Monthly Theme: Perseverance
Week 4
And he goes on to say ….The slogan “press on” has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.
At the end of the day, your talents don’t define you nearly as much as the strength of your will. Using difficult situations as a fuel to solve your current problem will influence a positive outcome.
Monthly Theme: Perseverance
Week: 3
When I think about recent inspirational figures, three gentlemen come to mind – Steven, Wesley and Simon. They are The Freedom Singers. Their fight for survival, for a new life in Canada, for perseverance will leave you in tears (grab a kleenex box). Listen to their story as they tell it to the Season 6 Dragon’s on CBC’s Dragon’s Den.
Their lessons remind me that to persevere, I must:
Another person that comes to mind in this same light is Dr Eva Olsson. Her Keynote speech – A Legacy of Caring, Compassion and Character at a recent conference that I attended had the 450+ of us (administrators, teachers, facilitators, Alberta Education personnel, superintendents) all captivated and deeply emotional. Her main purpose was to promote that each one of us is to “become the person you are destined to be” not due to someone else’s urging (like Mom/Dad or others).
Steven, Simon, Wesley and Eva have shown us that by refusing to give up when life’s circumstances conspired against them, they powerfully modeled the value of perseverance.
Monthly Theme: Perseverance
Week: 2
To persevere, we must continually move ahead, move forward in our thoughts, reflections and actions. One project that comes to mind when I think about our school division’s perseverance regarding mental health and building student capacity…is our own Youth Resiliency Initiative. This initiative is intended to build health and wellness in schools and communities building, programs, and partnerships. Additionally, the initiative focuses on developing strategies that build and support a more equitable foundation for resiliency in youth served by Parkland School Division.
“PSD’s ultimate goal is student success and well-being, and the Youth Resiliency Initiative is a strong example of a program we’ve introduced to directly support that goal,” said Tim Monds, PSD’s Superintendent of Schools. Monds added, “The implementation of a division-wide initiative focused on enhancing resiliency will enable us to respond to the unique physical, social, and mental health needs of each school.”
The Initiative also fosters opportunities for students and their families to connect with broad, responsive supports and services. In the 2011-2012 school year, one school, Parkland Village started “evolve” and this project was so successful that other schools in the division have incorporated this Initiative into their work with students and communities for 2012-2013.
More information on the Youth Resiliency Initiative:
Parkland Village School evolve Project information
Nutella Breakfast Table Fund award
RBC Children’s Mental Health Project grant
Monthly Theme: Perseverance
Week: 1
Taking chances, reaching for the impossible, being broken hearted or broken down…it’s through perseverance that allows us to maneuver through the obstacles in life. Although there are many stories of perseverance, I find that Rudy Ruettiger’s notion to attend Notre Dame is one that many people can easily relate to. (I have a 3 minute clip below, but it’s definitely a great movie for students and families to watch!)
Perseverance is not always a short path. This may be why we find it hard to believe that we are on the right track. There are no “overnight success stories”. Celebrities of song, stage and sports will tell you that they worked long and hard (and continue to do so) before they were ‘discovered’ or ‘made it big’. So too is with us. Perseverance takes a vision, a plan, support, follow-through and reflection. This cycle doesn’t stop until success is achieved. Once achieved, new goals are set. (You can certainly see this in the great technological giants such as Apple, Samsung, BlackBerry, Microsoft. As innovation and perseverance is cyclical and constant, otherwise these companies falter.)
Jessica, who writes the Minimal Student blog, has great tips and examples of perseverance for students. Check out her suggestions HERE.
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