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Chances are if you watch WHRO TV 15 during primetime, you have seen some of the Education NOW promotions highlighting WHRO member owner school divisions. A recent addition to the line-up features the W.R.A.T. Pack at Georgie D. Tyler Middle School in Isle of Wight County. W.R.A.T. Pack stands for Titans dream in a world of respect, acceptance, and tolerance for all. Titans are the school mascot.
Two years ago, Sabrina Barnes a former special education teacher moved into the school counselor role. One of the first things she wanted to do was start a club with an anti-bullying theme, and also a club that would allow all students to join. Not just students who are high achievers, but a club that would let all types of students come together and work for a common cause. There were some other students in the school that had that same dream, so they got together and started theW.R.A.T. Pack.
The students work to form a warm, positive school climate where all students feel accepted and have a sense of belonging. They welcome new students by creating new-student welcome-bags. They decorate the bags and fill them with a school map, a card from a student, a pencil, and a treat. They also decorate lockers for students who are in need of lifting up, whether they're students who have been the target of bullying in the past, or have an illness in the family or something that's causing them to be sad. The students whose lockers are decorated get words of inspiration, like, "you're amazing, you're awesome, hang in there, we're glad you're a Titan."
The club has started a clothes closet that's really taken off. They have a whole room full of clothes including jeans, hoodies, shirts, shoes and socks. They also have a dress drive before the holiday dance and the 8th grade semi-formal. Students in the club found out some students did not attend because they didn't have the attire. Teachers in the school donate their fancy dresses. Now students can come and take a dress so they can feel comfortable attending the dances.
The W.R.A.T. Packstarted in 2013 with eight students. This year there are 75 students who actively participate. These 75 students work very hard to make sure all students feel included and valued as a member of the school community.
Isle of Wight School Superintendent Jim Thornton remarked that, “Middle school is a transition, and a difficult time for some students. Just building a relationship with one person in school may make the difference for you to have that positive experience and stay in school, so that's critical.”
Students from the club have presented at two statewide conferences: the Virginia School Board Association, and the Virginia School Safety Training Forum. The School Safety conference had almost a thousand participants. “For young people this age, middle school age, to walk in and see all these adults, and feel confident to stand in front of them and deliver their message, and deliver it with passion is quite an accomplishment; because it's hard for an adult to do,” counselor Barnes shared. “I can't imagine doing it as a pre-teen. They did an amazing job, and they represented our school very well. They are hoping to get the message out so maybe other schools will be inspired and do the same thing in their schools.”
One of the students presenting at the conference said, “It was very scary when we walked in because we were the only students presenting there. I was there with three other students, and so when we walked in and we just saw everyone bustling around, trying to get to where they wanted to go next, and then we ate lunch at these fancy tables, it was just so big for people that have never been outside of their small town of Windsor. When we presented and we said our speeches, we hoped these people will listen to us because we're students. Then, when they started asking us questions later, it really made a big difference because of us speaking. That was pretty cool.”
W.R.A.T. Pack club members educate themselves about bullying and have weekly discussions about what they can do to help students feel that sense of belonging. They're very involved in the decision making, and it empowers them. They decide what projects they're going to work on and maintain a watch-list of students that they see may need a friend, or encouragement. They are leading the initiative, taking control of providing a positive environment and taking care of each other.
“The students are very eager to serve others, and it gives them a sense of importance and meaningfulness,” said counselor Barnes. “It's a great way to teach them about empathy and compassion. I think that's really important, because we give them the definitions of those terms, but it's very different to actually participate in activities and get to learn firsthand, and then it becomes part of them.”
