When Passion Leads to Purpose

Imagine if every student knew that they were more than just the awards they receive or the letter grade on a report card. Imagine if they truly understood that when they lean into their passions and talents to address a need in the world, therein lies their legacy, their contribution to the world.  Join Molly, Dr. Eve, and guests Sandra Vasquez, Counselor,  at Mountainside High School in Arizona, as she shares how they lean into The 8th Habit with intention to make impactful change in their school community.

Transcript

 [00:00:00] From Leader in Me Studios, I'm Molly Garcia. This is The Empowering Teacher for Secondary 

Molly: I remember an influential leader in my life sharing that life is not about accumulation, rather it's about contribution. Imagine if every student knew that they were more than just the awards they receive or the letter grade on a report card, that they truly understand that when they lean into their passions and talents to address a need in the world, therein lies their legacy.

Molly: On our episode today, I'm connecting with Sandra Vasquez, Counselor at Mountainside High School in Arizona. She's going to share how they intentionally lean into The 8th Habit, Find Your Voice and Inspire Others to Find Theirs, to make impactful change in their school community.

Molly: But before I jump into this interview, let's do a quick research connect with Dr. Eve Miller, FranklinCovey Education Director of Research. Eve, lay it on us. What does the research tell us about the connection between The 8th Habit and our secondary students? 

Eve: All right, Molly, I love these [00:01:00] questions and your introduction reminds me that while we often focus on the part of The 8th Habit, Find Your Voice. The second part of this habit, inspire others to find their voice, is equally as powerful. So let's explore research that helps us better understand the impacts of helping others find and develop their voice.

Eve: The research area that most aligns with students helping others to find their voice, I believe, is peer mentoring. And recent neuroscience research highlights how mentoring can profoundly influence the developing brain of adolescents. Positive mentoring relationships, where mentees are guided to discover their unique strengths and talents, not only boost their self esteem and decision making skills, but also aid in their emotional and social development.

Molly: This is so fascinating. And so I'm curious about the mentors. Is there research on how mentoring helps as [00:02:00] well?

Eve: Oh, great question. Yes. There is a lot of excellent research on the impacts of mentors, both mentors that are the same age and mentors that work with younger students. Some general impacts for both of these types of mentoring situations include the powerful wellness combo of an increased self-awareness and a sense of purpose that comes with mentoring.

Eve: And this is why some researchers see mentoring as a powerful wellness practice for secondary students. And in addition, they develop key skills like compassion and leadership. My favorite area of research on peer mentoring is on high-risk students, though, because connecting these students with a deeper sense of purpose and contribution is truly life changing.

Molly: Okay, I am getting so excited hearing all of this Eve, because I have totally seen this in so many of our Leader in Me schools where teens are [00:03:00] learning how to teach the 7 Habits to their peers, as well as those leadership roles that include that mentoring, opportunity for other classmates, even around like a specific content area. So what are some just simple ways that teachers can incorporate these powerful practices into the classroom?

Eve:  Teachers can start to create a mentoring culture in the classroom with these three practices. So first, start by identifying each student's strength or ask them to help you identify it and encourage them to mentor each other in these areas.

Eve: Second, implement peer-review sessions where students give constructive feedback to each other. And third, foster an environment of mutual respect and empathy, and give students leadership roles in group projects. This not only develops their mentoring skills, but also helps them recognize and utilize their unique strengths.

Molly: It's clear that by nurturing this mentoring [00:04:00] culture, we're not only helping students find their voice, but also building a community of learners who empower each other. I'm excited to hear about how this research is in alignment to what Sandra and the students at Mountainside High School are putting into practice.

Molly: Sandra, welcome to The Empowering Teacher Podcast for Secondary.

Sandra: Hi, Molly. Thank you for having me

Molly: Yeah. It's so great to have you with us. I'm really hoping this episode will bring both that clarity and inspiration to what The 8th Habit can bring into our classrooms.

Molly: I'd love for us to begin our conversation around a very particular experience you all have with The 8th Habit. you have a team on your campus that has truly found their voice and inspiring others to do the same. Can you tell us a little bit about this team?

Sandra: Yes. So the team on our campus is called Alpha Wolves and of six students. The purpose of this team is for them to just mentor underclassmen. We do work with all [00:05:00] grades, but our in-person focus is the Freshman class, and that's just to bring in the habits. the high school way. They're used to, you know, Habits 1 through 8, being spoken with a certain, language that the program was created, but we've shifted that in high school and to make it sound more, teenage appropriate and not just that they feel like they're still getting the same stuff that they were getting in elementary school. 

Molly: Here's this alpha team. Their biggest rock is to turn the habits into a way where it's so applicable to secondary students. And especially for your students because it sounds like they've had Leader in Me experience from preschool all the way to 8th grade, and now they find themselves in high school.

