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YUCAPIA, CA- (EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- Inland Leaders Charter School in Yucaipa, California is taking a proactive approach to creating a positive school culture and preventing bullying behavior. For the second year now, teachers and staff members have organized an event they call “GOLD night,” the acronym stands for, ‘Girls Overnight for Leadership and Discovery’. The event provides an intensive and fun overnight workshop for the 6th-grade students who will be transitioning to the school’s middle school program in the fall.
The program was inspired by a need to equip the students with the skills to overcome social and emotional challenges which girls tend to face as they enter their teen years; the kinds of challenges, the teachers observed, that often breed negativity among peers. The event was fully funded and sponsored by the Inland Leaders Charter School Board. Products and services were sponsored by community partners: Parakaleo Crossfit, Jazzercise, Bic Bands, Ocampo’s Mexican Restaurant, Hair stylist, Shannon McVey and Registered Dietitian Nutritionist, Alyson Foote.
Workshops addressed relevant issues such as body image, conflict resolution, social media pitfalls, personal empowerment, and kindness. The students were also treated to nutritious late-night snacks and valuable information about health and nutrition. Wearing T-shirts which proclaimed, “Strong women LIFT each other up,” the student’s expressed appreciation for the event; one stating, “It is really amazing how we learned to connect with ourselves.I feel better prepared for middle school. I loved GOLD night; you should do this every year!”
A middle school teacher reflects, “It’s extraordinarily valuable for us teachers to be establishing a dialogue and connection with our girls regarding the social issues that impact our students and our school culture. I’m extremely grateful to be working with the caring and dedicated women on our faculty who came up with the idea for this event, and for the commitment of many others which brought it to fruition.”
The “GOLD night” program has been so successful that a “BOLD night” has been created for the school’s 6th-grade boys this year as well. The public charter school’s administration and staff are excited to see how these events will foster stronger leadership through empathy and positivity on the ILCS campus.
What is Inland Leaders?
We are a kindergarten (including TK) through 8th-grade public charter school dedicated to creating leaders for the 21st century. Learn more at www.InlandLeaders.com.
