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SUCCESS
STORIES
- The
Cape May County Vo-Tech. School's Habitat House Project was one of three
recipients of the 1997 Exemplary Program Award. The NJ Association of
School Administrators and NJ Association of Partners in Education sponsor
the award, and it is given to programs that have developed outstanding
partnerships to further student education. The award will be presented
at the NJASA/NJSBA Spring Conference Dinner on Sunday, May 18, 1997
at Balley's Park Place Casino & Hotel in Atlantic City. Arrangements
are also being made to highlight the Habitat House Project on the New
Jersey Network, the state's primary public television network.
- Over
one hundred students enrolled in Fair Lawn High School's service learning
course for the fall semester. Seventy-five dedicated students completed
all course requirements which included 40 hours of community service,
written reflection assignments, and procedural paper work (logs, contract,
evaluation forms, etc.) Project Director, Jeanine Hayek, surveyed the
group early in the semester to discover the reasons students enrolled
in the course. Most students responded positively stating that their
desire to help out in the community and the satisfaction they received
from helping others were major factors. Others admitted to taking the
course simply to gain credits and to add to their college application.
Of the seventy students surveyed at the closing of the course, a remarkable
100% responded that they had learned something meaningful from the course.
Also, 100% admitted they would recommend the course to other students.
In fact, those students who had mentioned "selfish" reasons
for enrolling had expressed a desire to continue volunteering even after
the course requirements were completed.
- Three
first grade classes from the Long Branch Township School District visited
seniors at the Monmouth Convalescent Center for Halloween. They performed
holiday songs, finger plays, and poetry, which they learned as part
of the service learning program. The seniors shared Halloween treats
with the students along with their memories of what school was like
when they were youngsters. Both the students and seniors enjoyed this
experience so much that future projects have been scheduled. These projects
will continue to build on various aspects of the first grade curriculum
by enhancing students' reading, writing, and verbal skills, while easing
the loneliness of local senior citizens.
- In
keeping with their class theme "Food For Thought," 175 Seventh
graders from the Haddonfield Middle School traveled to Bridgeton, NJ
with one goal in mind: to glean the Shepherd Farm. Gleaning is an activity
where individuals gather and collect grain and other produce left behind
by a reaping machine. Their efforts yielded over 5,000 pounds of tomatoes
that were subsequently distributed to 25 needy organizations such as
soup kitchens and homeless shelters. Ten teachers, the middle school
principal, and ten parent volunteers accompanied the students in their
worthwhile adventure. Students later discovered that migrant workers,
who were usually paid very little, were used to glean fields and farms
in New Jersey. As a result, the seven graders coordinated a clothing
drive to collect clothes and underwear. These articles will be given
to the children of migrant workers before they leave the state at the
end of the Fall harvest.
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