How can I touch you if I don’t have no hands
How can I see you if I am blind
How can I smell you if I can’t smell
How can I kiss you if I don’t have lips
How can I love you if I am not loved

Lenity for my love
Even though I respect your decision
Be away you said far gone
I doom thee to death, you said.

Forbear to love
This love had been sped
I should say peppered
A little bit of magic should be spread.

A stain that has no cleanliness
This love is just a mess
I write to you everyday
I guess I hoped too much of fate.

 Do you ever find love
Is Love that Important
I mean love is nice and stuff
But some people think love is
a sign of happiness
I know you find your true love
in high school. But some say they
find true love in Junior High.

Love is the meaning of happiness but it
is also is the meaning of sadness
Because when someone says they love you
They wind up leaving you.

Some say all sixteen-year-old girls
are quick to say " I love you" to some guy
but they wind up pregnant by that
same guy and that guy says he doesn’t
want anything to do with her. Then she winds up
getting an abortion.
Now when someone say "I Love"
don’t say it back until you get to know them better.

Unless they’re family.

 I would have never thought
I would meet someone like you.
Someone who cares for me like u do
You came into my life when I needed you
the most
From then on we became so close
My feeling for you got so strong
I don’t know how we can ever go wrong
Baby you mean the world to me
And hopefully you do see
Of what I would have never thought
Came to be.

You’re sent from God
To take all my worries away.

You’re sent from God
To pick up all the pieces my heart may
throw away.

You’re sent from God
To tell me everything is okay.

So if you’re sent from God
Please don’t take your love away.

The Pre-Teaching Program is run in conjunction with Lehman College. In the Program, Junior students work alongside their own classroom teachers, learning the hows and whys of life on the other side of the desk. Many of the students also take a class at Lehman, where they earn three free college credits. But the Pre-Teaching Program isn’t just about teaching–far from it. In the process of Pre-Teaching, students learn to think on their feet, plan ahead, have confidence, and build critical life and career skills that are useful in any profession. Every student keeps a journal of day-to-day activities as part of the Program. Here is a sampling from Luis Mercedes’ Pre-Teaching journal. – Ms. Laura Tringali

I’m a black poet who believe in herself
I’m a black poet who knows who she is
I’m a black poet who cares for others’ feelings
I’m a black poet who knows where she’s from
I’m a black poet who’s strong and loving
I’m a black poet who loves her family
I’m a black poet who’s respectful
I don’t know the day I became a poet
I’ve been a poet since the third grade
But today I must share why I’m a black poet
And no man or woman can tell I’m
a sixteen-year-old girl
Please tell me I’m a black poet from your heart
This is why I wrote this poem – for all races
Who don’t know who I am.

By Osiris Perez

You thought that you was found
But really you was lost
You made others happy
But just what was the cost?
Your job is continuous
Though your mission is in vain
While making others better
You end up in pain
You was convicted of murder
But did you really do it?
The gun is in your hands
But did you really shoot it?
It really wasn’t you
But was it someone you knew?
Maybe it was a friend who
Considered you a brother
Or maybe it was a love
who was
Busy with another
You know who it was but the
Finger points at you
You’re already convicted
So now what do you do?

To hold the guilt,
of being born and killed,
to be born without knowing about the world,
to my baby sister who died a little girl,
to come out of mother’s stomach,
I wish they would have taken my life
instead of hers,
I would have done it,
dead eyes blind,
can’t see the world because she’s dead
too many evil thoughts about this world
is what killed her,
damn I really miss my little sister.

My head is filled with pain
As my brain rotates
I can’t speak what my eyes tell
I yearn to let those foul words roll off my tongue
I can’t feel happiness only
It ripping at my inside
You can see my pain
The work in my brain
I’m angry, I’m mad
My innocents, my innocents
I’ll kill him before I let it go to the grave

The lyrical book in my head explains
My feelings & thoughts
I’m not like other people who
Steal feelings to break hearts
Believe it’s hard for me to die
Out when the love starts
And I would always be faithful
And play all my parts
Without my lyrical book
I’m cold, dumb, and heartless
And I want you to know that I’m playing
The part that honest
With my lyrical book I’m seeing
The bigger picture
And just by looking at you I’m really
The lucky painter
Take it to the shows we’ll be the
Lucky winner
You’ll win ‘cause of your beauty
I win cause I’m not a dreamer
That’s my lyrical book

Advice about college from the graduating class of 2005

From Priya Balgobin
(accepted at Lehman College)
"When you hear the word ‘college,’ what do you think of? College is a long process if you waste time. Applications are time-consuming, but when you start early, you can get through it like a piece of cake. I can tell you this because I started all my research and college applications at the beginning of my Senior year. Boy, was this stressful! I do not recommend wasting time."

