Reschool Yourself

About Me

I resisted starting a blog for many years because of pages like this one. “Hey, can I tell you something about me? Hey, want to know more about ME?”

My name is Melia Jordan Mei Kwai Dicker. It takes up two lines on my driver’s license and causes confusion at will-call and airport security. I currently live in Sonoma, California, where I grew up and went to elementary and middle school.

I went to public elementary and middle schools, then to a private high school and college, all traditional. At some point in my schooling, I began to sacrifice my health and happiness for achievement. I became dependent on rewards and avoidant of mistakes, then went on to apply these habits in my adult life, grappling with stress, workaholism, and self-care. I’m not quite sure when or how this happened, but by golly, I would sure like to figure it out — and then change it.

Here’s the official bio:

In 2004, Melia co-founded Spark, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to inspire middle-school youth to pursue their interests, create bonds with their communities, and develop a lifelong passion for learning. Prior to this, Melia developed after-school programs in the Mountain View-Whisman School District through AmeriCorps’ Public Allies and is a member of Public Allies’ National Board of Directors. Melia studied Psychology and Spanish at Santa Clara University and has taught in a variety of settings, including Creative Writing in East Palo Alto, CA, and English in Salamanca, Spain. Her experience as a student motivates her to shift the focus of education from performance and competition to collaborative, self-directed learning. She believes that students should have significant input into decisions that affect them, in schools, at home and in the community.

Here are some alternative versions of the bio, all completely true:

*      Melia took a series of odd jobs while starting Spark. She once spent all day on a ropes course platform 50 feet off the ground, harnessing 7th graders to a zip line. She sorted through online merchant reviews to remove the inappropriate ones, and she had to consult the British-American dictionary to see if words like “stroppy” were dirty. (It means “irritable.”) She even critiqued several varieties of frozen broccoli with cheese as a food taster.

*      Deprived of scary movies as a child, Melia became obsessed with slasher films during middle and high school. She has seen the entire Halloween, Friday the 13th, Puppet Master, and Nightmare on Elm Street series, except for the most recent sequels (her obsession ended around 1998). She also admits to having seen most of the Child’s Play and Basket Case movies, investing hours of her life that she will never get back.

*     The only trophies and ribbons Melia has earned are from elementary and middle school spelling bees. Her most prized spelling bee ribbon was lettered in gold with the word “FNALIST.”

*      Melia enjoys long walks on the beach and candlelight dinners. She is also fond of rainbows and puppies.