Wednesday, February 26, 2003
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Wednesday, February 26, 2003 |
East Fayette earns SAPA awardFor the fourth time in the last five years, a Fayette County CARE (Children at Risk in Education) team has been given the distinguished Student Assistance Professional Association (SAPA) of Georgia Distinguished Award for Outstanding Student Assistance Program. This year SAPA awarded the honor to the CARE team at East Fayette Elementary. The competition for this award is statewide and includes elementary, middle and high school nominations making the honor extremely competitive. "We were very surprised when it was announced that we were the 2003 state winner," said counselor Leslie Fear, who is the school's CARE team leader. "We are delighted that we have helped families through our program, yet we realize that children and family needs are ever present and we are going to continue working hard to meet those needs." Currently, there are 15 faculty and staff members who makeup East Fayette's CARE team. Throughout the year they offer various types of assistance to students and parents such as providing clothes and school items, arranging for orthodontic and eye exams and providing free eye glasses as well as organizing peer mentoring programs and support groups contracted with a CARE provider and the school's counselor. In addition, the team facilitates other programs such as Rainbows, Treasure Seekers, Systematic Training for Effective Parenting, Parent Enrichment Series, Friendship Group, and Casey and the Amazing Giant Green Shirt Positive Label Program. The team also provides support to teachers at the school by distributing inspiration notes, goodies and special treats. Fear says the school's CARE team enjoys success because it acts like a family with everyone bringing their individual talents to the table and sharing them with others. She also says support from local and county administrators plays a major role in the team's accomplishments. "Special thanks goes out to Karen Spangler [school system social worker and county coordinator for CARE] and Faith Hardnett [school principal] for their support of the many programs that we offer. Without them none of this would be possible," added Fear. Fear points out that East Fayette realizes that helping to meet the social and emotional needs of students is not separate from academic achievement. She says the two must be incorporated together to help the whole child be successful and well rounded. "Our school has made the paradigm shift from the belief that prevention, philosophy, strategies and activities run a separate course from academic curriculum. We are making this a reality by providing developmentally appropriate, effective curriculum which is designed to meet the needs of students," she explained. "We at East Fayette strive to reach out to all children and help them understand that they are a member of the East Fayette family. We want each of them to understand that someone will always be there for them." East Fayette's CARE team will be recognized at the SAPA conference Feb. 26 at the Sheraton Buckhead Hotel in Atlanta. Previous CARE team winners of the SAPA award are Hood Avenue Elementary (1999), chaired by Merrilyn Gibson; Kedron Elementary (2000), chaired by Sonya Tucker; and Rising Starr Middle (2001), chaired by Kim Daniel.
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