Denton ISD Our Impact In Your Community Magazine Summer 2017 | Page 10

Students and teacher sponsors of the Bell
Leadership Academy pose for a photo
with Chuck Greenberg, owner of the Frisco
Roughriders.
Taking the Lead
Student group working to develop leadership skills in
students at Bell Elementary
B the messages delivered by our
guest speakers.”
There isn’t a debate team or speech club at
Bell (at least not yet) but there are plenty of
opportunities for students to hear messages
from the likes of country music artists,
former NFL players, elected officials and civil
servants. And the stories always seem to
resonate on one central theme – leadership. The Bell Leadership Academy was born
from that concept, with the two teachers
recruiting other males in the building to
support their group. By the time the spring
semester rolled around, 25 students were
taking part in bi-monthly meetings and
learning about leadership and character
through group activities, campus projects
and lectures.  
ell Elementary may be the newest
elementary school in the district, yet
it’s quickly becoming a hot spot for public
speaking engagements.
Story and
Photos by
Mario Zavala Jr.
10
It’s something that Andy Kane and Al Green,
third grade teachers at the school, decided
needed to be addressed with several of the
boys at Bell. Some of the students were more
rambunctious than the usual 10- or 11-year
olds, so instead of getting on to them after
making a poor decision or a discipline referral,
they formed an after-school club to tackle the
thought process head on.
“We decided that we needed to teach these
boys about what positive leaders think
and do and what they don’t think and do,”
Mr. Kane said. “We decided on some core
character traits that we would focus on and
include those traits into our discussions and
Guest speakers like UFC fighter Chris
Brennan reminded the boys that every
decision they make has a consequence,
while Denton County Sheriff’s officer Orlando
Hinojosa stressed the importance of being
humble and leading by example. The boys
responded by asking questions about
obstacles the men had overcome or
mistakes they had made, and how they
responded accordingly.
On one of the final visits of the school year,
Chuck Greenberg – former owner of the
Texas Rangers and current owner of the
Frisco Roughriders – engaged the students
in a candid discussion about determination