San Antonio
TEACHER PACKET
CHAIR
JUDGE ANTONIA ARTEAGA
57 th District Court
COORDINATOR
LYNNE WILKERSON
Chief Juvenile Probation Officer
San Antonio DtWT makes the news
July 13, 2021
CHALLENGE SITE | San Antonio
KSAT 12 reporter Erica Hernandez featured “Do the Write Thing” San Antonio in a recent report:
The “Do the Write Thing” challenge is giving middle school students across the country the chance to write about how violence has impacted them and what solutions they believe can better help their peers.
57th Civil District Judge Antonia Arteaga helped bring the contest to Bexar County about six years ago and since then more than a thousand essays have been submitted.
“We’ve been able to give children a path, an avenue to express any violence that they want to talk about anything that they feel like they have a solution for because kids come up with some of the best things, ” Arteaga said.
San Antonio finalists featured on News4SA
June 22, 2020
CHALLENGE SITE | San Antonio
WOAI News4SA Trouble Shooter Emily Baucum featured a fantastic story on the Do The Write Thing San Antonio finalists.
With strength that belies here age, Danica Soto reads a chapter from her painful past.
“My past is something I don’t talk about because of all the people I lost, and because it hurts too much,” Soto reads aloud her essay. “I didn’t want to look weak, so I didn’t do anything or tell anyone about it. Instead, I started balling it up all inside me and I couldn’t handle it anymore, so I started cutting myself.”
Her essay is one of more than 2,000 written by middle school students across San Antonio about all the ways violence impacts lives.
It’s part of Do The Write Thing, an essay contest through the National Campaign to Stop Violence.
More than 25 schools in eight local districts participate. The program’s anti-violence message is integrated into the curriculum so each student learns ways they can stop violence among their family and friends.
The program’s led locally by 57th Civil District Court Judge Antonia Arteaga.
“In my everyday life as a judge, I deal with children. It’s usually families in crisis. And when I interview children, I see the pain. I see the despair,” Judge Arteaga says.
She’s assisted by 436th Juvenile District Court Judge Lisa Jarrett.
“With this pandemic, we’re having more violence come out,” Judge Jarrett says. “I’ve seen a trading from graffiti cases, where they’ve put down their spray can and they’re picking up a gun. And that’s disturbing.”
The essay contest’s six finalists participated in a Zoom call last week. The judges consider them ambassadors in their schools and neighborhoods.
On that call, Soto learned she was one of the top two winners. And a few hours later, Judge Jarrett was at her door, rewarding her with a new tool to keep sharing her powerful story. READ MORE
Here are some photos taken from this day.
San Antonio in DC!
December 3, 2019
CHALLENGE SITE | San Antonio
Photos from the San Antonio challenge site group in DC. SEE MORE PHOTOS
San Antonio in DC 2019
September 25, 2019
CHALLENGE SITE | San Antonio
The San Antonio DTWTX essay writers were getting to explore Washington, DC thanks to the Challenge!
The 2019 San Antonio National Ambassadors were seventh grader Gabriel Orgas and eight grader Emma Zepeda both of Garner Middle School.
2019 San Antonio National Ambassadors
CHALLENGE SITE | San Antonio
Gabriel Orgas
Garner Middle School 7th Grade
and
Emma Zepeda
Garner Middle School 8 th Grade
San Antonio Recognition Ceremony 2019
May 11, 2019
CHALLENGE SITE | San Antonio
These pictures were taken at the 2019 Do the Write Thing Texas San Antonio Recognition Ceremony.
San Antonio Do the Write Thing DC Recognition Week 2018 photos
November 13, 2018
CHALLENGE SITE | San Antonio
San Antonio National Finalists
September 5, 2016
CHALLENGE SITE | San Antonio
San Antonio Chair, Coordinators and National Finalists 2016 National Recognition Week Washington DC.
Bexar County loves DTWT
March 11, 2016
CHALLENGE SITE | San Antonio
