PEP Phoenix Community Service Project Wins National Competition
For the second year in a row, a group of upperclassmen at PEP Phoenix have accomplished something extraordinary. Thanks to their creativity and a lot of hard work, their PEP Phoenix community service project has been awarded $4,500 in grant funding as part of a national contest. The contest, called Lead4Change, is open to all 6th-12th grade classrooms in the United States. Obviously, not all classrooms in the country participate, but there is still A LOT of competition.
The Community Service Project
The class who won the prize, known as The Pride, began working on the project earlier this school year. They knew right away they wanted to complete a community service project that made a difference to kids like themselves. Two main project areas emerged: the need for education about online safety for youth and access to diverse children’s books.
A Book on Online Safety
To address the need for online safety education, the classroom decided to write and illustrate their own book. Before putting pen to paper, each of the students shared that they had been targeted online in some way.
“Our school is a very close community,” explained Michele Dubbs, life-skills teacher-counselor at PEP Phoenix and the one who shepherded the group through the project. “They see the younger kids every day and they wanted to help them avoid some of the negative online experiences they endured themselves.” The book was filled with useful pointers and distributed to all the younger kids throughout the building. Several of the students also took copies home to their siblings.
Access to Diverse Children’s Books
As they worked on the book, The Pride also began thinking about what else they could do to support kids in their community. They decided it was important for young people to have something to do outside of their online activities. The group agreed that collecting and distributing books that kids could read – and specifically, books that represented the diversity of the community – would be the perfect way to help kids. Their plan was to collect and donate diverse books to the Cleveland Kids’ Book Bank, a nonprofit that fosters a love of reading by distributing free books to children.
“As we were talking about the project one of the students shared that he didn’t grow up with books in his house. He didn’t know how to read when he was a kid,” said Dubbs. “He was very excited and proud of the fact that he was able to collect donations for the Cleveland Kids Book Bank, so that kids would have an opportunity to have books in their home.”
One of the students who participated in the project shared how the win made him feel. “I can’t believe that we actually get to buy books for kids who really need them. It makes me feel happy and proud.”
An Extraordinary Win
This victory is sweet for so many reasons. First, like all of PEP’s Day Treatment Centers, PEP Phoenix serves young people with emotional and/or behavioral issues. Unlike its other centers, though, the young people at PEP Phoenix also have cognitive delays. All too often, society dismisses the talents and gifts of these students, focusing instead on their challenges. And yet, these young people make it clear that they have just as much to offer as their typically developing peers. This contest was not designed for kids with special needs. It was designed for any classroom. Despite the extraordinary challenge, it was the students at PEP Phoenix who created a project that won national recognition.
Second, the community service project taught the students some important lessons about themselves. Many of the students, reflecting the society around them, don’t have high expectations of themselves. Or, because they have so often experienced failure before coming to PEP, don’t understand what they’re capable of.
“Our kids came up with a big goal, a smart goal. It was concrete and measurable,” explained Dubbs. “When we started talking about this project and the books we were going to collect, they wanted to do it, but they weren’t sure if it was possible. Not only was it possible, they far-exceeded the goal they set for themselves and they felt really proud of themselves.” Now, adding a national win to their accomplishments, The Pride is really growing into their classroom name!
“We are honored to receive this donation of diverse books and applaud the students at PEP for their enthusiastic work in securing a grant,” said Leslie FitzSimmons, Communications Manager, Cleveland Kids’ Book Bank. “A child’s ability to engage in reading and to learn and imagine significantly increases when the stories they read reflect their lived experiences. We see first-hand that children gravitate towards books they can relate to, and the books from PEP will be an exciting offering for the kids we serve.”
The students’ win means that they will be able to continue the important work of providing diverse books to children in their community. The funding will allow them to purchase 400 diverse books to donate to the Cleveland Kids’ Book Bank.
Learn More
For more information about PEP’s Day Treatment Centers, visit our website. Contact Nicole Molnar, sr. director, clinical services, at 216-361-7760 ext. 110 or via email to see if a student in your district may be a good fit for Positive Education Program.
Please note, referrals to PEP’s Day Treatment Centers are made through school districts in consultation with parents. Interested parents or caregivers should contact their school administrator