To encourage positivity in the school community, Mental Fitness Squad assembled a shout-out wall on Nov. 5. Students and staff wrote each other’s names on a large sheet of paper in the quad to express gratitude, school-based therapist Sarah Loyd said.
The event was part of an initiative to hold monthly events that build community through showing appreciation, Loyd said.
“[The shout-out wall] is about noticing the good stuff and helping us see positivity,” Loyd said. “Hopefully, that in itself helps make our community stronger. Just those little things of recognition help you realize that you’re doing the right thing and people appreciate it.”
Mental Fitness Squad’s primary goal this time was to highlight students’ appreciation for staff, as teachers are core members of the community who rarely get recognized.
“[Especially in] today’s climate, teachers are very underappreciated,” Loyd said. “Any little recognition, especially from those who they directly influence, is great.”
Sophomore Robbie Elman said the shout-out wall was an incredible opportunity that allowed him to show appreciation for his hardworking band teachers, Ben Scharf and Mark Lee.
“My mom’s a teacher, so I’ve grown up [recognizing] the hard job of teachers,” Elman said. “I really want to recognize Scharf and Lee. They deserve recognition, [especially] with Lee’s first year dealing with rats in the building.”
Elman said he hopes the shout-out wall strengthens the relationship between teachers and students, as students often relate schoolwork and stress to teachers, instead of appreciating their efforts.
“The shout-out wall really forces you to think about what good teachers have done rather than just complaining about teachers,” Elman said. “It’s good to recognize that, despite the fact that [school] sucks and a lot of it’s really boring, [teachers] do put in a lot of work.”
Upon seeing her name on the wall, school-based therapist Shabbie Afshae said she felt incredibly honored.
“We are all busy. Kids have a lot going on, staff have a lot going on,” Afshar said. “A lot of times we have positive interactions with each other, but we don’t often take the time to say thank you.”
Recognizing teachers helps students be more grateful, which is important because gratitude challenges and prevents negative mindsets, Afshar said.
“Society [and] culture-wise, we tend to focus so much on the negative. We expect the good, so we don’t give it that kind of attention,” Afshar said. “[Gratitude] just gets us out of that negative mindset. It reflects kindness and positive connections.”
