Primary school puts focus on leadership
Lou Marzeles
News Editor
If you're looking for a good leader-someone who is a sound self manager, reliable, resourceful, a good role model-you might want to drop by the Goldendale Primary School.
Of course, you'll have to wait a while to actually have one of the leaders being developed there come to work with you. The students undergoing the unique leadership program at the school are in classes ranging from kindergarten to fourth grade.
The primary school is in its first year of working with the Seven Habits leadership program, named for the perennially popular character development book by Stephen Covey, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. Since its publication in 1989, the book has sold more than 15 million copies worldwide and spawned countless spin-off applications and training uses. Among these is a web site and program called "The Leader in Me." On the home page is a promise from Covey himself: "As you teach these principles to young students, you'll be creating a generation of leaders, one child at a time."
"That's what we're doing here," says primary school principal, Thaynan Knowlton. "Over the course of the last year, we've had teachers ask for some kind of a character development program. Mrs. [Deborah] Rawdon [the primary school counselor] and I looked around over the summer, and we stumbled upon Seven Habits and 'The Leader in Me.' We found a school in North Carolina that's really doing this in an exemplary way; it's a magnet school, and the whole theme is on student leadership."
Inspired by the North Carolina school and what it was accomplishing, Knowlton and Rawdon talked with the primary school teachers here about doing something similar. "We liked the idea of a whole school doing the seven habits and students who became leaders in a variety of ways. So we talked with the teachers about having a leadership class here, with a class meeting and then choosing a president and a vice president and a secretary and a treasurer. Then we would take those students in every classroom K-4 and walk them through a seven- or eight-week leadership training program, focusing on a different habit every week, for about a half hour. Then those students would go back and share with the other kids what they had learned."
The seven habits identified by Covey are: be proactive, begin with the end in mind, put first things first, think win-win, seek first to understand then be understood, synergize (creative cooperation), and sharpen the saw (balanced self-renewal). The principles have been modified in approach and application for young children in the current program.
The program began this year and is proving immediately popular. Each eight weeks, the students in the leadership class rotate leadership positions-there are term limits to the officers-and new students get a shot at holding offices.
"This is a character development program in a sense," Knowlton says, "but really what we're trying to do is develop a core of leaders and then have them teach their peers what leadership is. And then, after eight weeks, those students would no longer be the president or other officer; they'd serve their term for eight weeks, and then there'd be a new group of kids. Then you just repeat that process all year long until two thirds of the class, maybe more, would all get an opportunity to take some kind of leadership position and teaching the other kids about the same seven habits. If every student gets a shot at it, I think it will be equitable."
Rawdon adds, "I'm teaching seven habits with other students also, and I'm in every class once a week teaching the seven habits. So they're getting it from a variety of places."
"We have different behavior programs in place now," Knowlton says. "One of them is called the self-management program. That's where each child has the opportunity to apply to become a self manager. And our self manager application form has our three main criteria, and under those are signature lines with the specifics of what that means."
The three criteria are: I am safe (being in the right place at the right time, walking while indoors, keeping hands and feet to oneself), I am kind (taking turns, using a soft voice, kinds words and language, treating others as one would like to be treated), and I am responsible (watching for and listening to adults, following instructions, being dependable). Teachers sign off on students' applications, indicating that the student has successfully met the criteria. Then the form is taken to other people. "They take it to the librarian, the music teacher, the bus driver, and they all have to sign off," Knowlton says. "Once they do, they get a badge and special recognition."
The school has additional layers of leadership training, including a school "job fair." There are 13 different jobs that students can apply for. One of the most popular is working in the school-wide postal system. "We've got mail boxes and mail bags and uniforms," Knowlton says. "You can put a letter in with a special stamp and mail it. We have a whole variety of jobs, and to get those jobs, you have to be a good self manager."
Knowlton has been principal at the school for the last six years. He came out of a background in psychology and holds a masters' degree in clinical psychology. For some years he was the district psychologist before moving into his current position, after acquiring additional education credentials. Rawdon was a medical technologist for 35 years before going back to school to obtain a masters' degree in school counseling. She came to the school last year as the school counselor.
"In every way, we encourage students to do and be their best," Knowlton states. "And the kids love it."
Water rates and budget covered at city council
Andrew Christiansen
Reporter
First reading of the revised water rate ordinance and the preliminary budget were top agenda items at this week's Goldendale city council meeting.
The water rate ordinance awaits final legal analysis before it can be assigned a number, according to city administrator, Larry Bellamy. The new rate schedule is designed to create a fund that will be used to make improvements to the storage and delivery system in future years. The second reading will be at the Nov. 16 council meeting.
Bellamy presented the revised 2010 budget proposal and explained the adjustments that have been made to the initial budget to bring it into balance. The initial budget expenditures were about $80,000 more than expected revenue. Balance was achieved by eliminating $34,300 from the proposed law enforcement line, and by reducing the ending cash reserve to $353,700, which is down from the initially proposed $400,000.
The cuts in law enforcement included elimination of the reserve officer program and delaying the addition of a 10th police officer until July 2010. Councilman, Tom Cuff stated his preference for elimination of the 10th officer completely in favor of purchase of surveillance equipment for World War II Park and Ekone Park, targets of frequent vandalism. Cuff stated his belief that no number of officers can stop the vandalism and he would prefer to invest in cameras as a deterrent.
Councilman Cline Baze also preferred elimination of the 10th officer, but Baze expressed his preference for reinstating the reserve officer program. The difficulty in finding qualified candidates was discussed, as was the cost of funding a 10th officer either from a lateral transfer from another agency or developed from within. Baze voiced concern about spending money on a newly trained officer only to have that person leave once qualified. He also had little confidence in hiring laterally, stating, "We don't pay officers enough to attract lateral applicants."
Councilman Gary Hoctor offered a compromise whereby the police department would use the funds for the 10th officer to try and recruit a class of reserves and, if that failed, then proceed with the hiring of an officer in July.
Cuff also had concerns about the reserve falling below the $400,000 goal. Public works director, Keith Grundei, pointed out that some of that shortfall would be offset by the newly added reserves for water and sewage.
There will be two public hearings on the budget, Nov. 16 and Dec. 7, at regular council meetings.
In other business, the council unanimously approved a cabaret license for the Barred Rock Pub & Grub. Kelly Shay is on the agenda for the next meeting to discuss his work promoting the industrial park and the prospect of extending his contract.
Fatalities on Bickleton Highway
At about 9:19 p.m. Oct. 27, the Klickitat County sheriff's office 911 center dispatched emergency responders to a two-vehicle collision near milepost four on Bickleton Highway, Goldendale.
Two vehicles collided head-on in the incident, a Ford Escort and a Nissan Altima. The driver of the Escort, 26-year-old Charles Browning of Goldendale, was pronounced dead at the scene. A passenger in the Escort, 28-year-old Scott Holcomb of Goldendale, was also pronounced dead at the scene. Twenty three-year-old Lynise Browning of Goldendale and two small children were additional passengers in the Escort. They were treated for various types of injuries.
The driver of the Altima, 67-year-old Terrie Hardie of Goldendale, was transported by Lifeflight with serious injuries.
The sheriff's office, assisted by the Washington State Patrol, is continuing the investigation. |
