Episode 09

Overview:

This is episode nine, and today I’m excited to present our special guest, David Mercaldo. David is a long-time capracare changemaker and former Youth Program Committee Member.  Outside of capracare, He is a tech-savvy educator with over fifteen years of classroom experience who is most ardent about closing the opportunity gap for underserved children. He is deeply in tune with the social-emotional needs of his students and relishes opportunities to promote literacy and leadership skills. During Covid-19, he began creating educational content for his students and friends with children using the handle: @learningwithMrMercaldo. He is passionate about improving the quality of education with his newly launched curriculum and consulting services company called Seeing in Color in the Classroom. In his spare time, he leads a publishing club at New Heights Middle School, where he mentors youth to write books, poetry, and magazine articles. David just published the book Garfield Goes to Haiti with one of his former students; in fact, he donated copies to capracare for the children in Haiti. His story and background are nothing short of courageous. Hope you enjoy our conversation. Here we go!

​

More of the overview on David Mercaldo:

David Mercaldo is a tech-savvy educator with over fifteen years of classroom experience who is most ardent about closing the opportunity gap for underserved children. His early influence to work with youth came from his mother, who founded Children’s Haven Preschool on Martha’s Vineyard Island in Massachusetts. In 2014, David relocated to Brooklyn, New York, to teach fifth/sixth grade and has remained in the classroom after one year as an instructional coach. David is deeply in tune with the social-emotional needs of his students and relishes opportunities to promote literacy and leadership skills. David earned his second master's recently in Educational Leadership and his School Building Leader license. 

When Covid-19 unexpectedly sent New York City into remote learning, David began creating educational content for his students and friends with children using the handle: @LearningwithMrMercaldo. David has ambitions to improve the quality of education with his newly launched curriculum and consulting services company called Seeing Color in the Classroom. David enjoys writing on his spare time and leads a publishing club at New Heights Middle School, where he mentors youth to write books, poetry, and magazine articles. David recently published the book Garfield Goes to Haiti with one of his former students. 

Mr. Mercaldo is a monthly contributor to capracare and recently donated 20+ copies of his book, Garfield Goes to Haiti, to their

after-school program in Les Cayes, Haiti. It is his hope that this podcast will lead to raising funds for capracare’s after-school program to get new Mac computers that can lead to future educational and entrepreneurial opportunities and access for the youth being served by capracare.

Episode Highlights:​

• Introduction by hostess Marielis Figueroa (0:00)

• David introduces himself as an educator and capracare’s ChangeMaker(2:25)

• David shares how he was introduced to capracare and how capracare inspires him. (4:14)

• David’s interest in education was sparked at a young age and from home. (7:49)

• David has strategically put what is taught in the classroom into a real-life application for one of his Haitian students, which was a great and unique experience for the class as a whole. (14:25) 

• Call to Action/PSA: How can you help capracare you wonder? Log onto: www.capracare.Org/changemaker (21:20)

• David also is the co-founder of “Seeing Color in the Classroom” and shares in detail its inspiration, origin, and mission. (23:10)

•  Technology plays a significant role in the development and advancement of youth today. Having served on capracare’s Youth Education Committee, David explains how parents can embrace technology instead of shying away from or prohibiting it. (34:11)

• David suggests equipping the minds of youth with free apps that he would recommend for many using smartphones for school or computers at school. capracare has a computer lab for its youth. (37:05)

• David shares some creative ways he thinks folks can get involved in supporting the youth in rural communities in Haiti (37:54)

• Our final wrap-up question: At capracare, we believe in the power of words and their profound effect on our identity. For us, our word is courage. David shares the one word that he uses to describe his identity and why (40:04)

• Closing (40:45)