Written by Heather Nunley, Psy.S, NCSP
When students feel connected to their school, they are more likely to engage in healthy behaviors and succeed academically. School connectedness is especially important for our students who may otherwise feel isolated due to linguistic and cultural differences from the general population. One of the most common ways to build school connectedness is through fostering positive relationships with our students; something that happens daily at school.
Beyond that, I developed an idea to facilitate connection within the School for the Deaf and beyond. During the second week of school, students and staff within the School for the Deaf traced their handprints to put under a mural that says, “our hands will leave imprints on this world.” This display creates a visual representation of the connection we have in our community.
Throughout the school year we will be adding historical Deaf figures who left their mark on this campus, such as activist and writer, George Veditz, a gentleman who is well known in the Deaf community for his efforts to preserve Deaf culture and ASL. Verditz worked at CSDB as a teacher and accountant at CSDB for 17 years, leaving a lasting impact. Students will then be asked to share their ideas on how they want to leave their mark on CSDB and the rest of the world ahead of them.
