Kell Big Thank You from Noah Harden on Vimeo.
It started with an idea from a student. As a part of the Kell Chickfila Leader Academy, students are charged with creating IMPACT projects. Projects that enrich their community to make it better for others. Through social media, word of mouth, and a desire to show teachers it importance of what they do, students crafted a plan. The project was not without challenges. How do you get students to show up at school on a day when they don’t have to? How do you get students to wake up early on a day when they don’t have to? The answers were simple. You get them to understand the impact teachers make in their life and the daily efforts they make to enrich others’ lives. Once students understood the rationale for the morning, they committed to making an impact.
Starting at around 8:00, students began to arrive. At first, there were only a few there. Then another car with a couple more students. Eventually, students began to pour in. By 8:15, there were at least 30 students there and by 8:30, nearly 100 students were in place, greeting teachers with signs, cheers, and warm welcomes. The students did this because they wanted the teachers to FEEL and SEE their appreciation.
One teacher exclaimed, “This is the best thing that has ever been done for me as a teacher!”
This sentiment was shared by other teachers who stopped to express their gratitude and even take what may have been their first “selfies” with the students. Teachers who entered through another door came out of the building just to witness this act of kindness. In addition to students, there were also younger siblings, pets, and students from other schools. Local Chickfila operator Brad Roper even dropped off gift cards for all of the teachers to have a meal courtesy of his location.
He told the club sponsor, Ben Needle, “It’s my pleasure. I am happy to help.”
Though many of the students arrived sleepy-eyed and weary, they soon transformed to energetic students!
As the Kell faculty meeting began, the students entered the cafeteria cheering for the teachers. Two students, seniors Steven Klausman and Tara Spire, shared their appreciation for what the teachers do on a daily basis. They thanked teachers for their patience, even when students seemed to be more interested in the daily rigor the school pushes them to pursue. They thanked teachers for always seeing the best they have, no matter how apparent or hidden it may be on a given day. They thanked teachers for being the teachers they are, people who want to shape the future. Steven Klausman stated, “it may be cliché, but it is true, teachers are preparing the future of America! Thank you for having the confidence in us to be the best we can be!”
