Update- Lead Project #2

For my lunchtime spirit competitions, I would like to buy a megaphone/microphone before I host another one.  The only way I could get everyones attention was by standing on the table and yelling.  Not suprisingly, this didn't work too well.  I am looking into megaphone prices and they range from about $15 to $50.  I am hoping to bring this up to an ASB meeting in the near future.  Then, I would like to host another lunchtime spirit competition (with the new megaphone) when we return from break. 

The other projects I have helped with such as the Candyland Tolo and Operation: Surprise have been going well.  Although not a lot of people showed up to tolo, it was still fun and the decorations were fantastic.  As for Operation: Surprise, I am writing my own letter and planning on visiting classes tomorrow to collect letters.

Update on Leadership Progress

Independent Project Progress Update


Yesterday, I finished my reflection on my first independent project for the campus clean up.  I also held the first in a series of lunchtime spirit competitions on Wednesday, November 17th 2010.  I still need to get written feedback from various students in the student body.  During an ASB meeting, we reflected on how it went.  The following aspects were discussed:

-Definitely getting a microphone.

    We had to yell which wasn't very effective.

-Having grades more fairly represented.

-Playing lunch before the beginning of the competition.

-Possibly getting a megaphone

-Getting the word out effectively, but not spoiling the surprise.

At the moment, I am currently helping with other ASB projects such as the spirit board and the winter Tolo.

Until next time!

Post Project Reflection-School Grounds Clean Up

Project Name: Campus Clean Up

Group Members: Karan G, Drew H, Allison D, Cole S, AJ S, Anna S, Royce L, Katie M, Isaiah B, Roman V, Salina A, Lianda A, Gerson G

Overall, I thought this project was successful.  All of the teachers were tended to and there was a fair distribution of work.  People finished at a reasonable time and were able to leave when they were done.  The teachers were able to have the odds and ends of their room that the janitor doesn’t normally work on tidied up.  However, one thing that went wrong was how some of my volunteers bailed out last minute, so I had to find a sufficient amount of replacements last minute.  This is something that seems to happen pretty often, so I need to find a better way to deal with it in the future.  But, one thing that did go well was that we still had enough people show up where everyone only had to work on one or two rooms.  In the past, whenever there was a lack of volunteers, I had to assign multiple rooms to volunteers.  I thought the distribution of work was very even and nobody had to work too much.  Furthermore, the cleaning pairs worked very well together and there weren’t any problems with how the group worked.  During my time, I tried to go around to each room and check in with each of the cleaning pairs.  When most of the volunteers had finished, I stayed and helped clean up Room 2 with another volunteer.  Aside from figuring out a better way to deal with volunteers bailing out last minute, I don’t think there were any problems with the actual cleaning.  Teachers had the necessary supplies and if they didn’t, volunteers could just borrow from the janitor or another teacher. 

My next project will be a lunchtime spirit competition.  I wrote a project outline for it in my previous blog entry.

Pictures of the campus clean up are also available on the blog!

Proposal for Lead Project #2

Executive Summary:

Picture this:  A high school filled with passionless zombies, apathetic about their learning and careless about their school.  A high school with students unenergetic and unenthusiastic about everything and anything.  Everybody does the bare minimum; nobody has any pride about going to their school.  Now ask yourself: Would you want to go to a school with no school spirit?

My project of lunchtime spirit competitions is a series of quick and easy spirit competitions during lunchtime.  These competitions, held at least once a month, will hopefully boost school spirit and pride.  When I need help, I will collaborate with other ASB members and leadership students.  The cost of this project should be minimal and the time table is pretty flexible. The end objective is to create a series of competitions that will become a tradition for each year after this one. 

Need:

            School spirit is critical to creating a positive learning environment and encouraging atmosphere.  If students have pride in their school, they will have pride in their work.  Students will become more committed to their work if they are enjoying themselves and appreciate the school they attend.  School spirit fosters an environment where students are encouraged to go above and beyond and when overall morale is higher, everyone is happier. 

Lunchtime spirit competitions will be an unexpected, yet welcome surprise for students and will add a little more pep in the middle of their day.  It will add more excitement to the daily routines within the school day.  Students will be more invested in their learning if they have more school spirit.  Although students at Aviation aren’t the passionless zombies described above, there are still students who have absolutely no school pride.  Thus, there is an absolute need for an independent project like this. The end result will boost school pride, which is overall beneficial to our school, students, and greater community. 

Objective:

            The end objective of this project is to create an ongoing series of spirit competitions.  By the end of the school year, I hope to make lunchtime a period where students are not only excited to eat their food, but also am in great anticipation for the next spirit competition.  I hope these spirit competitions become tradition and will be continued year after year.

