues, clearing up fights, looking to tamp down misbehavior. Sadly, we should have a situation in America where all classes are like classes at Northside.”

Most people often wonder why Mr. Belcaster decided to leave a career in law to pursue one in teaching.

“I love to view that, with the exception of the job we do as parents, there is no more important job than the job of a teacher,” Mr. Belcaster said. “As I watched my own kids get older …, I took a step back and asked myself ‘how is it that I,’ coming from my working class background, my parents didn’t go to college, many of my peers dropped out of high school, ‘how is it that I obtained so many of the fantastic opportunities that had arisen in my life?’ The answer to that question was that every once in a while, not often enough, I was in a class with a tremendous teacher in the classroom. So I took a step back after a long run of doing some really fantastic things and thought what might I do to enable others to do some of the same opportunities that have come my way. So I thought why not take a stab at being a teacher.”

Mr. Belcaster continued further, sharing a memory from ten years ago in which he and then-Illinois State Senator Barack Obama sat down and spoke to each other about where they wanted to go in life and what they wanted to achieve.

“This was the time when Barack was taking a stab at trying to make the world a better place in big ways by running for national political office,” Mr. Belcaster said, “and I said to him, ya know maybe it makes sense for me to try to make the world a better place in a small way by learning how to be a high school teacher. So that’s what I did, and I haven’t looked back, and it’s been one of the great[est] adventures of my life.”

Not only did Mr. Belcaster never regret his choice about leaving a career in law and beginning one in teaching, he also suggests that everyone who has travelled through the path of a student’s life should come back to that path and stand on the opposite side as a teacher, and share their experience with their students.

“I urge students like you, one day, ya know, twenty to thirty years from now, after you’ve become the president of the United States, or a senator, or a doctor, or a musician, or a ballet artist, or a sculptor, or a carpenter, or a plumber, or any job of that sort, [to] think of coming back to where it all started,” Mr. Belcaster said, “[and] share your experiences with the folks behind you.”

Obama and Mr. Belcaster knew one another in their early years of practicing law and have maintained a strong acquaintance for more than a decade and a half.

“[Obama] started at this teeny tiny, nine person law firm in the summer of 1993,” Mr. Belcaster said, “and six months later I joined the law firm. It was a civil rights law firm and we were the two youngest folks in this teeny tiny place. We ate lunch together everyday and took walks together around the block at 10 o’clock in the morning. [It was a] small enough place where you became friends with the people you worked with, small enough that whenever folks, like myself and Barack, were invited to join the firm, special care was placed to ensure that we were assembling a solid collegial legality, much the same way our social science department goes with building its solid collegial faculty. So we’ve known each other since December of 1993, which is coming up to about 16 years or so.”

Mr. Belcaster’s most significant memories include the end of the last school year, when he had the opportunity to become a part of the Obama administration. The Obama administration had expressed interested in Mr. Belcaster joining President Obama’s education team since he had experience in education and civil rights. The importance of such a feat is not that he was able to achieve such a high status opportunity, but because of what came after he asked his AP Microeconomic students to write their final paper on whether or not he should go to Washington, D.C.

“I had expected prior to reading the papers, that the overwhelming bulk of the responses would be to go off to Washington, D.C.,” Mr. Belcaster said. “But that didn’t happen. And keep in mind that more than half the authors of these [papers were] seniors [who] were leaving Northside, so they didn’t have any personal interest in urging me to stay behind because they themselves were going off. So I was surprised at the analysis, and [how] many folks wrote that I should stay here because in their view, there is greater value to be had as a classroom instructor than as somebody in Washington or deep in government. And that was memorable because one might think it that high schoolers are teenagers, and they might be awestruck by the idea of being involved in position of stature. But it was refreshing for the students to recognize the value of what takes place in their lives right now in their school.”

One of Mr. Belcaster’s greatest beliefs is that curiosity and passion can take people far in this world.

“In environments such as Northside, that are filled with just brilliance [and] off the charts intelligence, what makes those environments truly sparkle is when the folks fueled with brilliance and intelligence take an interest in the world,” Mr. Belcaster said, “and are curious about the problems of the world and are passionate enough to take a stab at solving these problems. Warren Buffett, another hero of ours says that ‘when you look at people to hire, you wanna look at three qualities: integrity, intelligence, and energy. If you don’t have the first one, the other two will kill you,’ and that’s another important life lesson that I learned along the way. It’s the very smart folks with tremendous energy [who] are dangerous folks because they lack integrity.”

Mr. Belcaster reemphasizes his suggestion to students about coming back to school and teaching once they have fulfilled their initial career goals, though he does warn that one should only do it if one feels that the benefits of the situation outweigh the costs.

“The products of our passion and curiosity quotients outweigh our intelligence quotients, and that’s something that we need to remind ourselves over and over again,” Mr. Belcaster said. “You folks are going to be the movers and shakers of your generation. My advice would be that after you’ve had a great long run of moving and shaking up the world, come back here, think about coming back here when you’re 40 or 50 years old and share some of the life experiences with the folks behind you. But don’t do that kind of thing forever either. When the benefits of what you are currently doing are outweighed by the costs of what you are doing, it’s time to do something different.”

Northside College Prep. Print Newspaper - "The Hoof Beat"


Northside College Prep. Print Newspaper - "The Hoof Beat"

Northside College Prep. Print Newspaper - "The Hoof Beat"