Go Govies!

Welcome to Johnson, home of the Governors! If you're at this page, you're probably figuring out what it's like to teach at Johnson, and why our mascot is a Governor.* I look forward to sharing what I have learned about teaching Hmong students in the three years I've taught at JHS.




*John A Johnson died tragically in office around the time the school built a new building. The school went on to teach at least one Minnesota state governor.

Johnson High School

Johnson High School began in 1897, but it has changed names and locations twice. Now, it lies between 35E and White Bear Avenue, in the area of St. Paul known as the East Side, close to Lake Phalen. In previous years, the area focused on manufacturing, with 3M's plants within blocks of the school. It has always been an area with immigrant families. You can see several old Italian restaurants in the neighborhood, and you'll teach students with last names like Baregi or Costello, although the majority of our students are not Italian. The neighborhood fluctuates depending on lots of political, personal, and economic reasons. For instance, the Polish American Club recently moved locations, although it had been at 1003 Arcade St. for a long time. I'm sure the reasons for the change are complex.

 See the whole report card for Johnson here.

Now, the school's population has shifted. The highest percentage of students are Asian, at 38.5%. Most of these students are Hmong, although Asian students from several countries, clans, and languages are represented. I would recommend learning the Hmong clan names before assuming students identify as Hmong.

JHS from 1911 to 1963, when the building burned

 Johnson's many languages and dialects thrive in the hallways and during work time in your classes. This helps make Johnson truly multi-cultural and diverse. Most of our students hail from the neighborhoods around school. Often our students have been to more than one high school because they've moved, they like a sport program, they want to be closer to/further from siblings or cousins, or a myriad of other reasons. St. Paul as a district worries about more students leaving the district than joining the district.

In 2009-2010, Johnson won the state championship in badminton and basketball, and took wrestlers to the highest level of competition in MN as well. Both AP (Advanced Placement) and CIS (College In the Schools) challenge students in most content areas. Link Crew, a mentoring program, connects freshmen with upperclassmen. Clubs with national ties (SADD) or local ties (JACC) give everybody a place to leave their mark.

Focusing on the Hmong Community

While there are lots of cultures at Johnson, I will focus on just the Hmong people here. Here are some points that might be helpful in your classroom.

• The first Hmong families came to Minnesota in 1975. If you meet someone over 35, they were probably born in Laos. The last Hmong refugee camps closed around 1999. If you meet someone under 11, they were probably born in the United States. Consider the dramatic implications of this!
• There are 18 Hmong clan names, or last names. At Johnson, we have lots of Vangs, and Yangs, but some of these names aren't represented at all at JHS. Not all students who share the same name are related. Fun fact: it's taboo in Hmong culture to date someone with the same clan name.
• Chang 
• Cheng
• Chue 
• Fang 
• Hang 
• Her (Herr, Heu) 
• Khang 
• Kong  
• Kue 
• Lee (Ly, Le)
• Lor (Lo, Lao) 
• Moua (Mua)
• Phang or Pha
• Thao  
• Vang 
• Vue 
• Xiong 
• Yang 

• Hmong families sometimes follow Shamanism. I can't give a thorough description, but I'll try to mention things you'll see in class. Each person has a spirit which should be happy and closely united with the physical body to maintain health, both mentally and physically. Sometimes students will wear a cord, often red, around their wrist. Often this has been tied to their wrist during a ceremony to strengthen the connection with their spirit. Traditionally, the spirit is believed to rest over someone's head, so avoid patting a Hmong child on their head until you know more about the family's beliefs. 
• There is a large Christian Hmong population, with Christian songs in Hmong, Hmong students attending Christian colleges, and students reading Christan books. This does not mean these students are less traditional. Hmong families often trace their Christianity to Laos. Some Hmong families were sponsored by Christian churches when they emigrated to the US.
• Because the extended family depends on each other, and families often live together, students usually have specific tasks in the household. Girls often cook and clean with their mothers, and daughters-in-law who live with their new family are expected to show they are not lazy. Boys traditionally help their fathers more.
• Because the Hmong people fled their homes, they left much of their wealth in Laos. Often families had literally only what they could carry. As a result, several families began life in America on public assistance. As language skills and education with each generation, families can become more financially independent.
• Make sure to read the page about political history on the right hand side. The facts of the Hmong involvement in the Vietnam conflict are often not widely known to most Minnesotans, but almost all of the Hmong students will have at least of vague understanding of the role of the Hmong in Vietnam. 
• I've only shared some facts, but the real experts are your students. Often students are willing to share what they know, but make sure that your questions don't put them unexpectedly in the spot-light. I ask questions during work time, after school, or during passing time.

