Hella Bus Blog

On Hella Bus, we've spent a lot of time talking about some of the services we really like that also happen to save Washington a fair deal of money in the long run.  We think it makes a lot of sense to not lose sight of long-term benefits in the midst of a short-term budget fight (see the Shot of Oly series).  In the case of family planning, we are pleased as punch to hear the legislature (or #waleg as the kids on the twitter like to say) is feeling the same way.

Sen. Karen Keiser's bill to expand family planning services to low-income folks in Washington State is more than welcome in a budget facing more than it's share of cuts.  The bill just passed out of the Senate with a 30-17 vote and now moves on to the house.

We're excited not only because it expands access to healthcare for thousands of Washingtonians, but because the bill is projected to save the state $4.5 million in services for pregnancies later.  That means, this bill = better healthcare and more dollars back in the budget.  I think Elaine Rose of Planned Parenthood Votes! Washington said it best, “This bill is a big deal, but it’s actually just common sense.”

Washington State student labor activists make our heart go pitter-patter on an average day, but our hearts have been LITERALLY beating out of our chests lately. It's super awkward in staff meetings. But the condition shows no sign of going away, if students around the state keep up the good work.

It was announced yesterday that student activists at Western Washington University have finally won their eight month campaign to have Sodexo dropped as their campus's food provider due to Sodexo's continued labor violations against workers. With Evergreen having dropped their contract with Sodexo in 2001, this leaves the University of Washington as the last public university in the state still doing business with Sodexo.

The campaign against Sodexo by the UW's Kick Out Sodexo coalition is in high gear, with 27 students getting arrested last week at their sit-in in UW president Phyllis Wise's office. Join them for a rally in red square at 3:30 this Thursday, and keep our hearts uncomfortably active.

HOLY CRAP SUMMER FELLOWS.

Ahem. Excuse me. Trying to keep it together here.  It's just. You see, what I'm really trying to say is -

HOLY CRAP THIS IS EXCITING.

The Summer Fellows program doesn't start in earnest until June, 20th (oh and you should all come to the Summer Fellows Inauguration* in Nord Alley to hang out with them), but it's never too early for a first look at some of the most dynamic, talented, and effervescent (yeah, we went there) young people in the state who will be taking that next step towards running the world this summer.  The folks below come from our first round of applications, so expect a part 2 to this series with more of what you love: great young people doing great things.

Check out their pictures and a brief statement from each (if we tried to put their whole resumes on here we'd be here all night). Be astounded folks - astounded.

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Ellie Zuckerman

I was born and raised in Seattle and now attend Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts where I am a Political Science Major and a Sophomore. I enjoy trying out new restaurants or recipes, watching TV, listening to music and exploring the great outdoors of the Pacific Northwest.

Jordan Alam

My name is Jordan Alam and I am a current Barnard College student studying in NYC, but am originally from Seattle. I identify as a woman, a Bengali-American, a writer, blogger, artist, knitter, and all-over curious person: I have a lot of projects and opinions that I would love to share with you! Find me at my blog http://thecowation.blogspot.com/.

David Reyes

As soon as I graduate from college, I am buying Pokemon Black Version.  I spend way too many hours of my life listening to Pink Floyd and thinking.

Mikeya Jackson-Harper

Mikeya aka “Keyabee” is a spoken word poet, hip hop emcee, educator, youth mentor, song writer, activist, student, & social justice passionate. She attends Washington State University majoring in Sociology and Digital Technology and Culture.  Please read her poetry at: www.keyabee.com

Katharine Buckmaster

Katharine Buckmaster, a recent graduate from the International School, will be attending Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies in the fall, where she will be pursuing LGBT/gender studies, human sexuality, and social change. Katharine is an active member of Diverse Harmony and the Unitarian Universalist community, and enjoys spending excessive amounts of time on Tumblr, streaming movies on Netflix, and sleeping.

Hannah Lertola

I moved to Seattle from East Lansing, Michigan in August to become a member of the South King County Washington Reading Corps, where I currently serve as a literacy tutor and mentor for really awesome youth at Tukwila Elementary. I graduated from Michigan State University in 2010 with a degree in Social Work. I like to spend time traveling and exploring, taking pictures, reading and learning, jamming to good music and snuggling with my fat cat, Mama.

Paris Randall

My name is Paris Randall. I am a self-motivated peacemaker, creator, and lover of the world.

