Leaders catch the Spirit & pass it on...

In working with a group of new school leaders for 2004, I encouraged them to reflect on the impression they wished to make on their school this year and what they hoped other students would remember about them. The same phrases appeared again and again: “I hope other students will see me as enthusiastic…”; “I’d like to be seen as committed and hard working…”; “I’d like to encourage others to get involved in school activities”.

We explored ideas about successful leadership and came to the conclusion that their achievements depended on how involved other students were in school life as a result of the work of the leaders. This lead to the realisation that participation by others depended upon the level of school spirit within their community. But how could they raise the level of school spirit when it is almost impossible to measure – it’s just a feeling!

All these leaders knew was that they loved their school and were proud to be part of their community. They also knew that they wanted to get fully involved in as much as possible but they recognised that not all students felt as they did. They felt their challenge was to encourage as many of the less involved students to participate in at least one thing during the year.

We turned our energies to trying to understand what school spirit might be and our brainstorming ended with the following ideas:

SCHOOL SPIRIT

• Sense of belonging to the school community
• Pride in being at the school
• Involvement in activities – and commitment
• Respect for people and for school property
• Interaction with others which can lead to friendship
• Thanks expressed in appreciation for every person’s contribution to the community

The leaders decided that to be more proactive in promoting school spirit, they might try the following ideas:

Personally inviting students to participate in house or school events, competitions or activities.

Asking students to identify and nominate other students for involvement rather than waiting for volunteers to come forward.

Expressing gratitude directly and personally to people involved in activities and to helpers for events (e.g. a note, card or chocolate frog).

Organising special school theme days or campaigns for fun and enjoyment in order to promote aspects of a sense of community (e.g. High Five Day to promote connectedness with others; De Stress Life Day to promote helping ourselves relax; Revved Up Week to get ideas from students about what they might want to improve in their school).

Creating leader awards

Using notice boards as showcases for photos of students involved in activities or events – a way of gaining exposure for students who participate.

All leaders believed that role-modelling would be important and just smiling and saying “Hi” to others as they passed in the corridor or yard could make a difference to the atmosphere of the school.

Rhonda Briscoe
Trainer