Gillispie Alumnus Starts Local Program Called “Wheels of Change”
Recently, Grade 4 and 5 students had a very special guest speaker.
Kevin Barber is a Gillispie alumnus and he and his mother Dr. Carolyn Barber helped start a local program called “Wheels of Change” which provides paid work opportunities to San Diego’s homeless population.
Inspired by a similar program in New Mexico, Wheels of Change uses passenger vans to pick up eight people at a time from a homeless tent located near downtown and transport them to areas in the city where they can spend the day picking up trash or cleaning graffiti for $11.50 an hour.
Kevin and his mother teamed with a larger non-profit called Alpha Project to help spearhead the program, and he spoke to the students about the challenges and opportunities he has experienced during this endeavor.
His visit tied in with Grade 4 and 5’s Big Project topics of Hunger and Homelessness, and the students had great questions lined up for Kevin, including what types of services are needed to help the homeless and how they can start similar programs themselves.
About Gillispie School: We are an independent toddler through Grade 6 school in La Jolla, CA. We believe that learning is a journey in which children are active participants. Our students partner with teachers to further their academic, creative, and social growth, and we balance a child-centered approach that does not rush childhood with well-researched academic programs that demand higher-level thinking. Click here to learn more about our school.