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Keep your eyes peeled - more amazing Fellows to come! Oh and you - yes, you - are invited to the Summer Fellows Inauguration on June, 20th:

*spelled right in only 3 tries!

FINALLY, Seattle-ites. It's finally sunny enough outside that you can listen to summery music without feeling like you're living in a fantasy world. In celebration of this, I give you four recent albums guaranteed to keep you energized for a long, beautiful summer of activism and Vote-Bot dance parties.

Raphael Saadiq - Stone Rollin'

This album reveals a brilliant new side of the man who's already a master of R&B. Even though his influences come through loud and clear (Sly & the Family Stone and Ray Charles especially), he still sounds completely fresh. Get your '60s shoes and suspenders out and get ready to dance til dawn.

Cut Copy - Zonoscope

This album basically oozes sunshine. Your summer needs more synth-pop. Trust me on this.

Saigon - The Greatest Story Never Told

This album covers a ridiculously wide range of lyrical topics without ever losing direction or musical genius. Sure to sound fresh for the whole summer.

MEN - Talk About Body

If you thought that funk, electronica and gender politics couldn't coexist, J.D. Samson is here to blow your mind.

Enjoy!

Some very interesting breaking news: We just got word that over 50 University of Washington students are sitting in President Wise's office in protest of the University's contract with Sodexo at this very moment.  This is another in a series of protests organized by UW's branch of the United Students Against Sweatshops.  Word is that students are gathering in red square in support at the moment.  Check out their website to find out more.

Update: The protesters are live-blogging here.

Another Update:  The story has been picked up by MSNBC and King 5.

*** 25 UW students were arrested - see Seattle Times' recap. And OAG has posted a flickr feed of the protesters in the office here.

New arts organization and good people Community Arts Create (CAC) are kicking off a whole array of exciting programs, starting with an art-walk in Columbia City on the 3rd Thursdays of every month.  With a city full of art-walks, this one is particularly exciting for a couple reasons. 1) The walk will feature a whole array of mediums, including your classic visual art, music, performance, spoken word, dance, and food.  2) It's about time that Southeast Seattle had an art-walk of its own! CAC are using an artwork as a great way to showcase the huge range of artistic expression in Columbia City, one of Seattle's most historic and diverse neighborhoods. Big win as far as I can see.

The Launch Party for the art-walk is going down this Saturday, find the event details here.

Want to help make it happen?  You can sign up to volunteer here, and/or give a gift to make the art-walk sustainable!

Summer Fellows. We love 'em.  But, the sort of boundless energy they bring day in and day out requires equally effervescent staff to keep up and help them along the way.  Enter, Summer Fellows Staff.  The three amazing people below are more than stunning smiles, folks. Each bring a wealth of high-level experience, talent, and rapier-like witticisms and are set to help guide the 2011 Summer Fellows to be all they can be (and be themselves while they're at it).  Having all been Summer Fellows last year, they know the program like the inside of Votebot's cardboard head and we consider ourselves exceptionally fortunate to have them back on the Bus!

Sera Day will serve as the Mentorship Staff this summer.  Sera is an almost-graduate of the UW School of Social Work, and a former Summer Fellow (class of 2010). She loves to practice yoga and make delicious desserts from scratch. When not engaging young voters and contemplating social justice, she daydreams of the Central California sunshine.

Genna Watson will serve as the Curriculum Staff this summer.  After considering the various ways to work more dancing robots into her life, Genna finally settled on working with the Washington Bus in every capacity possible. At any given moment, you will likely find her geeking out about ballot initiatives, reading comic books, or continuing her epic quest to find Seattle's best taco bus.

Stephen Bronskill will serve as the Field Staff for the summer.  Stephen grew up in Toronto, Canada with a number of moose, polar bears, and other woodland creatures. After leaving his family’s igloo for Seattle, he fell in love with the beautiful non-tundra filled wonders of Washington State. A soon to be junior at American University in Washington D.C., Stephen is studying Environmental Studies and Political Science. When not busy consuming copious amounts of Canadian bacon and maple syrup or compulsively hitting refresh on Politico, he enjoys biking, hiking and the great outdoors. Stephen is super stoked to be part of the Summer Fellows staff and can’t wait to help empower young people to stand for change in 2011 and beyond.

