Today we’d like to introduce you to Amanda Martinsen.
Amanda, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
The Nora Project grew out of a conversation I had with my cousin Lauren whose daughter Nora sustained a severe brain injury during surgery when she was nine months old. Lauren was afraid that because of her disability, Nora wouldn’t have friends. I asked her how I could help. She simply asked me to educate my fifth graders about kids with disabilities and their heroic stories. That night, The Nora Project was born.
I created a five-phase project that embeds empathy education into units of academic instruction, and brings inclusion and integrates technology into general education classrooms. The best part of the project is that participating students learn and practice empathy by building friendships with children with disabilities (Nora Friends). The project concludes with a film festival featuring student-made documentaries or social media portfolios highlighting their Nora Friends’ lives and the students’ own journey through the Nora Project.
When I started this project in my classroom three years ago, six other teachers from my team jumped on board with me to teach it in their classrooms. Today, we are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization supporting teachers in eight schools across four states. We expect to more than double participation in the 2018-2019 school year.
Has it been a smooth road?
The biggest surprise was how quickly The Nora Project grew, simply by word of mouth. This was challenging for two reasons: (1) Lauren and I both were working full time and parenting little ones when things really took off; and (2) We had a to learn a lot about scaling an organization on the fly.
Eventually, when it became clear there was a real need and desire and community for The Nora Project, Lauren left her job and I went part time so that we could make sure all the participating classrooms and families had the support they needed to succeed. We were accepted into the 4pt0 Schools accelerator and brought in some great consultants with the expertise we needed. We’re still learning, and probably always will be, but we feel like thanks to the support, we’re on solid ground now and ready to aggressively advance the mission!
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into The Nora Project story. Tell us more about the business.
The Nora Project is a mission-based organization working in partnership with schools to teach empathy by sparking friendships between students and their peers with disabilities. There are several things that set us apart from other social-emotional learning (SEL) programs and other inclusion programs–all of which make us proud.
Unlike many other SEL programs, The Nora Project is FREE, it authentically integrates technology in the classroom, and it promotes inclusion by creating real-world opportunities for typically-developing students to develop lasting friendships with their peers with disabilities. Unlike many other inclusion programs, The Nora Project spans an entire school year, and it gives students a “deep dive” into the lives of children they otherwise might never know. The project is rigorous, its fun, and its one-of-a-kind.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
Empathy education is gaining traction as studies show that narcissism is on the rise and caring for others has taken a back seat among youth.
We’re proud to be among the few organizations offering free empathy programming to schools, and we’re particularly proud to be teaching empathy by promoting inclusion of people with disabilities.
There is no denying that inclusion is the wave of the future. Difference is the only “normal” thing about the human condition. And when we learn one another’s stories and see the world through each other’s eyes, we can’t help but recognize that we’re more the same than different.
We hope to pave the way for other organizations and ideas that promote empathy across divides and that celebrate all people and their unique gifts.
Contact Info:
- Website: thenoraproject.ngo
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thenoraprojectngo/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thenoraproject/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheNoraProject
Image Credit:
Gretchen Hansen of GiGi’s Joy Photography (https://gigisjoy.wordpress.com/)
Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