Molly: So, what does this team do on a weekly and daily basis to bring those habits to life?

Sandra: So, weekly, we get together and we plan what our presentations are gonna be. The mentoring day is already built into our schedule, so we already know what days that takes [00:06:00] place. And so these kids are meeting two to three times a week planning, talking, learning. They're learning more themselves. Um, you know, initially, they thought, oh, we, we have this down. We know the habits. 

Sandra: But breaking it down so that we can teach it to high schoolers has just enhanced their learning of the habits. So we push into the Freshman classes. We've seen just a lot of, you know, kiddos that need that support. We, and we also have new kids that have no idea what the habits are.

Sandra: So bringing it in just with that lens of high schoolers and that older teen view of what the habits are has really just helped them be able to speak to the students, and the students receive what they are actually saying. So they're mentoring them.

Molly: So they found their voice. They go in. They inspire Freshmen. They're mentoring freshmen. What impact are we seeing with Sophomores, Juniors, and Seniors? How does that work?

Sandra: Yes. So they create three different presentations. They have the the presentation that we take into the classroom [00:07:00] physically. Each presentation has a hands-on activity, so with the Freshmen they're actually doing that activity with the Freshmen. When it comes to Sophomores, they have a little bit more rigorous presentation and activity. The teachers, during that time allotted, they play the presentation, but they actually get involved with the students during that activity piece. So they're actually doing that with the kids, And we equip them with everything they need. and sometimes they'll push into those upperclassmen classrooms Just as support and just, you know, so that they can know, oh, there's Alphas in here. This, these are the kids that we see on the videos every week.

Molly: Okay. So let me just for our listeners, let me just kinda map this out because I am just blown away at these examples. So this Alpha team goes in and they work together to truly understand the habits at a deep level. Then, Sandra, they take their learning and they mentor Freshmen, 

Sandra: Yes. 

Molly: Once a week. Right? Because that's already mapped out in the schedule. Then they create [00:08:00] these video collections for Sophomores that goes a little bit deeper than they did with Freshmen. And then they also create a video collection for the Juniors and the Seniors to really go deep into what's important to them at that aspect of their life, and they offer their services to teachers so that they can be supportive of the teacher as they are teaching all about how we can go deep into the habits.

Molly: Did I get that right?

Sandra: Yes. That's correct.

Molly: That's amazing. They have found their voice and they're inspiring others to do the same. I have to ask, just because we know the importance of students really valuing their academics and their growth, in their academic journey and what they're gonna go into as they get older. So what impact are you seeing when it comes to their academics?

Sandra: They are definitely seeing the importance of being successful. Being part of the Alpha team and the lessons that they're learning and teaching they, they truly see it as, I can't ask our Freshmen [00:09:00] to do this if we're not gonna do it, like if we have to make it a priority ourselves. So much so that they you know, we meet often. They'll be doing homework. Either they're working on the presentation and when that's done, they're working on homework, or constantly because we spend a lot of time together. They do miss class during those mentoring days, and so they know that in order to remain on the Alpha team, they have to be academically in good standing. 

Sandra: So they motivate each other, and, you know, we do have a Senior who was off track beginning of the year, he understood where he was at. He knew that he wasn't gonna graduate, but throughout this process has learned the importance, and he just found that drive again and literally has brought up his credits to the point where he is now on track and will be graduating with the senior class this year. And so the team is super excited for him. They've motivated him. They've just spoken life into him, in this area, and he's really taken off with it.

Sandra: So I've [00:10:00] personally seen a lot of growth with this group of students.

Molly: Wow. So let's talk about as a result of their actions, you know, finding their voice through the Alpha team. What impact and results are you seeing with other students?

Sandra: So obviously Freshmen are the you know the kiddos that we spend a lot of time with in-person pushing into these classes, Freshmen who, you know, have that mindset, oh, this is my first year. I have time. Can do this. But with the presentations and the lessons that they're learning, they are understanding too. Like, hey, I gotta start strong because I'm, in, in order to finish strong. And so the Alphas have been able to speak that into them, like, hey. This is so important. Like, we wish we had this when we were Freshmen. This is something like we're here for you. We are the people. Come talk to us.

Sandra: We're at lunch. If you have a question, like, they now have a, a face to go with, The voice and the program. And so they've made themselves available to students. You have questions, you're not [00:11:00] sure about how to come up with a plan on how to get on track with your academics. They have made themselves available to students. 

Molly: Wow. They are changing lives. They have found their voice, and they are inspiring others to do the same. Sandra, thank you for shining the light on what happens when we choose to embrace the power of the eighth habit and, of course, the impact that it is having with all of your students. To our listeners, remember, you matter, you make a difference, and you've got this.