Method:

            Because the idea of lunchtime spirit competitions embodies surprise, variety, and unpredictability, there isn’t a specific method or concrete details about the competitions.  However, the overall steps will include:

1)      (Optional) Spreading the word.

2)      Holding a spirit competition.

3)      Getting feedback.

4)      Adding to the spirit point’s board.

5)      Repeating Steps 2-4.

For each spirit competition, there will be more detailed steps as well. 

1)      Picking a date to hold a spirit competition.

a.       Talking with administration and getting everything passed.

2)      Deciding on a quick and easy spirit competition. 

a.       Gathering needed materials & buying supplies if needed.

b.      Practicing competition beforehand.

3)      (optional) Spreading the news. 

a.       Giving an all school announcement.

4)      Holding actual event.

5)      Talking to students in order to get feedback.

I have outlined the action plan for the first spirit competition: “Bottom’s Up”

1)      Picking a date to hold the competition: November 17^th

a.       Putting the date on the calendar with Ms. Stark.

b.      Getting the competition approved by Mr. McComb.

2)      Deciding on a quick and easy spirit competition

a.       Researching games on websites like Minute to Win It.

b.      Gather aluminum cans from Ms. Durrant.

c.       Find/make a yo-yo.

d.      Practicing beforehand to make sure the activity is reasonable and entertaining.

3)      (optional) Spreading the news. 

a.       Talk to Ms. Hiranaka about making an all school announcement just before lunchtime.

4)      Holding actual event.

a.       Bring out the stereo.

b.      Carry out the table to the back of the cafeteria.

c.       Getting student competitors from each grade.

d.      Holding the competition.

5)      Talking to students in order to get feedback.

a.       Get lots of advice since this is the first time.

b.      Make a list of revisions for the next spirit competition.

Each spirit competition will have a unique set of steps in order to be successful.  I will take actions accordingly.

Evaluation:

            After I host each competition, I will ask a few students that either participated or watched to give feedback.  I might make a handout that I can give back each time so that students can rate each competition and I will be able to compare it to the past competitions.  By the end of the year, I hope that the ratings will be higher than the ratings for the first few competitions.

Qualifications:

            I will have whatever equipment I can find or gather myself and I will most likely be working in the cafeteria most of the time.  I will collaborate with other ASB members as well whenever I need an opinion or need their help.  I am qualified to host these competitions because I have been at the school for 3 years, so I have a general feel for what will be exciting and what the student body will find entertaining.  I have also been apart of the ASB for a while, so I am used to planning events.  I also took a quick course on lunchtime spirit activities at leadership camp in the summer.  I know what types of competitions are realistic and how to make it quick and easy, yet exciting.

Timetable:

It’s hard to set a timetable because each competition will be unique and require different amounts of planning.  Overall, the timetable for the competitions should be throughout the whole year.  I hope to get one in at least once a month.

Budget:

            The overall cost of this project should be minimal and case-by-case.  Hopefully, all of the smaller competitions will be resourceful and only need household items.  However, if a competition does need certain supplies, the cost should be minimal.  I would probably ask for the ASB to help fund it, since this project is also an ASB project and helps achieve one of the main goals ASB wanted to achieve this year.

Conclusion:

            This project will be extremely worthwhile for our entire school.  After all, the happier and more excited people are, the more productive they will be.  By having unpredictable and random spirit competitions at lunchtime, it will boost school morale just as people are beginning to be tired in the middle of the day.  The competitions will be very quick and easy and will require minimal clean up and set up.  They will hopefully raise the school pride and spirit within the students.  Hopefully, this project will continue on next year and become a tradition for each year afterwards.

A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words.

Campus Clean Up Pictures!

(The equivalent of 11,000 words about how great it went!)

HUGE THANKS to all of the WONDERFUL helpers that participated in the clean up!  You guys made it a success :)

Roman V deep in thought as he cleans Gudor's room.

Isaiah B sprucing up the councelor's office!

Salina, Gerson, and Lianda having the time of their lives in Ms. Fitzpatrick's room.

A candid shot of Drew H cleaning Ms. Wombold's room.

AJ S doing a top notch job in Senor Ward's room.

Teamwork at its finest.

Drew H and Karan G doing all kinds of cleaning.

Cole S and Anna S getting briefed by Savvy Savishinsky.

Anna S diligently working at binder clipping computer wires.

Allison D and Karan G being good samaritans.

Allison D enjoying herself as she cleans the white board.

