Community Leaders

Elementary-school age students taught to become community leaders
Posted on 11/05/2012

A culture of leadership is emerging out of Poplar Bluff Schools, but it is not the adults paving the way this time, it is the elementary and middle school students creating their own course.

Sixth grade student Sophia Rowland recently decided she would organize fundraisers to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation because she saw how the international charity helped a family member. Last year, fourth graders Collier Bristol and Nick Agular founded an art club that met twice a week at Eugene Field Elementary as an outlet to practice their academic strength.

This ripple effect of positive behavior that is beginning to take shape both in and outside of the classroom is the result of an initiative that two dedicated Poplar Bluff administrators began to implement in 2011 called ‘The Leader in Me.’

“It’s the most transformative thing I’ve seen in my tenure,” said ‘Leader in Me’ coach Paul Pitchford during a workshop Poplar Bluff Superintendent Chris Hon participated in last week at the Missouri School Board Association’s annual conference in the Lake of the Ozarks. Pitchford has been in the field of education since 1985, mostly providing professional development to school officials, and he is “convinced that this is the most powerful school reform initiative ever,” he continued.

‘The Leader in Me’ is an initiative based on Dr. Stephen R. Covey’s best-selling book, “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,” which was introduced to school systems in 1999, and has since caught on at more than 1,000 educational institutions across the country.

Poplar Bluff unofficially joined the 19 Missouri schools in ‘The Leader in Me’ process in March 2011 after principals Jennifer Taylor of Eugene Field and the 5th & 6th Grade Center’s Mike Owen learned during the Missouri Association of Elementary School Principals conference how academic improvement was being impacted by the lessons.

“We use the seven habits as our guidelines. It’s a culture changer,” Owen stated. The second habit, to “begin with the end in mind,” will be shared during a school-wide assembly at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday in the 5th & 6th Grade Center. Poplar Bluff Black Belt Academy owner Tony Page has agreed to lead the demonstration.

The first habit, to “be proactive,” was taught to middle schoolers last month. With educators building the habits into the curriculum rather than tacking them on, local school officials say they are all able to use the same language to get through to students when disciplinary matters arise.

“During different behavioral situations, you tie it back to the students’ character strength, and remind them of that leadership commitment they made,” Taylor said. “You can just see it on their face that they take this gravely seriously, and in a sense have let themselves down.”

The counselor at the 5th & 6th Grade Center, Luann Elledge, recalled having a student who was experiencing issues with her classmate relationships last year come into the office a few weeks into this semester with a personal letter about how she plans to proactively be a better friend. “I’m so proud of her major turnaround,” Elledge exclaimed.

There are currently 10 fourth graders who volunteered to tutor first and second grade students when ‘The Leader in Me’ helped them identify a teaching aide niche from within, according to Sabrina Skaggs, Eugene Field instructional interventionist.

Eugene Field piloted the program last year with the fourth grade, and this year her staff decided to include grade three. Additionally, the elementary school is in its third year of the ‘positive behavioral interventions and supports’ process. Taylor explained that while the two concepts are not directly linked together, they are “extremely complementary” of one another, which is why Patty Robertson, assistant superintendent of curriculum/instruction, gave the principals the OK to continue their quest.

“The PBIS process is a way to bring about building-wide change with staff in how we recognize positive behavior, and how we teach our expectations to students who are struggling with some of our lessons,” Taylor said. “It’s something that unites the staff, whereas ‘The Leader in Me’ is more geared toward teaching students self-respect, self-control, and how to set and achieve goals.”

The ultimate desire is for ‘The Leader in Me’ to become a district-wide practice, according to Taylor, but securing the necessary funding will require going through the formal process in achieving ‘Lighthouse School’ status, which is the program’s golden stamp of approval. Nevertheless, school leaders are still teaching the concepts by networking with other schools involved in the process.

On Thursday, teachers from Eugene Field and the 5th & 6th Grade Center will attend ‘Leadership Day’ at Stanton Elementary School, where community members of the Fenton area will come to learn from the student presenters.

Click here for more information about ‘The Leader in Me.'

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Cutline: Speech teacher Donna Baller portrays how the turtle won the race by being proactive in “The Tortoise and the Hare” parable at ‘The Leader in Me’ assembly Sept. 5 in the 5th & 6th Grade Center.

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