Middle School Students Lead the Way in Creating a Better World

Middle school students throughout the Syracuse City School District recently showed their leadership – organizing various community engagement and community service activities to bring about positive change in their communities.
 
Schools that participate in Expeditionary Learning and Crews joined a nationwide movement to celebrate Better World Week, an initiative to increase sense of belonging through a social emotional learning lens.
 
At ELMS, 8^th graders hosted stations for 6^th and 7^th graders and local elementary school students teaching them how to create balance in life. They asked attendees to sign a commitment board, a concrete way to show that they will make an effort to move forward with balance in their lives and a drive to contribute to a better world.
 
Grant 6^th graders cleaned up their school grounds; while 7^th graders wrote advocacy letters to Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh to express concerns about the lead crisis impacting many in Syracuse. 8^th grade students made food for a  local homeless shelter. Syracuse STEM at Blodgett students were given options: plan a lesson to teach at a local elementary school, organize an athletic activity for an elementary class, write letters to soldiers or nursing home residents, and more. Ed Smith students created posters to promote recycling and energy conservation.
 
Read on to learn more about two schools’ efforts!

Roberts Students Suggest Solutions for Their School & City

Roberts 8^th graders researched issues important to them – gun violence, mental health, suicide awareness, animal abuse, teen vaping, homelessness, and more.
 
“I’ve been effected by gun violence, and I know other people who have been effected by it,” Terrell Burnett shared. “We really need to stop people from using guns for violence. We need better gun safety laws. We need people to have any guns locked and out of reach. It’s so important. We can help by sharing our ideas and telling younger people to make good choices.”
 
“Gun violence is a big problem in our community,” Aedin Noise added. “It is ruining our community. We want to make a big group on social media and get people who have the power to do something to help us get involved. We want people to join us in taking a stand.”
 
Classmates presented their ideas to help raise money and collect toiletries for those who are housing insecure. They encouraged people to write letters to the Mayor encouraging additional mental health funding for schools.
 
Zi’Asia Misimi and her friends are encouraging the school to let them paint all the bathroom stall doors to show positive phrases and images.
 
“When kids are feeling down in school, a lot of times, the bathroom is where they go to cry,” she explained. “We thought painting the stalls would give them encouragement and hopefully help them feel better. Mental health isn’t talked about as much as it should be. If we don’t have positive mental health, we have nothing!”
 

Salem Hyde Students Create Kits to Celebrate Cultures & Beliefs

Salem Hyde 6^th graders worked together with their Crews to create welcome kits to be handed out to each new student who comes to Salem Hyde beginning next school year. The packets will include resources like a school map, a list of staff and what they do, important school and district phone numbers, a list of school extracurricular activities and how to sign up, the school’s daily schedule, rules, protocols and expectations, and more. The kits will be translated into all languages spoken by students in the building and will be made available to students and families upon request.
 
As part of their project, a representative from the SCSD English as a New Language Department visited the students to talk about what the process is like for refugee students entering the district.
 
6^th grader Alain Abad came to Salem Hyde last year from Florida.
 
“This will be helpful to new kids – even if they are just coming in from another state,” he said. “When I came here from Florida, everything was different. I felt like I stood out and I felt alone. I think having all this information will help others not feel so alone.”
 
AJ Fletcher, Jr. has made multiple new friends by welcoming new students to his school.

“One of my friends just came to Salem Hyde in 5^th grade,” he recalled. “He was super quiet until we invited him to our lunch table and became his friend. I hope the welcome kits will help all new students feel like someone is looking out for them.”
 
Taim Al Zobani came to Salem Hyde from Jordan in the middle of the school year a couple of years ago. Now well adjusted to the culture at Salem Hyde, he volunteers to translate for other newcomers who speak Arabic.
 
“I felt nervous because I didn’t know English and I didn’t know anyone,” he reflected. “Now, kids will know what they need for school and where to go.”
 
As a culminating event, students organized a Welcome Walk through the school’s neighborhood – with proceeds benefiting InterFaith Works and Upstate Cancer Center. To learn more or contribute to their efforts, please visit https://welcome-walk-2025.cheddarup.com!