Unbeknownst to most Garfield students, a fair share of celebrities have visited our school. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke here. In 2004, Barack Obama came to the Garfield Community Center, where Governor Gregoire spoke in October. And on November 13, our school hosted its most recent celebrity: Van Jones.

When Jones stepped inside the Garfield gym, students’ expectations were low. Environmental speaker equals boring equals zonked. It’s a way of life at Garfield: assembly speakers are to students as Professor Binns is to Harry Potter. All attempts to interest the listeners are futile.

But this time was different. From the moment Jones picked up the mike and hollered, “OOBBAAMMAA!!” to his opening remark, “I know what you all are thinking. ‘What is some black guy doing talking about the environment!?’ I see you,” eyes opened and iPods were turned off.

Jones didn’t bend a frying pan in half. He didn’t make jokes about high-schoolers who sag (granted, he did make a texting joke). All he did to captivate the student body was be himself.

As president of Green for All, an organization which promotes a green economy open to people of all races and socio-economic statuses, Jones has become a new icon for environmental change. Funding education, he believes, is the root of the answer. Jones urged Garfield students to seize the new opportunities in wind and solar technology that will open up during Obama’s presidency.

Prior to the assembly, Jones met with a smaller group of Garfield students. They talked about the recent gang violence, and Jones found a way to incorporate this message into his speech, personalizing his address to the Garfield community. He said that opening up green jobs to the poor and encouraging kids to be leaders will be the beginning of the end to violence.

“He presented [his ideas] as ‘here’s an opportunity for your generation to change the world,’ and I think that really resonates with people,” said Earth Corps advisor, Mr. Truax, “People are always more accepting of an idea if it’s presented well.”

Jones’ ideas were not about buying hybrids or taking shorter showers. He put a spin on the environmental spiel that excluded tales of inevitable doom and problems which Garfield students can’t fix. “I’m not here to talk about polar bears,” he said.

Some students said that Jones presented his ideas in a condescending manner. “I felt like he was talking to the audience like he was teaching everyone something new, and that we had never before considered what he was saying,” said junior Caleb Raible-Clark.

Nevertheless, students were intrigued. Many came down to the floor to ask questions and one brave soul even got him talking about “The Return of the Jedi” and Darth Vader.

But Jones only had an hour of his hectic schedule to lend to Garfield. The normal end-of-assembly hub-bub ensued and students swarmed Jones. While Kate Lemly’s “pound-it!” was met by nothing but air, Jones did shake my hand. I figure he might have embraced the presidentelect at least once in his lifetime (no big deal), so come find me at lunch for a 25-cent handshake. Three degrees of separation, anyone?