Every year, Wymer Brownlee's Grants for Gratitude program awards a $1,000 grant to an Oklahoma educator who goes above and beyond for their students and community. This year, we are honored to celebrate Lori Palmer, an English Language Learner (ELL) Coordinator at Enid High School, whose work sits at the intersection of culture, community, and sharing your story.
A Community Within a Community
It may come as a surprise to learn that 5% of Enid's population traces their roots back to the Marshall Islands, a small archipelago nation in the Pacific. That connection began in the 1980s when a U.S. agreement offered Marshallese citizens the right to live and work in America as partial compensation for decades of nuclear testing on their home islands. During this time, many Marshallese people came to Enid, Oklahoma due to the relationships formed with missionaries from Phillips University. Since then, this community has only grown - and so have their stories.
Meet Lori Palmer
Of Lori Palmer’s 22 years as an Oklahoma educator, she’s spent the last 9 proudly serving the ELL and Marshallese students of Enid High School. She spends her days connecting her students and their families to local resources, arranging translation, and sponsoring the Islander Club: an organization that gives students a cultural home within their school. Lori says the club functions as a “second family,” where students’ heritage is celebrated rather than being treated as a point of difference.
The heart of what this organization means for these students is on full display at Islander Night, a yearly performance where Marshallese and other ELL students share their stories through dance, song, and visual storytelling.
One of Lori's most memorable moments as a teacher comes from when she accompanied five Marshallese students to the Field Museum in Chicago to co-curate a cultural exhibit. Watching her students take the lead and educate museum professionals on their own heritage, she says, was "a powerful testament to their growth" and a perfect example of what she works toward every day: "providing the platform for students to realize the immense value of their own stories."
A Grant with a Greater Purpose
When asked what she planned to do with the $1,000 grant, Lori answered without hesitation: invest it right back into her students. “Music is a powerful cultural driver and a vital tool for language acquisition,” she explains. Her ELL students already play ukulele as part of their program, using music to build oral language skills and practice pronunciation in an environment where they feel safe to take risks. With this grant, she plans to upgrade the program from acoustic to electric ukuleles, giving her students higher-quality instruments that match their growth as musicians. She will also use the funds to secure instructional materials aimed at closing the achievement gap for her students.
As she enters into her 23rd year as a teacher, Lori reflects on the privilege that it is to be an educator:
"We carry our students' stories, their health scares, their setbacks, and their triumphs home with us every night. It is the most rewarding job imaginable."
More Resources
Interested in learning more? Lori encourages you to check out 67 Bombs to Enid, a documentary following survivors of nuclear weapons testing in the Marshall Islands and the communities they built in rural America. Their website hosts a variety of resources that you can use to support the film, get involved, and learn more about the Marshallese.
Marshallese Education Initiative
U.S. Marshall Islands Policy and History
The charitable entities and/or fundraising opportunities described herein are not endorsed by, or affiliated with Cetera Wealth Services, LLC or its affiliates. Our philanthropic interests are personal to us and are not reviewed, sponsored, or approved by Cetera Wealth Services, LLC.
Lori Palmer is not affiliated or registered with Cetera Wealth Services, LLC. Any information provided by this individual is no way related to Cetera Wealth Services, LLC or its registered representatives.