Creating real impact by solving relevant problems in their schools & communities, we are proud to recognize Norris Middle School, JC Booth Middle School, and Dartmouth Middle School for their outstanding engagement in our SLED program this past year.
Students Leading Education, known as SLED, is a national network of middle and high school student chapters on a mission to identify and solve their school and community's biggest challenges.
Each year, SLED chapters from across the country compete for the title of National Champion by submitting their impact from the previous year in a 5-7 minute recap video. A panel of business leaders judge the chapters' submissions based on their planning and execution of problem-solving projects, the extend of the chapter's community impact, and the quality of that information's delivery.
Each year the impact grows and the bar is raised for SLED chapters entering into the National Competition, and this year was definitely no different. After much consideration, our judges came to a consensus and we are excited to share the stories of our national champions:
1st Place: Norris Middle School, Bakersfield, California
Winning the SLED National Competition for the second year in a row, Norris Middle School's SLED team of 90+ students volunteered over 3,800 hours this past year to identify and solve challenges their school and community faced. This included 46 different projects over the course of the year, including 10 projects that addressed the challenges associated with transitioning to virtual learning environments in light of the COVID-19 virus.
Per competition guidelines, Norris shared three of their favorite projects from the past year:
Building a sustainable, irrigated school garden
Launching a recycling program that raised $500 for clean drinking water for South Sudan.
Hosting a virtual 5k during quarantine that had 100+ participants, as well as other virtual culture development programs
2nd Place: JC Booth Middle School, Peachtree City, Georgia
In their first year as a SLED chapter, JC Booth hit the ground running with a diverse range of projects that support students, educators, fellow student organizations, and even substitute teachers.
Their top three projects included:
Creating a Chromebook support website, reducing Chromebook support requests by 60%
Establishing a substitute teacher support program
Launched Red Ribbon Week promoting a drug free lifestyle, which included writing and directing a short film for a film festival.
3rd Place: Dartmouth Middle School, San Jose, California
Dartmouth Middle School's SLED chapter galvanized their school's culture to support both each other and their community in some incredible and creative ways, which included:
Creating a school-based enterprise equipping students to express gratitude
Uniting their student body to donate essential items to their local homeless shelter
Developing relationships with their SDC (Special Day Class) peers throughout the year by bringing activities to celebrate holidays and special events together
We are so proud of each of our SLED chapters across the country, and we can't wait to see the impact that they create in the upcoming year!
To learn more about SLED and start a conversation about bringing it to your school, connect with our team at: www.StudentLed.com