S.E.R.V.E. MISSION STATEMENT

S.E.R.V.E. has been formed as a fellowship of students dedicated to supporting and encouraging each other towards the goal of graduating high school and pursuing positive educational, vocational, and personal goals for their future.



Our primary goal is to reach out to other students who may not have a connection to a regular student support program, (such as sports or other extracurricular activities) and offer to them the necessary support to succeed in their education and life overall.



WE BELIEVE all students regardless of their background can succeed.

WE BELIEVE there are a significant number of students failing to achieve success due to problems of deficiency in one or more of the five areas identified in the acronym S.E.R.V.E. (Social, Emotional, Recreational, Vocational, Education).

WE BELIEVE that when support and guidance is received, students will assimilate into other support systems offered by the school which they were previously excluded from due to a deficient. G.P.A.

WE BELIEVE that school should be a place where all students can learn and be equipped to achieve their goals in life.

THEREFORE S.E.R.V.E. is dedicated to providing support for students who are willing to be held accountable to their commitment to success.

S.E.R.V.E. is a class that enhances the educational experience for the individual as well as provides a positive social climate for our schools.









S.E.R.V.E.

Social Emotional Recreational Vocational Education





GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

S.E.R.V.E is an academic support program designed to assist students to work toward successful completion of high school. Resources will be provided that promote success both academically and socially. S.E.R.V.E. is based on the premise that certain students can benefit from a specialized method that will encourage and challenge them to respond to meet the needs that exist in their lives. The areas of need and support that all youth share have been identified as the following:

SOCIAL

Development of accountability and responsibility are an important facet of the class dynamic. Communication and listening skills are addressed to assist in increasing confidence in handling school/life situations. There are certain activities that require students to interact as a group in order for them to meet these goals and objectives.

Students are placed in table groups on purpose. This eliminates the opportunity for a student to sit in the back of a classroom and just wait for the bell to ring. This classroom set-up also helps enhance social interaction and promotes cultural tolerance. Along with being set up in table groups, each period is blended as much as possible by sex, ethnicity, and grade level. Students begin to bond together in their groups as they begin holding each other accountable with their academics, work ethic, tardiness/ absences, behavior, and character. A leadership team within S.E.R.V.E. is established and each table has an assigned leader that helps facilitate these areas of growth.

EMOTIONAL

To help students work toward emotional growth and maturity, critical thinking skills are blended into topics that consist of everyday life experiences and situations. Much of this is done through our topic days and one-on-one time the instructor spends with them. As the social and academic aspects of growth previously mentioned develop, students begin opening up more to each other and become a wonderful resource of emotional support. Tuesday’s are our topic days and we have an opportunity to focus in and fine-tune our academic and social skills. S.E.R.V.E. is about nurturing us as people. We discuss issues such as Communication, Relationships, Defense Mechanisms, Value of a Diploma, Cultural Acceptance, Teen pregnancy, Self-Esteem, Abuse, Vocational Growth, and other such topics. Guest speakers and paraprofessionals offer a unique perspective and are occasionally integrated into our topic discussion days.

Resiliency is a common theme addressed throughout the school year. It is focused on encouraging students to develop the necessary skills that will enable them to grow into highly resilient and capable people. It is the intention of S.E.R.V.E. to help students gain a better understanding of the importance of establishing a lifestyle grounded in integrity and honesty.

RECREATIONAL

A variety of team building activities and games help provide an opportunity to help students learn good sportsmanship, responsible conduct, teamwork, and how to put others ahead of themselves for a greater good. Interaction with other clubs and organizations is often planned in an effort to support and encourage our students to bond with their school.



VOCATIONAL

S.E.R.V.E. provides and presents resources consisting of career planning, exploration, guidance, and employment preparation. In addition, we utilize both school and community resources such as the career center and local businesses.

EDUCATION

The current educational program presented to each student at their high school will be supported and supplemented by:

> Students visit their AERIES website weekly to monitor their grades.

> Three class periods per week for students to read, write, study or review

ALL homework assigned from CORE classes.

> Homework/tutoring support provided by the S.E.R.V.E. advisor, class peers and

when available, school staff.

> Utilizing time management, organization techniques and study skills on an

ongoing basis to promote academic growth and success.

> Encouraging and guiding students toward assuming control, responsibility and

accountability for their behavior in word and in action.







































THE 3 B’S OF S.E.R.V.E.

For the maturing adolescent, there are many variables in their lives that can be pillars of strength and encouragement, or the means to a negative downward spiral of low self esteem, belonging, worth, and accomplishment. S.E.R.V.E. is set on reaching out to the latter that desire more in their life and fulfillment of basic needs such as love, accountability, and discipline. The 3 B’s of S.E.R.V.E. are simple yet effective in meeting those needs. They are as follows:

BELONG

The Student – All students who enter S.E.R.V.E. are interviewed and understand participation in all aspects of the program is not optional and they must express a desire to change. All students in S.E.R.V.E. need to know this is a place where they can be themselves, express themselves, understand, appreciate, and accept others perspectives.



BELIEVE

As students begin taking ownership of their classroom and the program, we begin having them set many short and few long-term goals. As short-term goals are achieved the students begin believing in themselves and start to understand their capacity and worth. Time is spent breaking old habits and creating new positive ones. Visual reminders such as pictures of activities they participated in are posted on the wall as a constant reminder of better days when times get tough. Students write down social and academic accomplishments each quarter that are then posted on our “Tree of Victory” so they can see a steady pace of improvements in their lives. The instructor spends time going to the student’s classrooms and meeting them on campus as a sign of support which lets the students know he/she believes in them.

BECOME

Becoming is the end result of the many short-term goals previously achieved. This includes but is not limited to graduation, job placement, college acceptance, social/ emotional stability, improved relationships, an example to new S.E.R.V.E. students, and a clearer overall understanding of their gifts, value, and purpose as a positive contributor in their personal lives and their community.