Newsletters 2014-15 Focus newsletter, [1] fall | Page 4
PREPARING STUDENTS FOR LIFE
PAGE 4
Program provides
services to militaryconnected families
The Anoka-Hennepin School District is
partnering with the cities of Anoka and
Blaine to support military service members and their families. The Beyond the
Yellow Ribbon (BTYR) program provides
military-connected families with community support, training, services and
resources.
And this year, she said the Boy Scouts’ Northern Star Council,
which serves much of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, will reach 2,200
special needs students.
School social workers will
receive periodic newsletters, curriculum and
resources from the
BTYR child and youth
program coordinator.
They understand the unique
needs of military-connected youth
and are available to help with related
topics such as stress, coping, communication, positive thinking, changing family
roles and fostering resilience. Military
parents of Anoka-Hennepin students in
Anoka and Blaine are encouraged to
contact their school’s social worker
to access these and other supports.
For the students, it’s a real chance to experience being a Boy
Scout. Each lesson has started with the scout’s oath — three fingers
in the air and all. And at the end of the day, Kvidera said the students and their families might be interested in more.
Veteran’s service members and military
families are also invited to provide
contact information to their city’s BTYR
program so they can receive support.
“Sometimes special needs students and their families don’t think
of the Boy Scouts, so it’s an opportunity for them to get into it,” she
said.
BTYR also welcomes volunteers to
assist with this effort.
Students James Oakley (orange shirt) and Micah Simbeck work with Boy Scout executive Tammy Kvidera, left, and extended school year teacher
Heather Grove, to fold the American Flag during a modified citizenship lesson on July 18.
Boy Scouts team with district to provide
special opportunities for all youth
Tammy Kvidera begins her lesson at Anoka High School (AHS)
with a flourish. Holding a folded up American flag, she unfurls it with
a wave of her arms. Instantly her students are smiling.
Kvidera is an executive with the Boy Scouts of America Northern
Star Council and she spent time at AHS July 18 to offer some of
Anoka-Hennepin’s special needs students a chance to experience
what the Boy Scouts are all about.
“We have a mission to impact 100 percent of youth in the community,” she said. “That includes underserved youth like those with
special needs.”
Kelly Peryam, the summer program site supervisor at AHS, said
it’s been fun to see the students participating. “It’s wonderful,” she
said.
The modified scouting program began earlier in the summer
when Kvidera and her AHS students engaged in a unique servicelearning project, making more than 300 blankets and toys for the
pets of the Humane Society.
“These are the kids who are used to getting something from the
community,” Kvidera said. “This shows that they can be givers, too.
It’s wonderful to see their reactions.”
Kvidera said Blaine and Champlin Park High School’s have had
similar programs, but the scouts are always seeking opportunities to
bring scouting to underserved groups.
“Our philosophy is that all people should have a scouting
experience,” Kvidera said.
While the service–learning project was done at a previous lesson,
the American Flag was the introduction to the day’s citizenship project. In addition to learning some facts about the flag — the stripes
represent the 13 original colonies and the stars represent today’s 50
states — the students made their own flags, ones that represent
them.
Peryam said the Boy Scouts have been a great partner.
In addition to the great learning opportunities, all of the supplies for
the program are supplied by the scouts, from blanket and dog toy
supplies, to the flags and markers.
“The kids just show up and benefit from an amazing lesson —
everything else is provided by the Boy Scouts,” she said. ■
This program is an effort to not only
provide service to veterans, service members, and military families, but to also let
them know their hard work, dedication
and sacrifices do not go unnoticed.
Those desiring support or wishing to
volunteer should contact:
Anoka: Butch Hathaway at
[email protected].
Blaine: Mayor Tom Ryan
[email protected] or Terry Wold at
[email protected]. ■
Oak View students helping make the world a better place, $25 at a time
For five years, students in classes taught by Shannon
Raabolle, Chris Roberts and Brian Krebsbach have been
lending money around the world through Kiva, an online
microloan organization in which participants lend money
to individuals and groups in developing nations.
The project began as part of the eighth-graders’ yearly
study of Africa. “Chris