Document text
40 °F Forecast | Road Cams Monday, November 1, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend October 25, 2004 Grant will pair Phoenix kids with seniors By ANITA BURKE Mail Tribune Backers of a project at Phoenix High School hope it will help keep kids in school and senior citizens in their homes. The school has landed a $5,000 grant to develop a service-learning project that will benefit both teens and elders. Service learning uses community service to show students how classroom lessons relate to real life in their home towns, Phoenix High Principal Jani Hale said. With Phoenix’s sizable elderly population, putting students to work helping keep seniors safe in their homes seemed like a natural connection, she said. "This makes learning relevant for kids and can really change how they look at themselves," Hale said. "For our large elderly population, this will help keep them independent." Advertisement The grant, funded by State Farm Insurance, comes from the National Service-Learning Partnership, a national organization that advocates community service work at school. State Farm wanted to encourage projects related to home maintenance and fire safety. Six districts nationwide received grants. With the grant, the school will set up community partnerships and projects, said Cindy Cameron, a Phoenix High transition specialist who helps guide kids from school to work. The grant provides money to train teachers and business mentors, and to buy program supplies. Students will have a key role in deciding what sort of projects they will do. Possible projects include creating a brochure on preventing falls in the home or a checklist to help guide landscape maintenance. "This is a way to keep kids connected, so we want their leadership," Cameron said. She has dabbled in service-learning projects such as a community garden and caregiver training for students who were interested in nursing careers. Three years ago, several of Cameron’s students wanted to drop out, but she uncovered their interest in caring for the ill and elderly. She had them take a caregiver class offered at Providence Medford Medical Center and took them to area retirement homes to volunteer at blood-pressure clinics. Some continued training with a course to prepare certified nursing assistants at a local nursing home. And they finished high school. "Now I have students pursuing nursing degrees at Rogue Community College," she said. "Lots of kids just don’t see a way to do what they dream." The success spurred Cameron to create a true service-learning program that would encourage teens to succeed in school so they can make their dreams reality. "The State Farm grant was a good fit to provide funds to start service learning," she said. The school expects to have one project in place by the end of the year and a second in action in the spring. Reach reporter Anita Burke at 776-4485, or e-mail [email protected] . Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities