Meet Addie Welch
A bright, new leader of the Saint Paul Neighborhood Network.
When Addie Welch first looked into working at the St. Paul Neighborhood Network (SPNN), she didn’t really have media in mind. In fact, she hardly had any media-making or production experience at all. What really grabbed her attention was SPNN’s Youth Programs. “I really love working with youth and I’ve always been interested in the idea of media making.” Thus, Addie decided to apply to SPNN through Macalester College’s Off-Campus Student Employment program. As a sophomore at Macalester majoring in Educational Studies, working at SPNN seemed like a perfect fit for Addie.
Addie credits many experiences in her life with shaping her passion for teaching and being a facilitator. While in high school, she worked at Breakthrough Learning Works for a handful of summers. There she taught math and leadership development programs to middle schoolers. “[Working at Breakthrough] really sparked my interest in youth work,” Addie says. When she heard about SPNN and all the different youth programs they offer, she decided to get involved. Starting in the spring of 2018, she began volunteering at SPNN. While a volunteer, she worked on many different projects, including creating PSA videos with local Girl Scout Troops. Addie explains that, “different troops from across the city would come in and make a PSA about a topic and then get their Media Badge.” Addie really enjoyed this experience; it was awesome to watch the youth she worked with develop their own content that was not only relevant but also well thought out. Through this volunteer work, Addie gained valuable skills not only in youth work, but also in media production. These skills greatly benefited her in the fall of this year, when she began her new position at SPNN as a Youth Programs Assistant.
As a Youth Programs Assistant, Addie teamed up with a fellow member of SPNN and helped develop the curriculum for Set It Up, her youth program.
“Set It Up is part media, part community-building, as I see it,” Addie reports. As a co-leader in the program, Addie says her job is two-fold. “Part of it is actually helping with media production and the other half is youth work: being a facilitator and mentor to the youth.”
Set It Up has been around for a couple of years now, and the program works to give youth (typically around high school age) the chance to build on not only their media production skills, but also community engagement skills. The program runs for the duration of the school year, and typically encompasses 10 to 15 teens. Throughout the year, they work on creating three episodes of a TV show. “It’s a substantial commitment for them,” Addie explains. “They meet twice a week, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:30 to 5:30pm.” While it may be a large time commitment, Addie confirms that it will be well worth the investment. Set It Up is a welcoming and creative environment, which largely due to the excellent leadership Addie provides to the youth. She often spends much of her time thinking about ways to continue improving the program. “We have so many goals, it’s something we talk about a lot. We want to get youth experience and comfort with media and telling stories and learning about their own identities and how it connects with others around them.”
When working with youth, especially while engaging them to think critically and look at the world from a lens of social change and justice, there are a variety of challenges that can pop up. However, these don’t feel like challenges to Addie. Rather, she looks at them as opportunities. Addie believes that we don’t need to “dumb down” serious topics for kids. We just have to work on explaining it to them in a way they are able to understand.
“Kids are capable of way more than we give them credit for.”
Addie approaches conversations like this by allowing the kids to create their own polite discourse and discuss openly what they think about topics or issues. She doesn’t like telling kids the “answer” or giving them all the information. She says, “You have to just let them talk and sort of know how to nudge them without them knowing.” For example, whenever a teen might make a definitive statement, rather than challenge or correct, Addie says it’s important to ask a lot of follow up questions, which will allow the student to really consider what they are saying and the implications that come with it. On top of that, Addie says the added element of media-making can also develop critical thinking and allow students the chance to express themselves, create a community and connect with a broader spectrum of people.
“Media for me is a route in which youth can bring their ideas and voice and their artistic voice to the greater community. There are a lot of ways for youth to develop into leaders and caring people and work for better communities, and media is a really powerful route.”
Addie believes there is a ton of potential in all youth, even those who may not be involved in the programs at SPNN. She thinks giving youth more opportunities to work and engage in social issues and other serious topics will create a future of bright, knowledgeable adults. Plus, she just really loves working with kids.
“It makes me so energized working with youth!”
Although Addie is just a few weeks into her SPNN journey, she’s thrilled to begin working with the high schoolers in the program and is optimistic about her future work. “I’m really excited to continue working at SPNN. I’ve had a really fantastic experience so far. I feel really supported and I feel really trusted, especially within the youth programs. They’ve given me a lot of freedom in terms of designing Set It Up. I feel like I’m part of the community at SPNN.”
To learn more about Set It Up or any other Youth Programs at SPNN, check out the links below:
