"The Horror of a Fairy Tale" was the title of the essay Janna Chevon Thompson submitted in January when she applied for the Baltimore Teachers Union's Extreme Classroom/Library Makeover contest.
She wrote about how she'd realized her dream of teaching arts in an urban setting with her job at Southside Academy in Cherry Hill. But in addition to "discouraged students, lack of funding [and] lack of support," she was constantly frustrated by "an uninhabitable learning environment."
When it's hot, there is no air conditioning. When it's cold, there is no heat. There are no mirrors or ballet bars for her dance classes, nor are there shelves to organize her many theater costumes, so her supply closets are a mess.
"Everyday the teacher and her students are trapped between a fairy tale and a horror movie," wrote the teacher. "Please help Janna Chevon Thompson and her students at Southside Academy live in a story that ends in Happily Ever After."
On Friday, BTU officials tried to make that happen, surprising Thompson, 29, and her students with the news that she had been selected as winner of the classroom makeover from among 25 applicants. The happy ending, though, has some wrinkles.
For starters, Thompson might be moving to another classroom without the good lighting, high ceilings and spaciousness of her current 1,320-square-foot room. Another school that shares the building with Southside, New Era Academy, is expanding next school year and wants to move Thompson to another wing.
And another thing: The BTU hasn't raised the money yet to renovate whichever of the classrooms is to get the makeover. Thompson will meet with a design team in the coming weeks as the union solicits donations and volunteers.
The American Federation of Teachers, the union's parent organization that has overseen classroom makeovers around the country for more than five years, has donated $4,000, but the money can't be used directly for renovations. Nonetheless, Thompson - a three-year veteran of Southside who has started a traveling theater company and coaches a dance team - was thrilled to tears when the BTU's co-presidents, Marietta English and Lorretta Johnson, marched into her room with a huge banner proclaiming her the contest winner and accompanied by an entourage including City Council President Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and city schools chief Andr?s Alonso. Her students cheered and proclaimed their love for her.
"You're gonna make me cry," she said, already crying. "This is really, really nice."
