Service the Wright Way 54. Alumni Spotlights

Tie One On For Success

I have always had the idea to start a “tie drive” but joining Youth Leadership Mobile helped me reach out to the right people to kick off the project. “Tie One On For Success” was organized to help less fortunate students acquire appropriate clothes for interviews. The first impression is everything, so even a small article of clothing like a tie can be a deal breaker when going on an interview. In order to publicize “Tie One On for Success” I created a poster, posted it on social media and also hung it up in schools and churches. Shortly after starting the project, news and media companies 92 Zew and WKRG News had segments in their shows for the project. I was receiving over ten calls a day from people offering to donate ties. Even with the COVID-19 precautions and restrictions, the project was a success. After only two months of collecting and over hundreds of phone calls, the project concluded with over 700 ties. Thanks to God and the generosity of our Mobile community hundreds of kids will receive a chance to progress further in their ambitions than ever before. I then organized the ties into boxes and donated them to public high schools for the teachers to distribute. Of course the donations and impact on the community were the best effort that I have ever been a part of in order to change others' lives. However, the change in my life is something that I never expected. The pure joy of receiving a phone call or donating a tie is more rewarding than anything I had ever experienced. It is crazy to see how a small action such as cleaning your closet can make such a difference to others. I am certainly going to do more projects like this one in order to help those around me and to grow personally.

-Thomas Price ‘22

Pen Pal Program

Dumas Wesley Community Center’s most vulnerable senior citizens connected with school-age children during the COVID-19 pandemic through the lost art of letter writing. The “Wright Way Character Education Program” launched a pen pal program in the spring connecting students to participants in Dumas Wesley’s Senior Activities for Independent Living program. Over 80 of our 5th graders were matched with seniors who were isolating during the COVID-19 pandemic. “Fifth graders take a year-long Character Education class that helps reinforce our school’s core values,” said Michael Schultz, Director of Student Ministries and Service. “My students talked about this project a lot. They asked almost every day if they have gotten a letter back from their pen pal."

“In this day and age when everything is instant and electronic, the magic of a handwritten letter that they have to wait for is still so wonderful for them. It is very important for UMS-Wright and our students to support Dumas Wesley because they are our neighbors. We are teaching our students to serve others, respect our elders, and the importance of being connected to others. We want these senior citizens to know we care about them and they matter to us,” said Schultz.

Book Drive

Frederick Douglass once said, “Once you learn to read, you will forever be free.” This quotation remains pertinent today, as 50% of adults living in the United States are considered functionally illiterate and cannot read at an eighthgrade level. The statistics become even more frightening when narrowing the scale of analysis to underprivileged and low-income communities throughout the country. Roughly 60% of children living in low-income communities do not own a single book, and three out of four people on welfare cannot read. I came across these statistics one day on the internet and decided that I would try to do my part in strengthening literacy in underprivileged communities throughout the United States. After researching charities to partner with, I reached out to “Reader to Reader,” a charity based in Massachusetts that donates books to low-income communities. Both the Director of “Reader to Reader” and I decided that the best way for me to help was to host a book drive. The drive officially began in the latter half of April, and in just a couple of weeks, we have already collected over 500 books, with hundreds more awaiting pickup. This entire experience has honestly reminded me how united, encouraging, and collaborative the UMS-Wright community is. Within the first three days of the announcement of the book drive, we had already received over 100 books, all from UMS-Wright students! Furthermore, the countless messages received relaying enthusiasm for the project were duly noted and certainly helped everybody persevere in order to raise as many books as possible. I want to thank everybody who donated and encourage anybody who did not to help manifest Douglass’ words and liberate those in need through the pursuit of literacy.

-Stephens Ashbee ‘23

Backpack Project

The backpack donation initiative in which I was involved worked out very well and provided an example of how students can help others by looking for such opportunities. My first actions involved gaining the permission and blessing of Fostering Together Gulf Coast and then reaching out to fellow UMS-Wright Upper School students for donations of lightly used or new backpacks that could be given to foster children in the Mobile area. The UMS-Wright Upper School responded with nearly 100 backpacks, and their efforts led Goodwill Easter Seals to contribute more backpacks to the cause as well. In addition to providing numerous backpacks, the effort also provided school supplies for foster students who are under the care of the wonderful nonprofit, Fostering Together Gulf Coast. Those of us at UMS-Wright who took part in the collection of these essential school supplies learned just how valuable organizations like Fostering Together Gulf Coast are in our community. More importantly, we learned how rewarding the knowledge that we helped foster children have something that they can call their own can be.

-Edward Ladd ‘22

FACULTY NOTES.

Sarah Fountain received her Certified Academic Language Therapist (CALT) certification through the Academic Language Therapy Association (ALTA).

Terry Canova and the Lady Bulldogs knocked off the #1 team in the state, class 5A Central- Tuscaloosa in route to the Regional Finals. They finished the season 21-14 and advanced to the Elite 8 for the 7th time in past 11 seasons.

Liza Heath attended the Virtual Language Advocacy Days: Virtual Pathways to Legislative Impact in order to advocate for the importance of language education in Alabama and in our nation. Through the training provided by Joint National Committee for Languages and the National Council for Languages and International Studies, she learned how to use her story to highlight the group’s petition and how to connect with legislators in order to provide insight on how language learning will directly impact our nation. Heath said “the privilege of sharing my story with five different legislators and exercising my First Amendment right to advocate for something that is so essential for our country is something I value, knowing that many people around the world do not have this freedom.” She looks forward to being able to do this again next year in Washington, D.C. in order to make connections with others that share a passion for the importance of languages.

Ellis Passmore and her family welcomed Evans Elizabeth Passmore on February 18, 2021. Evans joins her big brothers, Gaillard ‘29 and Walt ’32.

In March, Chelsea Lawrence and the World Language Department hosted a professional development workshop titled: Writing Instruction in the L2: Design Writing Approach and Written Corrective Feedback.

Coach Carolyn Houston and her family welcomed a new baby Bulldog on February 5. Baby Sam, joins big sister, Annalynn.

Middle School teacher Monica Peebles welcomed a baby girl, Marilyn Victoria Peebles, on February 5. Victoria joins big sister, Sophia and big brother, Luke. Cathy Rayford retired after 20 years of working in the Business Office at UMS-Wright. We are happy to welcome Amanda Rahm ’03 as the incoming Business Office Assistant & Accounts Receivable.

Pier Hardin (31.5 years), Laura Gearhart (15 years), Sonya McIlwain (16 years) and Keith Rice (21 years) were celebrated for their hard work and dedication to UMS-Wright. We wish them the best on their next chapter!

2021-2022 Alumni Faculty and Staff

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

During the Spring semester, our new Curriculum and Instruction Department led us on a school-wide professional development book study. Creating Cultures of Thinking by Ron Ritchhart was an inspiration during a school year full of challenges. The book explores eight forces that can transform our teaching and the culture of our classrooms to develop independent, growth-minded students who can effectively communicate and demonstrate understanding through application. Once a month, we met in small groups composed of teachers and administrators from all three school divisions to discuss sections of the book. I enjoyed the opportunity to get to know colleagues in the Lower and Middle Schools that were once just friendly faces around campus. The topics we discussed may be interpreted differently depending on one’s position within the school, but each of us play an integral part in creating a culture of thinking at UMS-Wright in order to provide a seamless progression from K3-12th grade. Personally, this book study helped me reflect on my teaching, observe my students and classroom environment from a different perspective as well as experiment with unique strategies for thinking. The content of this book has positively affected my teaching style and classroom environment. I look forward to creating a culture of thinking in my World Language classes!