Students and staff at the Resilience Academy are in the spirit of holiday giving for school families in need.
Student government has organized a food and coat drive, and the positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS) committee had two trees in the conference room for staff to select an ornament with a gift to purchase on it.
Alexandra Varble said student government originally started a food drive and added the second drive to collect coats, gloves and hats. Both drives have been a success.
“It warms my heart greatly. I’m very pleased it worked so well,” said Varble.
“Our goal is to help people in need and help our community help students. This holiday season, people need food and people need coats. There are many students in this school who are not as fortunate and do not have the ability to buy a winter coat for themselves. We are collecting winter coats for our students so they can be warm this winter.”
PBIS committee members Christina Olson, Krystine Nardozzi, Rob LaColla and Kayla Kelly organized the two trees in the conference room with about 150 ornaments/gift tags. All gift ornaments were taken by school staff to purchase the gifts.
“The generosity is amazing,” said Nardozzi.
LaColla added, “We’re so appreciative. Walking around knowing that level of generosity and spirit is among our colleagues, it feels like walking around in a big hug.”
Olson said PBIS began working on this project in September.
“Knowing our families that struggle and have great need, we wanted to make sure it started and we had enough time,” said Olson. “The feedback from the staff has been incredible. We had so many people come up to us and ask us what else they can do and what we need.”
Geomari Fermin is spending her first holiday season as Resilience Academy’s assistant principal and is seeing what makes the school community special.
“It warms my heart that this is such a tight community,” she said. “Students have been donating a lot, which is great. I’m grateful for the staff who have taken the initiative and are feeling so warm to give to our families. This is what makes us a community.”
Other activities around campus
- At Salt Point Center, staff are collecting gifts, canned goods and non-perishable food item to support households.
- CTI’s Future Farmers of America chapter continues to collect hygiene and cleaning supplies for families.