COMMUNITY SPIRIT: Heritage house system takes part in outreach
Oct. 23—Isibindi, a branch of Heritage Elementary's house system, has brought football and community outreach together with a new fundraiser.
Kim Parker, a Heritage Elementary kindergarten teacher and member of Isibindi, said the fundraiser, called 'Bindi Bedlam," originated from the popularity of The University of Oklahoma and Oklahoma State University Bedlam football game. Students can buy either a small or large paper football with the OU or OSU team logo attached — a small one for $1 and the large for $5.
Jaymee Jackson, a Heritage Elementary fifth-grade readign/social studies teacher, said the paper footballs will then be displayed near the front office. The team with the most donations will be the winner, and Principal Amanda Vance and Assistant Principal Kristin Stark, whom Parker described as "hardcore OU fans," will have to wear the winning team's school colors on Nov. 3.
"It's a fun, little easy way for us to give back to the community," Parker said. "We're actually raising money for the Jim Wilson Lunch Fund, so that money directly goes back to the community and throughout the district."
Teaching their students to help out the community, Parker said, is a life skill in itself. Jackson said she hopes the students at Heritage will have a sense of pride and unity for contributing to a cause, like the lunch fund.
"We've started ROAR 34 throughout our school, and I feel like this is just one of those things that goes with that [by] teaching the kids to not always think about [themselves] and to think about others," Parker said. "There are kiddos who may not go home to being able to eat dinner like you do."
While the older students at Heritage Elementary maybe more focused on which team will win the fundraiser, Parker saids the younger kids are more so learning about how it impacts others.
Parker said Isibindi, which is the House of Courage, and the rest of the house system has impacted the school culture at the elementary and created more unity. It has allowed young students, such as those in her own class, to interact with older kids. The group has around 75 members, in kindergarten through the fifth grade.
"They don't see the big kids ever. We're kind of in our own little area down here," Parker said. "We see first-graders and that's about the extent, so since we've implemented the house system, they're getting to see those kiddos more throughout the week. They're getting to know their names, and they're learning the names of the older teachers, so when they move up grades, they now have a sense of who teaches what grade."
This fundraiser is not the first outreach project the House Of Courage has hosted this yea. Jackson said the group has held a schoolwide skate night and the "Isibindi Rocks Project," which had students decorate and place rocks throughout the community.
"This year, we wanted to do something where we could give back to a worthy cause," Jackson said. "We reached out to Nikki Molloy, special services director for [Tahlequah Public Schools], to see where the most need is at this time. We felt like Bedlam would be a fun way for students to show their school pride, while making a difference in the community."
