Page 6 - The Portland Observer April 10, 1991
He Let Dancing Into Our Childrens' Hearts
BY BILLY DON MOORE
W hen you th in k o f great athletic
talents most people w ill not think o f the
Ballet. T h is story has alot to do w ith
great athletic talent. Bo may know
football, and he may know Baseball,
what he does’ nt know , is Ballet. Joe
knows B allet. Dancing requires hard
w o rk and d iscipline. Dancing com ­
bines picturest artistry along w ith some
com plex athletic moves. Joe W yatt,
the D ire cto r o f the school o f Oregon
B a lle t Theater, knows Ballet. For the
last tw enty plus years, it has been the
love o f his life . When you think about
B allet, I guess the Pacific Northwest is
not high on your list. Joe W yatt is here
to change that.
Joe comes from a long line o f
dancers. Even Joe’ s father wanted him
to fo llo w in his sister's footsteps and
become a dancer.
Joe was bom in Trinidad where he
grew up under the influence o f West
Indian and A frica n fo lk Dance. Joe
wanted to pursue his dance career at the
highest level. So he le ft home and
m oved to the C apitol o f Performing
A rts. New Y o rk C ity. He enrolled in a
sm all College in Up state New Y ork
called B rock Port State. He started
taking B a lle t classes. It was not long
before the talent Joe possessed was
enough to earn him a scholarship to the
w e ll know n Ballet school, Jacob P il­
low . A t Jacob P illow , Joe studied d if­
ferent styles o f dance. One o f the most
popular was the Flammenco. W hile
Joe was perform ing the Flammenco,
Joe was having his pictures taken by
the renown photographer o f dance, John
Linquist. Joe wanted to further his
career so he sent some o f his pictures to
A uthur M itch e ll, the D irector o f The
Dance Theater o f Harlem. Authur
M itc h e ll liked what he saw and it was
not long before he made Joe an appren­
tice in the company.
W ith in tw o
years,Joe was perform ing lead roles in
such famous productions as, Pasdedeux
from Don Quioxte. W hile Dancing
w ith the company, Joe met a beautiful
Ballerina, Elena Carter. The tw o danc­
ing together formed such a dynamic
team. Elena wanted to enhance her
career, even more so, in 1976 she took
o ff to M exico. Joe soon follow ed. A
personal relationship soon developed
between the two. W h ile in M exico,
they studied dance in an exchange
program where Cuba w ould send in ­
structors to M exico to teach different
styles o f dance. Joe was getting excel-
Joe Wyatt
lent roles which Black men never had
the opportunity to perform. Dancing
for the National Ballet Company o f
M exico, in such prestigious roles such
as, Albrecht in Giselle. By now Joe and
Elena where very close and soon mar­
ried in 1978. Three years later they
relumed to the states a married couple.
They went back to The Dance Theater
o f Harlem and were back on tour. While
making a West Coast swing in 1980,
they came to Portland. Joe was leaving
his Hotel and was shocked when a man
spoke to him. It was a pleasant surprise
from the callous New Y o rk city. It
reminded him o f home. Joe was lo o k ­
ing fo r a new challenge in his career.
He wanted to get out on his own. Plus,
he was a married man looking fo r a
place to settle down. Being tired o f the
road and touring, they fe lt Portland
would be a great place to settle down
and raise a fam ily. "It as a tough
decision to leave the company o f my
mentor". Joe said. But Joe saw him self
wanting to give something back. "M r.
M itche ll had taught me so much and
w ill always be close to m y heart. But I
fe lt it was tim e to move on. The love I
have fo r The Dance Theater o f Harlem
w ill bum forever in my heart".
Joe and Elena set up shop in Port­
land. Dancing and teaching at Jeffer­
son, w hile perform ing fo r the Pacific
Dance Theater. In 1983 they became
parents o f a beautiful baby g irl, Jessica.
W hile dancing, Joe suffered a serious
injury to his achilles tendon. This would
end his active career as a dancer. He
soon became the Director o f The School
o f Oregon Ballet Theater. Joe and
Elena grew apart in tim e but Their
daughter remains the main focus in
Their lives. Joe W yatt had this burning
desire to give something back to the
A frican American com m unity. L ik e his
mentor A uthur M itc h e ll, the need to
give cultural enlightenment to young
people was a top p rio rity on his list. He
contacted L illia n W addle at the A lb in a
M inisterial A lliance where she said she
had a thousand dollars in the budget.