Today in news regarding buses and their ability to crush things: Real Madrid, returning home after victory in the legendary Copa del Rey over arch-nemesis Barcelona, got all loosey-goosey with the cup on a double-decker bus.  Madrid defender Sergio Ramos - appearing to be wearing the cup like a hat while perched precariously at the front of the moving vehicle - yes, this sentence finishes exactly like you expect it to - dropped it right under the front tire of the bus.

What I appreciate most is Ramos' Tolkiensian reaction - "The cup has fallen into shadow!"  While all credible sources insist that the cup was shattered in ten pieces, Ramos continues to claim that it is fine.

Faithful Hella Bus readers, this is it - the moment you’ve all been waiting for. This is the day when we finally reveal the dark secret behind the Washington Bus’s staggering success at getting out the youth vote in local elections. Can I get a drum roll?

It’s dancing. Whether it be political candidates, robots, or young voters themselves, busting a move (especially in a distinctive outfit) is the best possible way to get someone’s attention and make them smile, all at the same time.

So it came as no great shock to us when First Lady Michelle Obama finally caught on to our game and co-opted the tactic for her own campaign to reduce childhood obesity in our nation’s schools. America, get ready –  the First Lady is going to teach us how to dougie.

Were you bed-ridden home sick today watching daytime television (or just watching daytime television of your own, affliction-free volition)?

Because - let me tell you - this was no ordinary day on King 5's morning thrill ride New Day Northwest.  In place of the usual pyrotechnics, booze-soaked rants, and disorienting neo-gothic backgrounds (okay, that was still there), you may have caught a glimpse of - you guessed it - the Bus!

Total stranger and person the Bus has never, ever been associated with comedian Hari Kondabolu went on New Day for an utterly winning interview and wow - that's a mighty fine T-shirt he's got there.

Thanks to Bothell's State Rep Derek Stanford, Publicola has declared college students yesterday's winners in our state legislature. Working in partnership with members of the University of Washington's student union, Stanford proposed an amendment to a higher education bill, increasing the number of student regents from the U.W from one regent to three in the next session

In a session deciding who will control the ability to raise tuition at state colleges, it's crucial that our representatives hear from the group that's being affected the most. This amendment is just one more step on the path to stronger representation of young people in Olympia.

The Bus is thrilled to announce a brand spanking new opportunity for young people to make their voice heard in Washington!  The Washington Bus Media Internship is open to motivated folks with strong writing, graphic design, or video production skills who'd like to join the Bus team in bringing a new political and cultural perspective to our state.  Information and application below.

Questions? email alex [at] washingtonbus [dot] org for more info.

Media Internship

Washington Bus Media Interns build the most original, irreverent, and powerful online voice for young people in Washington State. Media interns run the blog Hella Bus, creating written and multimedia projects that reach vast networks of young Washingtonians, community leaders, and top level policymakers.

Hella Bus serves to introduce and highlight fresh perspectives and experiences in public discourse in a way that is positive, inclusive, and meaningful.  Interns may specialize in writing, graphic design, or video production.

Responsibilities include:

• Coordinate with Managing Editor to set weekly and internship-long goals.
• Contribute regular blog posts in accordance with the Hella Bus style guide.
• Participate in weekly writers meetings to pitch stories and set publication schedule.
• Attend monthly leadership development meetings.
• Collaborate with fellow Media Interns on short and long-term Hella Bus projects, ranging from written to video to graphic design.
• Become the most hilarious, insightful, and innovative communicator in the state of Washington.

Interest in:

• Politics is encouraged, but not a must.
• Collaborating with a diverse and youthful team, aka your peers.
• Issues relevant to young people in Washington State, including policy, campaigns, arts and culture, journalism, and many, many more. In fact, you know what? You tell us.
• Independent self-starter with a good sense of humor.

The Washington Bus Media Internship is based in Seattle –media Interns must be present at all required meetings and trainings.  The summer program will run from June 14th to August 15th with the possibility of an extension to the fall.  The internship requires a 10-hour weekly time commitment with minimum two hours in the office (if this is a challenge for you, explain in the application, and we can evaluate together).  As a Media Intern, your focus will be on the Bus’s communications work, but you will have many opportunities to participate in Bus events across the board, including music festivals, Bus trips, and foosball.

TO APPLY:

Please answer the following questions in a separate document, and email them to the Bus in pdf format. In addition, please submit a resume and two examples of your work, whether in written, video, graphic, or other form. Application deadline: May 30, 2011.

