The Bright Key? Program was presented at Heard and Slingluff Elementary Schools recently and was given a thumbs up by potential stakeholders. Already thriving at Selma Street and Highlands Elementary, the Bright Key program aims to enrich the lives of students in and out of the classroom through community involvement.
Bright Key, an initiative between Wiregrass Foundation and Dothan City Schools, has school-year programs designed to positively impact children in all areas of their lives. This revolutionary concept turns schools into energized centers for services focused on the whole child and relies on guidance and input from stakeholders (parents, teachers and community partners.)
As the program has evolved, personnel have shifted and several new faces have joined the Bright Key team. Brittany Shepard, originally the Bright Key Resource Coordinator at Highlands Elementary, is now serving as the Bright Key District Coordinator for Dothan City Schools. She is excited to add two new schools to the program.
“Over the past several years at Highlands and Selma Street, we have seen that the Bright Key stakeholder-driven model is an effective way to engage parents and the community in our public schools. I am glad that Dothan City Schools is ready to invest in expanding the program and excited that stakeholders at both Heard and Slingluff are ready to get to work,” says Shepard.
Lindsey Wagner is the Resource Coordinator at Heard Elementary. Most recently employed with the Child Advocacy Center, Wagner is optimistic about what the future holds.
“I am thrilled that Heard Elementary is now an official Bright Key Program school! I have enjoyed getting to know the awesome Heard Husky Crew Members the past couple of months. I am very excited to now work with all of our stakeholders to coordinate the programs chosen that will improve academic achievement as well as our student's overall well-being,” says Wagner.
After retiring from a career with the Alabama Cooperative Extension System, Rosalind James has signed on to be the resource coordinator at Slingluff Elementary. She was thrilled at the reception Bright Key received at their stakeholder meeting to approve the program.
“Morris Slingluff Elementary School is officially a Bright Key school thanks to the majority votes of many parents that attended the first stakeholders meeting in September at the school. I am so excited about the opportunity to serve as the Bright Key Resource Coordinator and look forward to working with such enthusiastic and visionary parents who want the best education for their children,” says James.
At these initial stakeholder meetings, participants brainstormed programs they’d like to see implemented. The ideas ranged from a tutoring program to a pet adoption program and everything in between. Programs will be firmed up later this year as lead teams are established at each school.
For more information about the Bright Key program contact District Coordinator for Dothan City Schools, Brittany Shepard, at (334) 589-9148 or brshepard@dothan.k12.al.us or visit brightkeywiregrass.org.
ABOUT Bright Key
Bright Key is a partnership between Wiregrass Foundation and Dothan City Schools to pilot an innovative, grassroots community school initiative in area schools. Bright Key involves school-community stakeholders (teachers, parents, and others) in the identification and implementation of programs and services to maximize the academic potential of every child. Each school’s program is uniquely tailored to positively impact the children, schools, families and communities of the individual school. Programs and services will be invited into the schools through a self-sustaining partner model that will continually engage the active participation of the stakeholders. Bright Key has been at Highlands Elementary and Selma Street Elementary for over six years and is now approved for Heard and Slingluff Elementary.