by Peggy Shippen, CHiPS Committee

Frida Arriaga

Advancing gender equity for women and girls through advocacy, education and research many times requires us to call on our knowledge of basic civics – a piece of education so many students are now lacking. Frida Arriaga, a Palm Springs AAUW branch 2019 TT Camper made a video, “A Signal for Little Lives,” which shows she (and adults alike) can – with passion, purpose and patience – effectively drew upon basic civics to make positive difference for girls and boys in her community.

Frida is still focused on STEM, is a math whiz at Shadow Hills High School and on the track team. This picture is of her on the way to a track meet in Hemet last week. She tells me she is also interested in exploring what it takes to become an engineer – at USC!

AAUW Eugene-Lane Branch asked Frida to make her video available to help launch a new Civics Trek Contest that requires participants to make a video of how they would go about making a civic change. (While we did not quite realize our contest aspirations this year, we hope to try again in the future.)

Erica Goss, Director and Creator of Girls’ Voices Matter, partnered with AAUW Eugene-Lane Branch for the contest, and helped Frida make the video. Erica has 20 years of experience teaching literary arts-based curricula in the San Francisco Bay Area, and in Oregon and is a Poet Laureate for Los Gatos, CA.  She is co-creator of Media Studio, a poetry-and-film summer workshop for teen girls. She received her MFA in Poetry and Nonfiction from San Jose State in 2007, and currently resides in Eugene, OR.

After viewing Frida’s “A Signal for Little Lives,“ Erica said, “I’m deeply moved by the message in Frida’s video: that a young person can make a difference in her community, one that will continue for years to come. No ordinary teenager, indeed!”

“A Signal for Little Lives“ will be given to Willamette High School social studies teacher Lena Moro, as inspiration for her students. Lena has incorporated major civics components into her curriculum, in part, thanks to our CHiPS efforts. Hopefully, the video can be used in other ways also.

Here is the link to enjoy Frida’s video … and to pass on to others who may find it of interest:  https://youtu.be/L5LzNAsym24