Saturday, January 24, 2009

Whites Creek High School - A Vision for Change

Whites Creek High School in Nashville has a vision to be an asset-rich school. Two of their focuses is on community pride and building a stronger system of community support.

Our Asset Specialist Tara Brown has been in the school assessing school climate and working with faculty & students to help them implement their dreams. She is working with Antwan Cody, a faculty member to achieve some of his asset-building goals. He wants to start in his corner of the building by improving the weight room.

He says, “I see the weight room as more that just a room for students to come in and lift weights. I want it to be an area of peace and relaxation for the students and a room where they can relieve stress in a healthy way. I want the room to be one that the students and athletes can be proud of and look forward to coming in.”

He recognizes this as a place to build specific assets, such as:
Other adult relationships * Caring school climate * Community values youth * Safety * Adult role models * Positive peer influence * Bonding to school * School engagement *

When he envisions the ideal weight room, he would like to see:
- posters around the wall displaying famous athletes
- posters with different exercise and weight-lifting techniques
- mirrors on a wall, so the students can see themselves while working out.
- a cobra mural with the slogan "Once A Cobra Always A Cobra".
- a board displaying student names and achievements - from a 225 club to even a 300 club.
- equipment, especially a treadmill, exercise bikes or even a elliptical machine.

Can you help? If you have resources to help Whites Creek achieve this dream, please leave a comment below or email us at cad(at)theassetedge(dot)net.