Lakeview Academy launches Eagle Ambassadors program

Published 11:00 am Monday, April 11, 2022

Third- and fourth-grade students at Lakeview Academy have found a great set of role models they can look up to who just happen to be pretty close to their own eye level. 

Lakeview’s Eagle Ambassadors program started at the beginning of the school year from a conversation that art teacher Joel Respess had with the administration at the end of last school year. As an exploratory teacher, Respess has a unique opportunity to interact with all students, and time and again he has noticed particular students who just seemed to stand out. 

“I get to see them all, and there are so many of our kids that just do the right thing,” he said. 

And while it’s no secret that teachers often must spend a great deal of time focussing on students who can be more challenging to teach, Respess began thinking about the relatively quiet bunch of kids who may not often receive accolades but nevertheless still seem to always do the right thing. 

“I said, ‘We need to do something to shine a light on them,’” Respess said. 

From that idea, the school’s Ambassadors program was born. It’s a group of about 60 fifth-graders who were handpicked and trained for the job. Respess was allowed time to coach the students on talking to small groups of third- and fourth-graders about the things they’ve done to be successful. When the students visit the third- and fourth-grade classes, they do short presentations and even take questions from their younger counterparts. 

One ambassador, Quynh Anh Nguyen, said being an Eagle Ambassador is like a reward students get after having accomplished their goals. 

“You get so many privileges, and you also get recognized for your work and contribution,” Nguyen said. 

Nguyen, like the other Ambassadors, regularly gives advice to the younger students. 

“Every child needs to know that they have someone that they can open up to and trust. I tell them that they always have someone they can open their heart to, no matter if it’s a friend, family member, or a teacher.” 

Another ambassador, Nahla Pettiford, has advised the younger students “to stay out of drama and be your own leader because it’s not helpful to focus on other things while you are at school.” 

Lola Bergeron tells them to “try your best and don’t give up. You should ask questions and don’t keep them to yourself. If something is wrong, tell a trusted adult.” 

And Kingston Hart said, “the advice I give is to never be afraid to ask for help and never give up because of what people say to you.”

Thanks to several local sponsors, the Ambassadors are able to stand out by wearing blue jackets around school and even out in the community. With opportunity comes responsibility, of course, and the students have to adhere to certain standards, or they can lose their jacket privileges. 

“It really means something, “Respess said. “We worked really hard to pick the list of kids.” 

Respess has future goals of getting the kids involved with safety patrol and student government, becoming more involved in local community service and even working with city and county government. 

For now, though, the students just keep dishing out advice. 

Fifth-grade teacher Caroline Lacksen has been instrumental in the program, and she realizes that though teachers and parents can provide words of wisdom, it just hits a little differently when it comes from a peer. 

“When they hear these pieces of advice that have helped make these other students grow … it really feels like it’s authentic and it’s genuine,” she said. 

Respess remembers well watching a group of third-graders the very first time the Ambassadors met with them. 

“Their eyes were just locked in on the fifth graders talking, and they just really seemed to soak up every word,” he said. “I think the fifth-grade kids who were named ambassadors, they were already good kids, but I think they even grew a little bit more just by having to get in front of younger kids and share their stories.” 

As an educator, it’s a special thing to see students gain confidence and become excited about doing the right things. 

“Seeing that, that’s all the reward I need.”