Caring and kindness shine on in Gulf County
Engaging students with fun activities, and addressing character education, is also the order of the day in Gulf County schools.
Jennifer Brock, principal of Port St. Joe Elementary, said that a recent Shine On pep rally encouraged students to dress crazily, all part of balancing the demands of education with a chance to let the kids blow off steam with a show of exuberance and energy.
The school’s yearlong “Sharks CARE” grant-funded pilot program focuses on being Cooperative, Accountable, Responsible and Engaged, all part of an overarching behavioral support emphasis. “It’s all about capturing kids’ hearts,” said Brock.
Exemplary behavior, separate from academic performance is honored with the “Supersharks” students of the month, and the “Sweet” students of the week, where students who live up to the school’s highest standards are treated to a free donut and ice cream from Sweet Bunz in Port St. Joe.
At Wewahitchka Elementary, the motto is “Kindness Counts,” said Principal Jennifer Guffey, with a stress on six schoolwide expectations – honesty, respect, self-control, responsibility, attitude and hard work.
“It’s about positive behavior intervention and support,” she said.
The school uses a Gator Gold program to reward entire classrooms for standing out among their peers, and students can redeem the “gold” for prizes that include everything from lunch with the principal to a movie and popcorn.
“The students are starting to catch on to it,” said Guffey. “They’ve had it since kindergarten and it’s been pretty positive.”
Meet the Editor
David Adlerstein, The Apalachicola Times’ digital editor, started with the news outlet in January 2002 as a reporter.
Prior to then, David Adlerstein began as a newspaperman with a small Boston weekly, after graduating magna cum laude from Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. He later edited the weekly Bellville Times, and as business reporter for the daily Marion Star, both not far from his hometown of Columbus, Ohio.
In 1995, he moved to South Florida, and worked as a business reporter and editor of Medical Business newspaper. In Jan. 2002, he began with the Apalachicola Times, first as reporter and later as editor, and in Oct. 2020, also began editing the Port St. Joe Star.