Thus the Creative M ovement Course for
pre-school kids was bom. This expands
their m ind w hile it helps them to accept
and appreciate their imagination. Words
cannot express the value o f the Creative
Movement Course. The lessons the kids
learn w ill help them in life to stay in
touch w ith the arts. W atching these kids
respond to their instructor is a thing o f
beauty and a sight to behold. M onya
Wubbol, a very warm and sensitive human
being who takes great pride in what she
does and the response she gets from the
kids, is astonishing. The staff at A M A
agree the Monya's impact on the kids
has a very positive effect.
Joe W yatt, what you are doing fo r
the com m unity is opening up new ways
o f expression fo r young m in ority kids.
G iving them the opportunity to get in
touch w ith their imagination. Expand­
ing the thought process. You are help­
ing these kids get in touch w ith their
souls.
Joe W yatt also helps the homeless
children at the Y .W .C .A . in downtown
by providing scholarships to a dance
class fo r any one w ith enough courage to
enroll. The C ity o f Portland can be
proud to have Joe W yatt. Joe W yatt
recently, w ith the help o f L illia n Waddle,
received a grant from U.S. West C om ­
munications fo r $7,500 to further en­
hance the A M A Creative Movement
Course by providing more classes. The
fact that this is happening in North,
Inner Northeast Portland is really w on­
derful fo r our kids.
We are sure Joe’ s mentor, A uthur
M itch e ll, is very proud o f what he is
doing.
No, the Pacific Northwest is not
New Y o rk C ity, capítol o f the perform -
ingarts. B u tw edohave Joe W yatt, And
let's say Joe knows helping people and
Joe knows Ballet.
Lion At Bay, III
The Children Die In The Street
BY PROFESSOR MCKINLEY BURT
That wasn’ t too hard to fo llo w ,
was it? We refer to last weeks’ reca­
pitulation o f significant ( if not always
pleasant) inter-actions between Port­
land’s school d istrict, parents, teach­
ers, activists and ju s t plain concerned
citizens. I f the odds against meaningful
change seem insurmountable, I suggest
that particular mindset may be nothing
more than a s e lf-fu lfillin g prophecy-
and not a rational assessment at all.
A t the close o f that article, 1 made
reference to the “ Idaho Education
Project” , a long-term plan to revamp
the state's education system such that it
would achieve IN T E R N A T IO N A L
parity in technology by the year 2000.
A t the same tim e there was promised an
account o f “ W hat concem ed^itizens
are doing on their own (including this
w rite r).” W hat I have found out is that-
frequent allusions to my “ Beaverton
Business Partner” have paid o ff, fo r
the teachers and parents I encounter
seem determined not to be thwarted or
confused by any o f the parties to cur­
rent controversies.
They are going to their business
and industry employers and asking “ just
what is it my students/children should
know i f they are going to w ork ‘ overth-
ere’ in the m anufacturing, fabrication
or other technical departments? I know
that hardly anybody there is a scientist,
chemist, physicist or engineer-but they
have good jobs and turn out a quality
product.” Black and w hite they are
doing what Americans have always done
when pushed against a w all; seeking a
way around the morass o f co n flictin g
goals and mission statements (rheto­
ric), uncorrelated masses o f data on a
mysterious ‘ technological competence’
the bureaucrats can’ t define.
Breaking my pledge not to do again
for people who should be doing for
themselves, I persuaded m y ‘ industry
partner’ to send over a couple o f vans to
pick up a group and haul them out to
several plants to learn fo r themselves
exactly what goes on-and to receive
firs t hand orientation from practicing
technicians. N ow , this is what 1 was
doing in the com m unity on my own in i­
tiative as far back as the early 1970s’
(Under a U.S. Forest Service Contract I
had designed and implemented-using
greyhound buses). O bviously, I was
never able to persuade the school dis­
tric t to fo llo w suit-no more than I was
able in 1969 to get them to adopt my
“ computer/terminal-in-classroom proj­
e ct” .
Perhaps I can further the exposi­
tion that ‘ the b lind cannot lead the
b lin d ’ by citing three o f the scores o f
technology and communications cata­
logs on m y shelves. Keep in m ind that
these are sim ply updates o f sim ilar
essential guides that I used in 1966,
1969 1974 and 1980, when either w in ­
ning national awards in innovative
education, operating kids science clubs,
or trying to persuade backward adm in­
istrators to bring Portland up to the 20th
century-let alone the 21st. The publica­
tion are from “ National Instruments-
Omega Instruments-Jensen T ools.”
M ost o f the instruments I had used,
serviced, calibrated or repaired ON THE
JOB fo r industry! N o degrees doctor­
ates in the fields. Just solid basic com ­
petencies in “ readin-Writin-Rithmetic” .