Once again, Campus Clean-Up could NOT have been accomplished without all of the wonderful help I received.  Kudos!  If any volunteers want to get their volunteer hours signed off, come talk to me.  A leadership reflection will follow shortly.

Campus Clean-Up (Lead Project) Update (Includes MILESTONES)

What's Going On With The Campus Clean Up!?



Milestone Dates:

October 21- Talk to Ecology Club / Other interested Clubs (i.e. Interact)

October 25- Figure out tasks & jobs

October 28 – Email Teachers to see who wants room cleaned

October 29- Send out Informational Emails

November 1- Send out Reminder Emails

November 2 – Hold event

 UPDATE:

By today, I should’ve accomplished 2 of my milestones.  I have been successful with this so far.  I talked to Tessa Tweet, the president of Ecology Club, and have also talked with students in leadership class to get a general idea of how many people will be helping.  I’ve also gotten a better idea of what other leadership students are doing with their “clean-ups.”  For instance, I know Arun had an outdoor parking lot clean up and I know that Margo & Corrigan are leading a project to help teachers with their various errands.  I have been able to figure out the tasks and jobs specific to this campus clean up so that there won’t be any overlap.

By tomorrow, I would like to send out an email to all of the staff so that I can figure out how many rooms need to be cleaned.  Afterwards, I will be able to better divide up classrooms and know a better number of how many people I’ll need that day. 

Tasks & Jobs for the Campus Clean-Up:

-Straighten up/alphabetize book shelves

-Clean Tables & Desks

-Clean Computer Areas

-Clean Whiteboards

-Organize desks

-Get rid of unneeded items

-Take out recycling/garbage   

PROJECTS I'M HELPING WITH:

Music Podcasts (Drew H)
 Thanksgiving

Food Drive

(Sarah C)
 School Game Night (Siva H)
 Wright High School Visit Get Together (Miranda S)

UPDATE:

Both Drew and Siva’s projects are still in the planning process, so I have not been able to help out too much with their projects.  For Sarah’s food drive, I plan on working at the hot chocolate and tea stand some of the days as well as help with anything else she needs.  For the Wright High School Visit Get Together, I helped check to see if the karaoke machine was working!  I also plan on being there for the actual event, helping set up, and helping clean up. 

I decided to help with the music podcasts because it is something unique that our school hasn’t had before.  As for the game night, it seemed like a fun idea and I think it will go over really well with the rest of our school.  As part of ASB, I am naturally helping out with Sarah and Miranda’s projects. 

List of Projects

Projects I am Planning on Leading:
1) Campus Clean Up
 (see outline)
 Students helping:
 Ecology Club Students
 Drew H
 Siva H
 AJ S
 Karan G

2) Junior Toga Twister Party
 Students Helping:
 Drew H
 Karan G
 Looking for more helpers!

3) Lunchtime Spirit Competition
 Students Helping:
 Francis B
 Aj S
 Cole S
 Gavin Z

Projects that I am Planning On Helping With:
 Music Podcasts (Drew H)
 Thanksgiving Food Drive (Sarah C)
 School Game Night (Siva H)
 Wright High School Visit Get Together (Miranda S)

Leadership Force Analysis!

Driving Forces

Barriers

-classrooms will be cleaner -students involved in cleaning will hopefully respect the classroom more -better learning environment -students will be giving back and not just benefiting for themselves -teachers will be happier -students will learn a variety of housework skills -students will feel the responsibility of caring for their learning environment -teachers will be able to focus on teaching and not about the conditions of their classrooms -general tidier atmosphere = more conducive learning -this clean up should be better than the previous two clean ups

-Quality of cleaning will not be up to par -Helpers will want to socialize instead of clean -Teachers won’t want our help -Lack of cleaning supplies (i.e. whiteboard wash-spray) -Lack of time -Lack of students wanting to help -Teachers expecting too much/more help than we can provide -Lack of organization/Helpers not knowing what to do -Teachers not wanting students in their room after school when no one is there -Students will flake and bail out at the last minute (has happened before)

Barrier: The quality of cleaning will not be up to par.
One thing that is important to the success of this project is how well the campus is actually cleaned.  If there isn't that much of a difference with the before and after classrooms, then the project wasn't exactly successful.  One thing that I will work on combating is the quality of the cleaning by the helpers.  Although I cannot directly change how well each person can clean, I would like to influence how hard they try and make sure everyone is on the same page.
One way that I am going to do this is by giving them guidelines in the reminder emails and giving a quick talk to the helpers before I send them off to their rooms.  I would remind them about the importance to actually try hard to clean the rooms.  Another thing I will be doing is going around to each of the rooms during the clean up to help out and also check in with each team/pair.  This has seemed to be helpful in the past because if a pair had any questions or needed extra supplies, I was able to help. 

