Book Update
I’m excited to share that on January 22, 2024, Philly's JWI Young Women's Impact Network will be hosting a book talk on Life of Libby! This organization plans monthly events for Jewish women in their 20s and 30s in the Philly area. I’ll be chatting with them about Libby's story, the writing process, and the influence of Jewish identity in this work.
Introducing JGo
In this episode we meet Jason Gordon, aka JGo. He is the co-founder of Written Out Loud along with being a public speaker and consultant on belonging.
From the moment I met JGo at a public speaking course in the spring of 2024 I wanted to learn more about him. In our brief conversations during the breaks, he talked about education, diversity, and belonging. We never had enough time to finish our conversations, so I was thrilled to have dedicated time to learn more about his perspective and his work.
JGo began his career as a teacher (coincidentally, so did Libby!) He then went back to school and became a principal. But he left the education system when he realized that he would not be accepted unless he conformed to the narrow expectations placed on him. Yet the skills he developed within the education system helped prepare him to be the co-founder of a truly extraordinary organization.
Written Out Loud
In 2020, at a time when children are being stripped of their primary source of social connection—school—Written Out Loud finds a way to recreate connection in a virtual environment. The other founder, Joshua Shelov, is a Hollywood writer and filmmaker, but he doesn’t have expertise in how to run a school. Of course, JGo does. So, they decide to collaborate, starting out with a virtual summer camp.
This is not your typical summer camp, though. Written Out Loud brings kids together in a Hollywood-style writing room to collaboratively write books which are then published! They learn how to tell a story, developing skills based on the Hero’s Journey popularized by Joseph Campbell. The kids range from third grade to high school seniors and are grouped by age—like a regular camp—but by the end of the program, these kids are published authors.
We could stop there and say, “Wow, what a great idea! What a great way to help kids develop a love of writing and increase confidence in themselves!” Then we can consider that Written Out Loud began partnering with schools to offer this program to students—sometimes to make up failed English credits from the regular school year. In these situations, students might come into the program with an attitude that they hate writing or they feel incapable of it. Even those students collaborate on writing a book that gets published. They discover the joy of telling a story that is meaningful to them.
It reminds me of a story in Life of Libby about a child Libby tutored who was struggling in English. Libby noticed that he loved telling stories and she found a way to transform that natural joy into greater confidence and competence in reading and writing (pg. 78). I was curious how Written Out Loud makes this work for whole groups of kids at a time!
It’s Not (Just) About the Book
JGo described a few key elements of the program, that I think can be applied to so many situations (for children and adults).
In the virtual classroom, the rule is “video on/audio on.” When we are together in person, this is obvious. We can all see each other and hear each other. But in the virtual environment, so many kids (and adults) were turning off their video and audio. This enables them to disengage, which is not conducive to collaboration or connection. So, “video on/audio on.”
JGo also made sure that the program design followed basic protocols from the Teach Like a Champion guide for educators. While it’s geared toward children, many of the techniques overlap with best practices for adult interactions. For example:
Focus on the outcome
Give people time to think
Greet people when they join
Lastly, it’s not just about writing the book. Maybe even more important than creating published authors, Written Out Loud creates a sense of belonging. Each cohort begins as a group of kids—but ends as a team. JGo shares a beautiful story of one student who didn’t feel comfortable being on audio or video. They were struggling with their gender identity and worried about how they would be perceived. But over time, this student became fully engaged with the team. This was possible because Written Out Loud programs are designed to nurture a sense of belonging. Kids who have never met are able to connect deeply with each other, even in a virtual environment.
Belonging is for Everyone
Belonging isn’t just for kids. JGo is exploring ways to increase a sense of belonging in the workplace. Many of us are familiar with DEI, which stands for diversity, equity, and inclusion. A few years ago, another letter was added. The letter B, for belonging. While the corporate world is experiencing a backlash against DEI initiatives that began during the pandemic, belonging is a concept that transcends the specificity we associate with DEI. Regardless of our background, we all hold unique identities, and we all want to feel like we belong.
JGo had so many ideas and examples to share, that I wanted to bring him back for a second episode! In the next episode, we’ll hear about a project JGo worked on with kids in a program to get their GED (many formerly incarcerated). We’ll also focus more on the intersection of belonging, connection, and technology in our society. I can’t wait to share it with you!
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