Community Spotlight! Ms. Brown’s Kind Class

Early in February, we challenged local elementary schools to display how they can show kindness to their community. One entry we received was from Ms. Brown’s 7th grade Advisory Class down at Meadville Area Middle School. Ms. Carolyn Brown led her entry by saying that although her class does not fit the criteria of being an elementary school, they wanted to take on the challenge, and did! She goes on to explain the idea for the project:

“Two weeks ago, we discussed World Kindness Day that is approaching on Friday, February 17th, which is also known as Random Acts of Kindness Day. We discussed various things that we could do for others, including the community, our families, and people at school. Students voted on focusing on adults in our own building. Some of the ideas included thank-you notes, treat bags, and painting rocks. They voted and decided to paint rocks.” Students put together a list of nearly every staff person in their building and organized them by department. They brainstormed designs together, and then listed and gathered their supplies. The painting process took them seven days. By the end, the class was very happy with their work.

Kora, a student, tells us their experience. “I think the teachers were happy and really appreciated what we did. It was fun to paint and hand out the rocks. My favorite part of the project was getting to be creative and do art.” We followed up with Ms. Brown a few weeks later to gather some more details and learned that the effects of her class’s act of kindness continue to give. “Some staff have them out where they can be seen daily. It’s nice to see them on window sills facing the hallways, on desks, etc. A couple teachers have blessed others by putting them on someone else’s desk to cheer them, like a pass it around type thing.” As a way to recognize and reward Ms. Brown’s Advisory Class, our team at ONE and Principal Fry arranged a special surprise including a certificate of kindness, Cup n’ Spoon giftcards for each of the students and a ton of sweet treats and snacks! We’re delighted to recognize and share the efforts of our community leaders and the impact they make as a way to help reinforce the philosophy of kindness.