Philadelphia Center for Arts and Technology (PCAT) summer camp wins Schola Holla Hype Harambee Challenge

Every morning at Philadelphia Freedom Schools (PFS) everyone comes together in a circle to participate in Harambee. The word Harambee comes from a Swahili word that means, "Let's pull together". It usually runs from 8:30am to 9:00am each morning before beginning the curriculum component of the schedule. Harambee begins with the magic question, in which we ask the scholars (children) "Freedom School, how ya'll feelin?" and they respond with "Fantastic, terrific, great, all day long". Next the scholars listen to a read aloud, participate in chants and cheers, recognitions (recognizing any successes), libations (a time where we pay homage to our past, present, and future), a moment of silence (to reflect on our day), theme song (Something Inside so Strong by Labi Siffre), and announcements.

Each year, Philadelphia Freedom Schools gathers every site in the city at Schola Holla to celebrate the work that is being done by our staff, recognize the citywide PFS family, and to introduce scholars to each other and interact with one another. It is a time for our children to see that the Freedom School movement expands beyond their site and impacts other children. Part of Schola Holla is the Harambee Championship, in which each site is to display their original Freedom School chants and deliver the chants with the most energy and enthusiasm. This year, PCAT site displayed the most originality, team participation, energy (or hype), and the most authentic chants above all of the Philadelphia Freedom School sites and has won the Harambee Championship. Foundations' Philadelphia Center for Arts and Technology (PCAT) holds the trophy for the PFS 2011 summer, and bragging rights of the most hype site in Philadelphia Freedom School. Congratulations PCAT!