From Tiffany Blagrove
(accepted at Long Island University, Sullivan Community College, Coppin State University, Morgan State University)
"Throughout my high school experience, I have learned many lessons on my own. I am writing this to give you the advice I wish someone would have given me, and that is to ALWAYS do your best in your high school classes, because your grades will effect the GPA that the colleges look at when they consider your acceptance. Doing your best means handing in ALL of your homework and being an active learner in class. It gets hard but, trust me, it is worth it."

From Cheyanne Garcia
(accepted at University of Buffalo, SUNY Oswego, SUNY New Paltz, Rider University)
"I knew I wanted to go to college back when I was a freshman, but I never really decided what colleges I wanted to look into. I used to say that I was going to apply to Michigan State because of their softball team or Boston College because my biological brother lives in Massachusetts. Next thing I knew it was September of my senior year and I had yet to complete one application, let alone decide on what schools I would be applying to. I don’t know where you stand academically, but if I had to pick one piece of advice to give, it would be to start thinking about colleges early. Keep your options open, your grades and attendance up, and a strong head on your shoulders. Applying to colleges is an extremely difficult and time-consuming process. It might even drive youto the point where all you want to do is give up. My response to that is...don’t. Giving up only takes you one place—nowhere."

From Alex Brooks
(Accepted at The City College of New York)
"Tuition and scholarships are a vital part of your college research. College expenses are enormous and getting help, even if it’s just for books, is strongly advised. Look for scholarships on the internet. There is so much money that’s available for scholarships. You can get scholarships for being African-American, Hispanic, a certain religion, left-handed, even for being the first member of your family to go to college. You must also decide if you are going to study away from home or in your area, There are private colleges, state universities, and city universities all over the nation, and each one has different requirements. Choose the one that best suits you and keep in mind that the quality of the school does not necessarily equal the quality of your education. A good student at a ‘lower quality’ school will learn more than an inattentive student at a ‘high quality’ school."

From Brittany Levestone
(accepted at Bronx Community College, NY College of Technology, Alfred State Univeristy)
"When you begin to see the price for colleges, it may scare you, but don’t let it stop you. There is financial aid and you can apply for scholarships. Also, you should have at least five or more colleges on your list. Use the "stretch, range, and safety" method of selecting colleges. You should have at least one college that will take more to get into (a stretch), one that you are pretty sure you can get in (a range), and one that you know for sure you will get in (a safety)."

From Joyce Susuko
(Accepted at Lehman College, St. John’s Univeristy, Old Westbury)
"Make sure to pick at least one safety school. Aim high, but always have a safety school–a college that you know you can definitely get into."

From Patricia Breton
(Accepted at Lehman College, Tompkins Cortland Community College, Dowling College)
"Have you started thinking about college? Well, I hope the answer is yes. If not, start your research now! Researching now makes things easier for tomorrow. Remember, always ask questions. Also, I recommend that you take college courses through the College Now Program to get college credit while still in high school. In addition, make sure you have community service hours. These activities look really good on college applications. I myself received 500 community service hours. If you are undecided about your major, don’t worry. You can decide once you are in college."

From Amanda Orgega
(Accepted at Cayuga Community College)
"You will know if a college is for you if it feels like home."

From Janill Guerreo
(Accepted at Lehman College)
"Please don’t forget to study for your SAT. The majority of colleges and universities look closely at your scores. If you’re weak at writing essays, start practicing. This is necessary for the new SAT, which contains a writing test."

From Angelie Solano
(Accepted at Lehman College)
"Plan to take the SAT more than once. Colleges take your highest scores."

From Kameela Lall
My advice to you is to work hard and strive for the best. During my years of high school, I became lazy at times. Looking back, this is my biggest regret. Why? Although I know I have the potential to be a 95+ student, I’m not. This reflects my work in my earlier years of high school. Being a Senior, it has become difficult to regain lost ground. You may think that now is too early to look into the colleges you would like to attend, but it’s not. In fact, it is best to research colleges while you are a Junior, so you won’t have to take the time for it during your Senior year. I did not do this, and in my Senior year I had the trouble of trying to research colleges, programs, and financial aid. If I did this in my Junior year, all I would have to do is get the applications, fill them out, write the essays, and send them in. Juniors, the clock is ticking, and your future is about to become your present. Good luck as Seniors.

From Daniella Padilla
(Accepted at York College, Queensborough Community College)
"Juniors, remember there is no limit to your talents and dreams. Carpe Diem!"

Return to Home Page-Teaching & Professions
Return to Home Page - Center for School College Collaboratives
Return to Home Page - Pre-Teaching Academy
Return to Home Page - Lehman College

Last Updated June 22, 2005 by Roz Krakowsky
Disclaimer