Journal 3-A Closer Look at Milwaukee's South Side

My group's third visit to Loyola was moderately similar to the previous visit. The only difference was the fact that our group adjusted to each other’s schedules to allow for us to spend a decent amount of time in Milwaukee's South Side. Every single one of our students suggested that we pay a visit to the infamous El Rey. At first glance, it appeared to be a normal grocery store to me. Then I walked inside. This store seemed very exotic in that it was very abundant in an array of products I didn’t know existed. In addition, I had never been in a store that has over an entire aisle devoted to piñatas. After leaving El Rey, we took notice of the smaller, less popular Asian market next door. Aside from the prevalent Asian and Hispanic influences in the area, our east bound venture introduced another ethnic group. Across from the landmark that is known as the Basilica of St. Josaphat, one can find a large park. Within this park, a statue commands the attention of surrounding land. Upon further examination, we found the statue to be indicative of the Polish presence that once dominated the area. Upon sharing this information with my students, I found that many of them had no idea of the Polish prevalence that once existed where they live. This exercise will aid in the compilation of the next project in this class.

Journal 2-A Tour of Loyola

After how surprisingly shocked I was at how smooth the previous visit with the Loyola students went, I had little to no anxiety prior to my second visit. Our task for the second visit was to perform a walking-tour of the Loyola Academy grounds, capturing photos for an upcoming project in our class. We began our tour by walking through the building, visiting the administrators’ offices, stopping at the cafeteria, and interrupting the other classrooms. We also stopped at Loyola’s near empty trophy cabinet which lies underneath the hard-to-miss mural of the Loyola Lions. Further along our walk, my group and I began to take more notice to the fact that the school itself was a church at one point. The ever so frequent stained glass, the extremely noticeable cross on top of the building, and the aged ecclesiastic name tags occupying some of the doors served as great reminders. After the tour, we asked our students what other places within the community are worth visiting to get a better understanding of the community and students we are studying. After 4th hour U.S. History ended, my group and I decided to venture into the area surrounding the school to visit some of the places our students had suggested. Our most notable "find" between the school and the community was the almost virgin-looking disco ball in the cafeteria. Students estimated it hadn't been used in over 30 years.