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Greenfield students making big impacts

The Highland County Press - Staff Photo - Create Article
McClain students (Bigs) and sixth graders (Littles) are pictured during a meeting early in 2024. Here they are gathered in the McClain auditorium and are building relationships through playing games together. (Photos provided by Matt Shelton)
By
Angela Shepherd, Greenfield Exempted Village Schools

For the last few years, Greenfield students have benefitted from a partnership with Big Brothers Big Sisters of South Central Ohio, part of a nationwide organization that encourages children to reach their full potential through one-to-one mentoring. 

The organization strives to “develop positive relationships that have a direct and lasting effect on the lives of young people,” according to the website. Across the country, BBBS does this through monitored matches of adult volunteers, known as Bigs, with children, known as Littles, in their community to create relationships with trusted adults that can help the children better navigate the challenges they face.

What that looks like through the organization’s school-based mentoring program is high school students act as mentors to sixth graders new to middle school. 

The school-based mentoring program at McClain through Big Brothers Big Sisters South Central Ohio (BBBSSCO) started five years ago, BBBSSCO mentoring specialist Charity Wheeler said, and it’s a program the organization engages in many school districts across its five-county area (Highland, Ross, Pickaway, Fayette and Pike). 

“The Bigs help them by offering guidance, encouragement and support,” said Wheeler. “The Bigs let the Littles know that they are not alone and that much of what they are experiencing were things that they also encountered when they were new to middle school.”

The Bigs and Littles in Greenfield meet every week for lunch throughout the school year. They also participate in different activities together throughout the school year.

It’s something that McClain Principal Matt Shelton said has been beneficial to all of the students involved. And witnessing firsthand the positive impacts of the mentoring relationships, he said, has allowed him to see the high school students in a different element other than just as a student, and it’s something he said makes him “very proud of the great people they are.”

Participants in the school-based program are chosen based on professional in-person interviews of both the Big and Little, Wheeler said. Individual backgrounds and experiences are also considered to help make the best matches. Additionally, Bigs are required to provide references, and the information from those references also helps in making “thoughtful and intentional matches,” she said. “We do our best to match Bigs and Littles with similar interests in order to facilitate friendships.”

Wheeler said the program’s purpose, through a friendship with a Big, is to provide an additional support for Littles who may be struggling with various issues like self-esteem, making good life choices, navigating challenging changes, and avoiding risky behaviors. For the Bigs, it’s an opportunity to earn community service credit and leadership skills that will help them as they move forward from high school. 

Good things are always going on in the Greenfield Exempted Village School District. To follow along, check out each building’s Facebook page, the district’s other social media pages and the district website at greenfield.k12.oh.us.
 

Publisher's note: A free press is critical to having well-informed voters and citizens. While some news organizations opt for paid websites or costly paywalls, The Highland County Press has maintained a free newspaper and website for the last 25 years for our community. If you would like to contribute to this service, it would be greatly appreciated. Donations may be made to: The Highland County Press, P.O. Box 849, Hillsboro, Ohio 45133. Please include "for website" on the memo line.
 

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