Companies advance interested employ­
ees to more advanced math and science
through either in-house or outside classes.
W ith a m inim um o f technical ja r­
gon what these catalogs o ffe r for sale
are instruments and tools which ac­
complish fo r industry the very same
tasks carried out by the appliances in
your home (whether you are aware o f it
or not). B y your thermostat, thermome­
ter, refrigerator, washing machine, fu r­
nace, hot water heater, air conditioner,
whatever. They measure and/or con­
trol, heat, pressure, electrical current,
etc, in such a way that products and
goods can be e ffic ie n tly produced in a
quality fashion. They m onitor, ca li­
brate, adjust, and even report back to a
distant human as to just how the proc­
ess is proceeding. That term is “ Te­
lem etry” . T H A T ’ S IT ! Y ou w ill note
that fo r a unconfused U.S. M ilita ry
w ith a ‘competency-based’ learning
system, blacks performed flawlessly
as they operated the most sophisti­
cated equipment and technology the
w orld has ever seen. N o “ disadvan­
taged” polemics and no “ Special Ed” .
There is no reason fo r our “ c h il­
dren dying in the street” , because they
have been failed by an education sys­
tem w hich has le ft many unlettered,
unmotivated and unemployable, I am
angered everyday when I recall the
unused lesson plans I developed for
the districts m ulticultural program in
math and science. The ones which
clearly demonstrated the relationship
to a c ity ’ s infrastructure-and which
provided the necessary m in o rity m oti­
vation by documenting that specific
inventions in technology, science and
math is documented to have been
developed by Africans and A frican
Americans. I t ’s done by Father Cle­
ments, Marva C ollins and others.
It is not much satisfaction that 1
am now proving m y p oint in ‘other’
schools and districts around the coun­
try, thanks to delivering services by
modem tele communications (and Fed­
eral Express). N ot when we have our
present senario. Last night the 12 year-
olds uprooted the new ly planted trees
across the street in front o f the new
Umoja facility. What w ill they be doing
as unemployable 16 year-old drop­
outs?
Concluded next week. The confu­
sion in the state’ s legislature and ad­
m inistrative bodies. Proposition 5 sup­
porters have new demands.
C O M IN G
CREED OF THE BLACK PRESS
T t* Black Tress belle, es that America caa beat lead Uic world awaj from social and
national antagonisms when II accords to every person, regardless of race, color, or
creed, full human and legal rights. Haling no person, fearing no person, the Black
Press strives to help e> cry person In the firm belief that all arc hurt as long as anyone
la held back.
f]OM ES^AN TED
A P R IL
17
The Small Business Bottom Line Report5“
What happens
when there's business on
the phone but you
can't take the call?
Monya Wubbol Ballet Instructor For Pre-School Children
A. Philip Randolph Institute
Portland Chapter Celebrates
Many small businesses rely on the phone for a large
share ol their business Yet, when the phone rings some
are not in a position to take the ca ll.. especially during
peak business hours Perhaps you are already on the
phone, or all lines are tied up and customers are getting
busy signals, or you're busy with walk-in customers, or
closed. Research reports show that 2 7% o f potential
customers who don’t get through the
first time never call back or go
elsewhere. So what can you do
to make sure you get all the
business coming to you over
the phone’
Think about adding
Business Voice M e s ­
saging Service from
US WEST* Communi­
cations to your existi ng
phones Business
Randolph's
102nd Birthday
Voice M essaging
assures the phone is
alwaysanswered promptly and pro-
fessionally It eliminates busy signals,
confusing messages, telephone
tag, misdirected calls and over
burdened receptionists. A business that's
easy to communicate with is easier to
do business with and that builds cus­
tomer loyalties.
Customers appreciate being
able to leave private, detailed
messages, and it frees recep­
tionists' time to handle other
business. Employees who
receive their messages on
a personal voice mailbox
can retrieve their messages
from any touch-tone phone, day or
night. With Business Voice
WHILE VOU.WEBE OUT
M essaging, field personnel can call into a
designated mailbox" and report results, put
in orders, receive the next assignment and
retrieve other messages. All without tying
up customer lines.
For more information on how U S WEST®
Business Voice M essaging can help
your business, call your local U S WEST*
Communications small business specialist
today B ecause it's not just y o u r phone
line, it*s y o u r b o tto m lin e . "
Wine and Cheese Tasting
Saturday, April 27,1991
iijswEsr
7:30p - ll:00p
$10.00 Donation
Musician Hall
325 NE 20th
COMMUNICATIONS @
Making the most of your time. ’
SOON
2 4 2 -3 3 8 4
''/ / n W
&
2 4/