• Tell us about yourself in no more than two paragraphs.

• If you could change one thing about today’s media climate, what would it be?

• What are the three most interesting articles you’ve read recently (you don’t have to impress us, it’s an honest question)

• Briefly, take us through how you would approach writing or making a video blog post about one of the following three topics: bike lanes in your city, your favorite new band’s album, changing social and economic patterns in a nearby neighborhood (gentrification, development, etc…).

The Washington Bus is an inclusive organization, fostering & drawing on leadership from communities of color, recent immigrant communities, and emerging young voter demographics.

For questions about the program please email alex [at] washingtonbus [dot] org.

What can be said about Sarah Nason that has not already been said about the Statue of Liberty?

Epic. Titanic. Defining. Very tall. Wait, scratch that last one.

It is with a proud single tear in our collective eye that the Bus gives Sarah a collective goodbye hug. After three and a half years at the Bus, Sarah is packing up her buttons, her chia pets, her laser focus on the bottom line, and her indomitable sense of humor, and is moving on.

Sarah Nason, how do we love you? Let us count the ways.

1. Official OG Bus status. Sarah was one of the original volunteers/conspirators who helped get the Bus started waaaay back when. Sarah was literally there before the Bus existed, and has seen the organization grow from helpless toddler to surly adolescent and into the self-assured (and under employed?) young adult. Not to mention the fact that she INVENTED VOTEBOT.

2. Director of Back End Services. If you've ever received an email from the Bus, or read something on our website, or, hell, noticed that we're doing a pretty good job of keeping on the right side of the law, then you are appreciating something that Sarah Nason has made possible. Sarah's brain power, attention to detail, and dogged determination to get the job done has made sure that all the crucial moving pieces that keep this organization going forward are ALWAYS working smoothly. It's a huge thing, and one that doesn't get nearly enough attention. Salute!

3. Duchess of Sustainability. The Bus has a commitment to having as small a footprint as possible. That means we don't use bottled water on Bus trips, it means we helped our office building get a green waste system set up, and it means that we ensure our partners at large festivals and events minimize the waste they produce. Sarah has been the driving force behind the Bus's sustainable mind-set. It's no coincidence that there is no styrofoam or extraneous plastic bags in the office. We're lean and green, because Sarah made sure we were.

4. Best Internal Emails Ever. The best part about doing a timesheet at the Bus (besides getting paid, natch) has been Sarah's hilarious and understated emails. Chuckles, guffaws, and outright LOLs IRL (amirite??) marked all of Sarah's communications with the rest of the team. They should be printed out and framed. Seriously.

Long story short - since the day the Bus first rolled, Sarah Nason has been the unsung foundation that we've built our successes on. It cannot be understated how crucial her dedication to young people and a stronger civic democracy has been to everything we have done. As she leaves, she leaves an organization that is indebted to her, and will feel her presence for a long time to come.

We're super excited for everything Sarah's got planned next, and we know we'll be seeing her a lot more. Thank you for everything the Bus, Sarah! Now go take over the world.

Sarah, breaking in the Votebot costume at Trick or Vote 2008:

And a few pictures from our glorious  karaoke-heavy celebration of Sarah's last day:

The good peoples at Let's Get Healthy!, about the most enthusiastic and lovable public health organization around, are looking for volunteers for their exhibition in Seattle on May 9th!  Check out the details below to help out at one of their education and research station and maybe learn a little about your own health in the process.

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WHO WE ARE: Let’s Get Healthy! offers free events in which participants can visit exhibits on diet and exercise; take computer surveys on cancer risk, diet, and sleep; get measurements of their body composition; take their blood pressure; have blood samples measured for chemical analysis; and have saliva examples taken for genetic analysis. In addition to learning about their own health, attendees can contribute their data to an anonymous database for public health research.

THE EVENT: On Monday, May 9^th, Let’s Get Healthy! will be presenting our exhibit at the Science Education Partnership Award (SEPA) Program’s annual conference. We are looking for volunteers from 3:45pm – 7:00pm to help us run the education and research stations described above. On-site training is provided. Volunteers may sign up for a full or partial shift online at: http://healthdiscoveries.wufoo.com/forms/lets-get-healthy-volunteer-registration.

For more info contact Adam Lipus at lipus [at] ohsu [dot] edu or 503.494.3356.