Brotherhood & Sisterhood week

ORGANIZERS AT THIS NEW YORK SCHOOL PLAN A WEEK OF ACTIVITIES TO PROMOTE CIVILITY, AWARENESS, RESPECT, AND TOLERANCE, AND STRIVE TO REACH EVERY PERSON IN THE DISTRICT.

For many of the more than 7,000 students in the Fairport (NY) Central District, summer is a time to take a break from the school year's daily responsibilities. But for high school assistant principal and faculty adviser Gregg Obenauf, it is time to put the wheels in motion for an annual project that he believes inspires his students to embrace diversity not only during the coming school year, but for a lifetime.

Each summer, Obenauf reviews the enormous list of new classroom assignments and pairs a high school homeroom class with a classroom of elementary students. Throughout the next year, each paired group of students will act as a team of buddies or pen pals, advising one another of special experiences. This pairing of older students with younger ones is the first step toward promoting the district's successful Brotherhood-Sisterhood Week.

Students begin planning for the weeklong springtime event in December. According to 2004-2005 high school senior and class officer Chris Nulty, the goal of the project is to promote civility, awareness, respect, and tolerance-CART. Through a week of activities aimed at celebrating CART, the Brotherhood-Sisterhood planning committee strives to touch every student in the district, from kindergarten through twelfth grade. "It is the hope of the committee that students begin to look beyond the color of someone's skin, the church they attend, and the clothes that they wear," explains Nulty.

The 30-member committee is sponsored by Fairport HS and consists of student council members, class officers, advisers, and other faculty members. According to Nulty, the committee attempts to recruit members from every clique within the school. "Students took the initiative to ask other students to become a part of the committee. Due to this student-to-student interface, the Brotherhood-Sisterhood committee was a true cross section of Fairport High School." Because of the individual talents offered by a melting pot of students, Nulty believes that unique ideas shaped the perfect week and enabled natural leaders to emerge.

Obenauf agrees that the students take the reigns in planning the project. "The faculty assists with many of the administrative duties," he says, "but the kids do 90% of the actual program planning."

Focus on Diversity

Each year, the celebration week follows the same basic schedule. On Monday, student council officers and committee members welcome high school students with candy and special pins inscribed with messages illustrating the week's theme, if Later in the day, the students attend a special assembly entitled Family Talk. The assembly features a student and a faculty member who have served as role models for others and have reinforced CART through their actions. Because of his three years of dedication as a class officer, student council representative to the state, and committee member, Nulty was selected as the student speaker for 2004-05.

Monday's assembly also includes the presentation of a cash donation to a local charity. Each year, the committee selects a charity based on needs within the community. The junior class sponsors the fundraising activities, including a school dance, candy sales, and direct donations from students and faculty.

Tuesday's feature event is the presentation of a committee-produced video entitled "Meeting My Brothers and. Sisters." A new video is filmed and edited each year, and features students and faculty members detailing their own struggles in dealing with diversity and acceptance. "This video leaves students and faculty alike thinking about how they treat those who are different from them. It is amazing how the words of your peers can really make you think about how you act," says Nulty.

Wednesday's events take the students outside the mental boundaries of their own school and into the community. A community leader is invited to speak regarding his or her life experiences in dealing with diversity issues. Students are encouraged to consider the role that diversity plays in personal and business relationships beyond those within the classroom.

On Wednesday, the efforts of Obenauf's summer project also begin to materialize as eleventh grade students travel to the elementary schools to meet with their fourth grade buddies. The buddies team up to make signs promoting civility, awareness, respect, and tolerance. They then join forces to participate in the Junior March, a unity march along the canal walkway through the center of town. Parents, local business owners, and students line the parade route signifying their support for respect and awareness throughout Fairport.

Thursday's events celebrate the unique talents of students and faculty members. Fairport High School Unplugged encourages musicians, poets, and other artists to come together to showcase their talents. While students are usually the ones to take the stage during this event, faculty members occasionally perform as well. According to Nulty, it is a unique way to learn about and appreciate those who walk the halls with you every day.

Buddy Bonding

The main event of the weeklong celebration occurs on Friday when, after months of correspondence, all of the high school students travel to the elementary schools to meet with their younger buddies. Throughout the school year, the buddies have exchanged correspondence about their families, field trips, and other items of interest. The high school students have made a special effort to promote CART through their monthly pen pal letters.

During the first part of the visit, the high school students talk to the younger children about what it means to practice CART in their own lives. After the discussion, the buddies pair up to complete a community service project. Last year, the students worked together to design and distribute butterfly magnets to elderly persons within the community. Along with brightening the day for area seniors, the project also served to illustrate that the theme of Brotherhood-Sisterhood Week applies to everyone in the community, both young and old.

For Nulty, the success of the annual event can be measured in the feelings of warmth that linger in the Fairport schools long after the week has passed. "Instead of only tolerating others we learn to respect them, too," says Nulty. "When you can walk through the halls of Fairport High School and see students caring for one another, not because they have to but because they want to, you know you have truly succeeded."

For Obenauf, using part of his summer to gear up for the project is time well spent. He takes pride in the fact that in March 2005, the school will be celebrating the tenth anniversary of Brotherhood-Sisterhood Week. "For me, the best part of the week is on Friday when our high school kids are teaching a lesson to the younger kids about the value of CART. I realize that some of our students who were participating in this event years ago are now participating on a different level as teachers," Obenauf says. "It is gratifying to watch it come full circle."

Kathleen Wilson Shryock is a freelance writer in Olathe, KS.

Copyright National Association of Secondary School Principals Mar 2005
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