How many years has it been that I have been inside a Middle School?
Well, I knew the reason why I got up at 7:30am after Memorial Day and begged my roommate to get up that early to drive me over to work. One of my co-workers, Leslie was going to “graduate” about 40 six-graders from the All Star Program, an alcohol, drug prevention program. She was so excited about this program that I could just see smiles curling up on her lips.
From listening to her on our car rides to various events, I have begun to understand her point of view. Leslie wasn’t the goodie-two-shoe girl in school, but she is tough and won’t let anyone bring her down. She has come a long way in her life and deserves every penny she earns. When she just started this job, she confessed that she didn’t even know how to turn on a computer. Now, she is the administrative assistant and has been in charge of the All Star program since last year. It means so much to her to do a prevention program where she is influencing young kids to make the right decision before it is too late. On the way to New Heights Middle School, Leslie, with one hand on the stirring wheel and one hand over her heart, said to me, “Let me tell you, All Star IS my baby. I tell everyone that don’t no body touch it.”
Once we arrived at the middle school, I feel like I had a flashback of me being in Middle School. I can’t believe that I am actually on “the other side.” I was the one in high heels walking down the hall with a sense of authority. I didn’t know what to think. What are the middle-schoolers thinking? How should I act?
New Heights is not a typical public school. The students wore uniforms of white, light blue, or dark blue polo shirts and khakis pants. Everyone had to form lines when they change classes. I have never been in such a strict setting before, but reports said that the crime rates did not go up ever since the new principal from North Carolina took over the school. It was so encouraging to see six-graders actually taking the All Star program seriously. They were in the stage where they still listened to authority figures, but they are developing their own personalities. No wonder Leslie loves this program.
But happy stories never really end happily. The All Star Program is what they call a “performance-based” program. It can receive funding only if the state legislative sees progress. The students take a survey at the beginning at the program and at the end for the educators to monitor the progress. However, there’s a paradox. If no one in the class smoke before the program, and no one smoked after the program, then the improvement would be none. However, we would never know if this message would eventually help them in the future. If the fund is discontinued for no improvement, I feel that it would defeat the subconscious influence that the program would eventually have. I know that when I have to face decisions, things that I have learned from long, long ago actually kicks in. Plus, kids are influenced by more factor than one when it comes to drinking and doing drugs. How can you measure improvement when other factors may be in play?
Besides touring the school, I also toured the area around the school: Jefferson, and Pageland. It is amazing what I am learning about these places. For example, Jefferson has only one streetlight, and no grocery stores (the nearest one is in 17 miles!). Talk about the difficulty in eating healthy! Leslie also took me to the drag-race tracks. It is THE place to be on the weekends. It looks like a piece of racetrack in the middle of nowhere. At the end of the day, I felt like I am taking lessons on living a small-town life, and Leslie is my person guide to it all.
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