$2.1 million fundraising campaign aims to turn every student into a leader

A pilot program in four Bibb County schools is helping students develop their leadership potential early on.

OneMacon’s Business Education Partnership raised money to start The Leader in Me in Carter and Burdell-Hunt Magnet elementary schools last year, and then Hartley and Bernd elementary schools this year. Now, the goal is to put the “whole-school transformation process” in every elementary and middle school in the district.

On Thursday morning, the partnership and the Bibb County school district kicked off a campaign to raise the $2.1 million needed for the project. Community members, educators and school representatives learned about the program over breakfast at Carter Elementary.

Sean Covey, executive vice president of global solutions and partnerships for the FranklinCovey company, spoke at the event and did a student-led tour of the school with district officials. First Lady Sandra Deal is scheduled to visit Burdell-Hunt on Friday afternoon to learn more about the Leader in Me, and she will also read to students at Bernd and Skyview elementary schools while she is in town.

The Leader in Me was started by FranklinCovey in 2009 and is based on “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen Covey, father of Sean Covey. It’s now in 3,000 schools in 50 countries.

“The world has changed so much. Skills like collaboration, adaptability, responsibility, problem-solving and working in diverse cultures are more important than ever,” Sean Covey said. “It’s vital for our school system to teach these basic concepts to children to survive in the new world.”

After the $2.1 million is raised, the program will be gradually implemented into other Bibb County schools, partnership co-chairman Blake Sullivan said. The program will go into elementary schools first, said Jamie Cassady, Bibb County’s assistant superintendent of students affairs.

“What we’re wanting to do is educate the whole child and change the culture and climate of the whole school,” he said.

Each school has a Leader in Me coach, and teachers receive ongoing training and support on how to implement the seven habits into their daily lessons, said Amanda Marsh, Carter Elementary’s Leader in Me facilitator and academic coach.

“The big thing with Leader in Me is it’s a paradigm shift in how we interact with kids and really kind of helping kids understand that everyone can be a leader,” she said. “It’s a different way of teaching.”

Students are taught habits that will empower them and help them be successful in life, Marsh said. They learn how to be proactive, work in groups and recognize and display their talents. Kids want to be a part of something, and as a result, many of Carter’s events are now student-led.

“This is about teaching life skills that will be there as long as a person lives,” Sullivan said. “Leader in Me gives these kids the tools to be the best they can be with their God-given abilities.”

Participating schools use a common language about leadership, but they adapt the program to their individual needs and move at their own pace.

The district saw positive results after a full year of implementation at Carter and Burdell-Hunt, Cassady said. Attendance has been up and discipline issues have been down. In fact, the schools have seen a 60-percent decrease in in-school suspensions, Marsh said.

“Leader in Me allows student to accept personal responsibility,” Superintendent Curtis Jones said. “When I came (to Bibb County), I said I wanted to create a culture of accountability. This is taking that from the district level, teacher level, now down to the student level. At all four schools, I’m seeing students accept more accountability.”

This story was originally published March 23, 2017 at 3:48 PM with the headline "$2.1 million fundraising campaign aims to turn every student into a leader."