Naomi B. Jones
March 11, 2008Exhibits
March 13, 2008
Three days into the grueling student performance exam, Oaklawn Junior High School students can still hear the encouraging words from two Louisiana hip-hop pioneers who performed for them on Friday afternoon.
“There is no such thing as college material. Anyone can do it. If I can, you can,” Shawn Bernard said to the students. “Decisions (you make) now will determine your destination.”
A Lafayette native, Bernard’s stage moniker is “Luckie.” He and partner Johann “Yogi Bear” Joseph, members of the hip-hop organization Drama Squad, tour with Lafayette-based rapper Cupid, whose hit song, “The Cupid Shuffle,” is the newest dance-craze throughout the nation.
Bernard reminded students Friday that it takes hard work and determination to tackle an exam like the Louisiana Education Assessment Program.
“The students are stressed and the teachers are stressed and they need to unwind for a little bit and clear their heads,” Joseph added.
A native of New Iberia, Joseph said he is an educator first.
“As a teacher, I can relate to what they are going through. The exam is a big deal for the students and the school,” he said.
Pep Rally organizers said they hoped the afternoon would relax students in anticipation of this week’s testing.
Oaklawn Principal Demetria Maryland said she brought the two in to give the students a boost of confidence before the big exam.
“Teachers are nervous because students are nervous,” Maryland said. “We want to de-stress them.”
Students have been drilled with test questions since the beginning of the year, the principle said.
“I wanted positive rappers. A lot of kids are immersed in the other side of hip-hop, the negative,” Maryland said. “If you don’t put the message with something they identify with, it’s hard. But you can reach them.”
Eighth-grader BarriLynn Lirette is a cheerleader at Oaklawn. She has been doing a balancing act since school started trying to maintain her school studies and practice for cheerleading.
“I’ve been studying so hard I am just ready to take the test,” she said.
More than 600 students and faculty filled Oaklawn’s gymnasium on Friday all dressed in their “LEAP-buster” T-shirts. Before the performance, the students were excited to see the rap icons.
Eighth-grader Ciara Celestine said she appreciated the gesture of the faculty members, “It’s a good way for us to cool down and relax.”
Jalen Quinn, also an eighth-grader credited Oaklawn’s faculty’s hard work. “Today is a good day. The teachers have been preparing us for this moment from the beginning of the year. If we are successful, it’s because of them.”
By the end of the event, nearly the entire school joined the performers on the gymnasium floor where they danced to “The Cupid Shuffle.”
Shawn “Luckie” Bernard and Johann “Yogi Bear” Joseph, of the hip-hop group Drama Squad, performed at the Oaklawn Junior High School LEAP Buster pep rally Friday. Yogi Bear (far right) gave Oaklawn students Daymon Brown (left) and Jaylen Quinn (center) one-minute to belt out his best freestyle lyrics. Quinn was crowned the Oaklawn Junior High School Freestyle Prince. * Photo by SOPHIA RUFFIN