Barrier:  Lack of Organization/ Helpers not knowing what to do

One thing that is critical to having a smooth clean up is organization.  I would like everyone to know exactly where they are going and what they are going to do beforehand.  If there is a breakdown in communication, then a teacher’s room might not be attended to or teams end up cleaning the wrong rooms.

In order to overcome this barrier, I will distribute check sheets at the beginning of the clean up so teams can fill in what they did and possibly get the teacher to check off the sheet (if the teacher is still there).  I hope this will add some organization so that when I look back on the clean up, I’ll be able to know who did what and for which teachers.  I hope this will also help the cleaners have a better knowledge of what they are doing.

Barrier: Students will flake and bail out at the last minute (has happened before)
            Because cleaners often have other after school activities, they have had to bail out at the last minute.  The biggest thing I can do to help control these possible issues is to send out reminders and keep them constantly in the loop about what is going on.  I plan on sending out reminder emails a week and a day beforehand.

            I will also try to talk to them in person and personally remind them.  This way, if they still can’t make it, I will know as soon as possible and make adjustments.  However, if students bail out at the last minute, then I think the check sheets and organization will help combat this problem as well.  I will be able to redistribute rooms and change up the teams and still be able to have them fill out the check sheets to have documentation.

October 14th- Work Day Progress

October 14th, 2010.

During the Independent Project time, I talked over ideas of a Junior class get together with some fellow juniors.  Last year, I had wanted to throw a Roman toga party, but didn't have enough time to organize everything.  In addition, everyone had a lot of fun playing the game Twister at the sophomore class get together ("The Sophomore Pajama Party) I organized last year.  Thus, I would like to make a Junior Toga Twister party.  I've also noticed that a lot of people are doing clean-up type projects, so on top of my Campus Clean Up project, I hope to organize the junior class get together.

Next Steps:
-"run with the idea!"
-Take an interest survey
-Figure out a location, time, and date
-Figure out activities and find a mentor
-make guidelines for the fun yet appropriate attire for the event
-figuring out how to cover costs/whether it will be a potluck or donations

PROJECT: Campus Clean-Up #3

Project Title: Campus Clean Up - Take Three!
Project Time Table:
Start Date: October 14th 2010
End Date: November 2nd 2010

Milestone Dates:

October 21- Talk to Ecology Club / Other interested Clubs (i.e. Interact)

October 25- Figure out tasks & jobs

October 28 – Email Teachers to see who wants room cleaned 

October 29- Send out Informational Emails

November 1- Send out Reminder Emails

November 2 – Hold event

Mentor: TBD (possibly Mr. Steele)

Vision:
I envision the campus clean up to be an event held after school where volunteers and members from other clubs such as ecology club will help clean up the school.  There will be various jobs and tasks such as picking up trash, helping teachers clean up rooms, and cleaning the hallways.  As an end result, I hope that the campus and school will be cleaner and tidier for a substantial period of time.  The janitors aren't responsible for cleaning certain things such as the tables or computer areas.  I would like to make a substantial impact on the areas where the janitors don't get to.  I also hope people will be encouraged to clean up the campus and school more often.  This project aligns with the class goals and missions by helping make the school a better place.  In addition, this will help set a positive example in the community.
I will have smaller personal checkpoints for myself to ensure that I will be able to reach the milestones and successfully complete the project.  To overcome many of the possible obstacles, I need to be extremely detailed and organized about every aspect of it.  This is the best way to battle any problems that arise.

One obstacle is getting people excited and willing to clean up.  After all, cleaning isn’t usually something people are super excited to do.  However, I would try to advocate the pro’s of cleaning up the campus.  Also, another issue I will have to look out for is volunteers unexpectedly dropping out.  This would throw off the plan of who is going where and doing what.  Thus, I’ll have to have back up options so I’ll be ready in case some people can not show up.  I’m hoping that my frequent reminders leading up to the event will prevent anyone from forgetting about it. 

I hope to have between 15-30 people for the campus clean-up.  I hope to divide these people into teams of two to four so they can do their specific tasks/teacher classrooms in small sized groups.  For instance, a team of three would be responsible for Mr. Savishinsky’s classroom while another group would be responsible for cleaning up the hallways.

I will probably need cleaning supplies:

            Trash Bags                                          All Purpose Cleaner

            Gloves (?)                                            Paper Towels

            Anti-bacterial Wipes