Student to host 'rent' parties Sunday
Event reminiscent of Harlem Renaissance
By Stephanie Bertholdo bertholdo@theacorn.com

Students at Agoura High School are stepping back in time as part of a school project.

On Sun., April 13, "rent" parties will be hosted on the campus as the culmination of an English unit on the Harlem Renaissance. In Harlem in the early 1920s, rent parties were thrown by black residents who couldn't afford to pay the exorbitant apartment rents. The parties featured music and food for a nominal fee so the hosts could pay the rent and not be forced out of their apartment.

Teams of 11th-grade English students researched specific facets of the Harlem Renaissance and wrote essays, but the atypical lesson will come alive for the students when they present a variety of "rent" parties to the community. The socalled "DQuadrant" lesson takes the students' learning out of the classroom and into the real world, according to teachers at the school.

Some students will transform classrooms into nightclubs with music, food and an ambiance reminiscent of the 1920s. Others will host a fashion show, simulate sporting events or reenact "passing," a term used at the time when some blacks felt the need to pass for being white.

Fifty groups of two to three students will host parties in campus classrooms from 1 to 4 p.m.

"It really is a big deal for the kids," said Deb Frank, one of the six English teachers who worked on the project with the students.

Junior Jessica Bartlett said her group will recreate a Harlem Renaissance nightclub and will feature a fashion show and musical performance.

"We have named our club 'Rumble in the Jungle,' and the decorations in our club will consist of jungle-themed flowers, plants, tablecloths and seat covers."

Bartlett said her group chose the jungle theme because one of the most famous nightclubs in Harlem, the Cotton Club, was known for its jungle theme.

Each member of Bartlett's group will present a PowerPoint presentation on an aspect of the Harlem Renaissance. Bartlett researched the music; Carly Oshima studied fashion; and Rachel Friedman investigated general information about Harlem nightclubs.

"Our group has spent countless hours fundraising and buying fabrics, decorations and costumes," Bartlett said.

Student Lida Darmian said, "The rent party really exemplifies the Harlem lifestyle because during the 1920s- due to racism against African Americans at the time causing higher rents from white landlords- the African American party pulled together to throw a community party that raised money. With a small entrance fee, people would come in, eat and listen to live music."

Frank says D-Quadrant lessons allow students to delve deeply into a subject and then apply what they learned to real life, which often means unpredictable situations. For instance, Frank said one student wanted to pass out CDs of the music that was popular in Harlem during the 1920s. But they quickly learned that what they thought would be a fun party favor would infringe on copyrighted material.

"Kids who know how to do life and not school really shine," Frank said. Conversely, students who are used to acing class assignments and tests sometimes struggle with the multifaceted complexity of the DQuadrant projects.

Frank said she and the other English teachers- Lindsay Hall, Lorelie Hollister, Jenn Kestenbaum, Todd Shipley and Rick Way- worked hard to make the project meaningful to students. She also credited the school's parent-faculty club for their support of the event.

The community is invited to attend any or all of the presentations at the school on Sunday. Frank said each group will present two 30minute presentations. The cover charge for all "dropin" presentations is $2. Students will donate the money to a charity, Frank said. The charity will be chosen after the event.

For more information, call Agoura High School at (818) 889-1262.