Challenges To Reckon With

Here are a few challenges the Hmong community is up against currently. They may sound a little theoretical, not practical, so I apologize. However, the practical problems are the ones that are solved on a case-by-case basis. These theoretical problems must be tackled by a larger discussion and informed action.

• Inter-generational connections. Because all Hmong grandparents and most parents started their lives in Laos or Thailand, the disconnect between generations literally seems as wide as continents at times. While children of any culture don't truly understand their grandparent's younger lives, I argue that it the Hmong families have a particular challenge. Connections between grandparents and children naturally form, but the passing on of history, language, and culture need some common language. Children born in the United States and attending school often speak English with higher fluency than Hmong. In fact, it would take conscious not-learning of English to continue to hold Hmong as your primary language. See the page entitled "Who's Who in the Hmong Community" for Kao Kalia Yang's book The Latehomecommer. She deals with the these topics with much more insight than I can. 
• The Model Minority Myth. Everybody in the nation agrees that we have a problem with the achievement gap. However, racial categories are clunky and inefficient. Because Hmong students are categorized as Asian students, they are grouped with students whose families may have been in the country for much longer and may have come from a different level of privilege. In fact, Asian students nationally are doing quite well statistically. Hmong students are grouped in these stereotypes, and may not be given the same assistance because their "race" isn't statistically under performing. Any time students have unfounded expectations put upon them, they will have to work to reconcile them with their real lives. 
• Disenchantment. This last one may not be able to be proven in all research literature. However, I see it in our students at times. Often, first generation immigrants remember the trials of the previous country: running away from soldiers, not having enough food in refugee camps, and looking forward to America or another country. On the other hand, second generation students see the un-kept promise of the American dream. It's the second generations students that find it improbable to pull oneself up by one's bootstraps. They see the racism of America, they confront sky-high tuition costs, they wonder how they will support their parents. Often this sense of futility can lead to dropping grades, or dangerous behavior. 

I consider our role as educators not to be people to solve these problems, but to recognize them, to partner with community members to find solutions, and then to actively teach towards more opportunity and empowerment of our students.

How to Make Conferences Work: strengths in the Hmong community

Be respectful. Ask questions. There's no real way to prepare for a set of family circumstances when each are so varied. So get ready to ask questions. Here are some strengths of the Hmong community that you can focus on. Of course, these are generalizations, and may not be true for every set of circumstances.

1. Hmong families want their students to do well in school. If you're having a hard time communicating with them, find a translator from your school. Of course, you can talk with an older brother or even have a younger sister relay information to adults who may not speak English or may not be well-versed in the American school system. However, it puts a lot of pressure on young students to do this. Find someone with an expert grasp on both languages who can communicate with the decision maker in the house (who usually isn't the younger sister). If you school doesn't have a translator because the budget doesn't allow it, then call the district and find someone who can. Often districts contract with translation/interpretation companies. Find this number early in the year, then have it on-hand. If you need to talk with a parent, set up a time in advance.

2. Hmong families want their students to be successful in life and go to college. As I mentioned, the American school system is unique. Try to connect families with services for college readiness such as Lao Family, Admission Possible, Get Ready, or MEP. The FAFSA must be filled out to qualify for financial aid. Make sure the parents know about it. Ask your counselors to host a night where parents can be walked through the process.

3. Hmong families have strong family ties. Although this means that sometimes students will put off schoolwork for family events, this also means that families will be able to support their children in school. If a student needs to stay after, chances are they can find a ride home or can stay at a family member's house until someone can pick them up. This plays out until even in college, with parents allowing their students to stay with them rent free while they put them through college, maybe even putting daughters-in-law through college.

4. Hmong families have extensive community resources. St. Paul may be the largest urban center for Hmong people, depending on who you ask--we'll see after the census data comes out. Because of this large community, there are lots of resources. See the link for community resources on connecting your students with groups, the parents with services, or yourself with the Hmong culture. Start with the organizations that are already at your school.