School honor not taken ‘Light’-ly

Ross Elementary has become an old pro at The Leader in Me Process in many ways.
Last week, the school received one of the only missing pieces from its process’ puzzle: Lighthouse School designation.
Lighthouse School designations aren’t just thrown about in The Leader in Me Process. It is earned and takes years to do so.
Ross Elementary, in that regard, has been building up to last Friday’s announcement for years, but it’s Lighthouse Committees – faculty and student – knew that this was the year to show that they were ready.
It is hardly an opportunity to rest on laurels at the school as later this month the school – along with all others with students in grades three through eight – will receive school performance scores. As Principal Paula Cutrera explained, in many ways, Friday was just the beginning for Ross Elementary.
Lighthouse School status is not an easy thing to earn. Ross Elementary became school number 161 to do so out of 2,574 schools in 35 countries in The Leader in Me Process. Moreover, once again, Acadia Parish itself gets to boast as it has four of those 161 schools now – Martin Petitjean Elementary in Rayne, Rayne Kindergarten, Rayne Catholic and Ross Elementary.
In Louisiana, there are 60 schools in the process, with two other Lighthouse Schools, T.S. Cooley Elementary in Lake Charles and Shreve Island Elementary in Shreveport.
“We are honored to become a Leader in Me Lighthouse School,” said Cutrera. “We have seen such amazing results from implementing The Leader in Me process at our school such as attendance, parental involvement and academics.
“One example [of many] is a student who didn’t like coming to school, but now, as a leader in the school and classroom, he’s here everyday. This process not only has had a significant impact on this student, but on all our students. And, we expect to see greater results over time.”
Cutrera added her congratulations to all the students, parents and faculty and staff of Ross Elementary as it is a team effort.
As was the case with designations and recognitions at other schools, Acadia Parish Superintendent John Bourque pointed out that a win for Ross Elementary is also a win for the whole parish.
“We’re just extremely proud of Ross Elementary,” he said. “It’s quite an accomplishment. A lot of effort and hard work went into it. We are so proud of Ross Elementary and its accomplishments.
“I think it’s another positive for [all of] us. We are doing great things with our kids.”
Leader in Me is FranklinCovey’s whole school transformation process. It teaches 21st century leadership and life skills to students and creates a culture of student empowerment based on the idea that every child can be a leader.
The process was started by an educator, Muriel Summers, principal of A.B. Combs Leadership Magnet Elementary School in Raleigh, North Carolina. Summers was told to find someway to turn around the failing school and looked to FranklinCovey for partnership in designing, developing and implementing a leadership model for her school, which drew on The 7 Habits and also incorporated Baldridge quality tools and other educational best practices.
Within a few years, A.B. Combs experienced what they viewed as a complete turnaround, ultimately being named No. 1 Magnet School in the U.S., twice.
Other schools took notice and began adopting the program. It found its way to Acadia Parish and has since been adopted by other schools, five in total, four of which now hold Lighthouse School designations.
The Acadia Parish School Board presented its adulations to Ross Elementary in the opening items of its meeting Monday night, commenting on the great progress and accomplishments the school has made in the past few years.
Lighthouse Schools are recognized because they have achieved outstanding results in school and student outcomes by implementing The Leader in Me process with fidelity. It is also because of the extraordinary impact the school is having on its staff, its students, its parents and the community at large.