Diversity "DREAM" Award Nominees: 2006/07

A wide variety of talented students and employees were nominated for the 2006-2007 Diversity "DREAM" Awards, presented on March 14, 2007. Of the nominations received, three were selected as award recipients. Central Valley appreciates the efforts of all nominated students and employees to put diversity into action in our schools. Read more about the nominees below.

Student Nominees

Greenacres Middle School Multi-Media Program
Tyler Chamberlain, Kelby Gummersall, Clark Julian, Katie Mandler, Jarod Maynes, Kayla Peterson, Hannah Robb, Kendra Sherrill and Josie Warner

I am honored to nominate Greenacres Middle School's Multi-Media Program “What Makes Us Different Makes Us Great” for the Central Valley Diversity Award.

Our Multi-Media Program has created daily school announcements that include  many students with many talents. Its creator and teacher, Michele Eickerman, has helped the students build the skills that it takes to be able to run a real live news broadcast on a daily basis. However, this nomination is an extension to the news broadcast. The school has a mission and goal to assist students and staff to appreciate differences in individual people. This small group of young adults took that focus and created a program that is done monthly to focus on the uniqueness of individuals and what they
have that makes them different but also makes all of us great. They call it “What Makes Us Special Makes Us Great”.

The nine students in charge of creating each episode of "What Makes Us Special Makes Us Great" have worked diligently to create quality presentations that highlight specific people and/or qualities of people that make them different yet great. The students videotape each episode to play over our building wide broadcast system. Hours are spent by the students collecting information, doing video splicing, interviewing, and creating a final product that is special to the individual or individuals that are the main focus for that month's episode. The students also work hard to create something the viewers can appreciate, enjoy, and hopefully gain a better understanding and respect for the person or the unique focus for that episode. 

The presentations that the students have created so far this year are:

• Mariah:  This is about a student with special needs. She is involved in many school activities like basketball and loves to dance. The students felt that their first episode of "What Makes Us Different Makes Us Great" should focus on a student like Mariah who has such a love for life.
• A Wish Come True: This episode focused on one of our students who was selected to get a wish from the Make a Wish Foundation. She had the opportunity to meet a Country Music Super Star. The student body was treated to video footage from the meeting with this legend as well as an opportunity to meet this young lady.
• Beatle Mania: This episode was a romp back in time to look at the craze that swept the country during the 1960's with Beatle Mania. It just so happened that our Assistant Principal was in a newspaper clipping that was taken at one of the Beatle’s concerts. This gave the students the opportunity to see our Assistant Principal as a "real person" as well as a little history.
• What Makes a Family: This episode was on families who have adopted children. The episode focused on a student whose parents just adopted a child, two staff members who recently adopted children and one staff member that was himself an adopted child.
  
  This group of young people has spent many hours of their own time preparing these special presentations. They are making a difference for everyone at Greenacres Middle School.
  

Ellie Frame, Rebecca Little & Jennifer O'Bannon
Students - Horizon Middle School

Rebecca Little and Ellie Frame are part of second trimester Leadership Class.  The two eighth grade girls planned and organized Horizon’s Martin Luther King Assembly.  I watched them research and come up with assembly ideas.  They invited Rev. Happy Watkins to speak, our choir to sing and the few African American students at Horizon, to speak.  

They wanted to be sure that the youngest students, 6th graders, understood the importance of honoring Martin Luther King, so they planned an activity for 6th graders on the morning of the assembly.  They called it “The Hand of Friendship Has No Color” and created paper hands for all the 6th graders.  Then they organized our 8th grade WEB Leaders and taught them the simple activity of coloring the paper hands with unique designs.  Rebecca Little wanted to make sure all kids were included, so later she taught the lesson to students in our B.I. room.  Eventually, the girls collected all the hands and created a huge poster that is still hanging in our cafeteria.  All “hands” are glued to the poster paper and the quote is painted in gold and silver….simple but powerful.  The assembly was a great success! 

Now, Rebecca Little and Jennifer O’Bannon are continuing to break down barriers between students by organizing a “Mix It Up Day”.  This is a National event that many schools across the country have embraced.  It addresses prejudices; cliques and bullying, by having students sit with different people during lunch.  Rebecca and Jennifer have created a “seating chart” for both lunches.  In the middle of each lunch table there will be cards with conversation starters and questions.  Rebecca will attend a staff meeting the day before and encourage teachers to talk with students 1st period about breaking barriers and stereotypes.  “Mix It Up Day” at Horizon will be Friday, March 9.  The girls hope it won’t be the last!  

My last comment is that the “heart and soul” behind the ideas is Rebecca Little.  She is African American, Native American, European and Chinese and she longs for people to see her as an individual with a diverse family and background. 

Central Valley High School Spectrum Club
Olya Drewes, Chelsea Hackney, Kassi Kammerzell, Nic Morden, Katheryn Sande

The Central Valley Spectrum Club’s key objectives are to celebrate diversity and promote tolerance and acceptance of multicultural students.  This organization is very active in assisting our students with their growth in appreciation and acceptance of differences and multi-cultural richness.  With the limited ethnic diversity of our school, Spectrum has provided a place where under represented students can go to feel that they are valued members of our community.  Spectrum’s key event for this year was the Martin Luther King Jr. Day assembly.  With little guidance and supervision from their advisor, the students developed a presentation that not only honored the contributions of Dr. King, but highlighted the negative effects that bigotry, hate, and discrimination  have  on our country.  It was without question one of the best produced and received assemblies we have had at CV in many years.

Staff Nominees

Michelle Eickerman
Multi-Media Teacher - Greenacres Middle School

Michelle was nominated along with her students for "What Makes Us Different Makes Us Great" (see student nominations, above)

Vicky Seward
Supervisory Assistant - Adams Elementary

Acting as Adams PTSA president, Vicky started the practice of including both Russian and Spanish translations of the PTSA newsletter that is printed each month at Adams Elementary.  A Chinese translation was also added this year.  Now families of all languages are aware of PTSA activities and children articles from Washington State and National PTA bulletins and information from our principal, counselor and Central Valley resources.

Earnie Tate
Teacher - Central Valley High School

Mr. Tate is a living example of why we all need to believe in and support diversity.  His positive and inclusive attitude is very infectious.  Be it seeing him visiting with students in the halls, advising the Spectrum Club, or coaching soccer, all from the permanent seat of his wheelchair, one has to marvel at the positive influence he has on CV.  Earnie refuses to let his challenges stand in the way of providing our students with the best he has to offer.  From his very humbling and emotional speech at our food drive assembly to his “ribbon dance” during the Stinky Sneaker half time, Mr. Tate, has been a motivator to his peers, students, and community.  He provides the very excellent example as to why we never should exclude anyone because of their differences.  Earnie is not respected by others for his limitations, but for his unlimited respect for others.