ABSTRACT
In response to attacks on Asian students at the school last year, the “Ambassadors” was organized by the bilingual counselors, students, and myself. All newly enrolled English Language Learners (ELL) students are assigned a buddy to help them get acclimated to the school and to point out where to go for various services, such as the Instructional Materials Center, the bilingual counselors, and the school nurse. The group is also working on organizing different multicultural activities, such as an international food fair. When every student begins at the school, they sign a pledge to treat all groups with respect regardless of race, religion, or gender identity. We have begun a program with the upperclassmen mentoring the lowerclassmen. Our philosophy is to create student-centered programs. As we planned for next year, a planning committee worked on student-tailored academies within the school; then we had the students give us feedback on which programs were ones they would be interested in pursuing. We are creating a school based on student needs, not on what the teachers want. We have to keep reminding ourselves not to consider the impact on staffing, but the impact on filling student needs. We have the Parent Link program that allows me to make phone calls to every student in our school. I make phone calls at least once a week,
keeping families informed about important things going on. When we received a tip that someone was selling pills at school, I called the parents and let them know and encouraged them to talk to their children and keep all prescription drugs locked up.
