PEP Phoenix Students Win National Leadership Award
Last year, when a group of PEP Phoenix upperclassman competed in a national contest that awards grant dollars for the best service project ideas, they hoped they might win. At the same time, they tried to stay realistic. 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 students’ hope turned to elation this summer when they learned they had won.
The students at PEP Phoenix regularly volunteer at St. Herman House, a local homeless shelter for men in Cleveland, and decided to propose a project to benefit the people staying there. Because of their regular time spent with the residents, the students knew it could be hard for them to access hygiene items like soap and shampoo. They proposed creating hygiene kits to distribute to residents.
“I never did anything like this before in my life. It went well. I liked being able to help people,” said one student of his experience.
An Extraordinary Win
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, students with these types of challenges are overlooked by society. 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.
“This project was student led,” said Michele Dubbs, the life-skills teacher-counselor at PEP Phoenix and the one who shepherded the group through the project. “For many of our students, their lives are filled with traumatic experiences, and while doing Lead4Change a lot of students opened up about the traumas that they have suffered,” explained Dubbs. “They were also able to see that trauma in other people.”
“It was a good chance to help out other people who needed it the most. It helped me to be grateful for what I have,” explained one of the students.
The students’ win means that they will receive a grant to fully fund their project. Now, students can assemble a sufficient supply of hygiene kits to fully meet the needs of the men at St. Herman House.
Learn More
Visit our website to learn more about the Lead4Change Service-Learning Project at PEP Phoenix. 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.