In an effort to increase kindness and positivity at Gearhart Elementary School, school counselor Kaile Jones organized a “kindness challenge” that took place throughout January.

“Right before Christmas break, I noticed a lot of unkind behaviors from a lot of the kids,” Jones said during her presentation at the Seaside School Board meeting Feb. 18.

As she was researching methods and activities to decrease negativity and unkindness and create a more welcoming environment, she came across a national campaign called the “Great Kindness Challenge.”

Schools across the country can host the challenge at their school, determining individually how much effort they want to put into the individual tasks and activities.

Jones signed up Gearhart Elementary School and they embarked on their own four-week kindness challenge upon students returning from winter break. However, Jones put her own twist on the campaign, turning it into more of a game.

“I wanted to incorporate some kind of challenge to make it fun in each of the classrooms,” she said. “Each week, the different classes got different challenges they were all working on secretly completing.”

The challenges arrived to each classroom in an envelope marked “top secret.” Students were challenged to complete a variety of tasks, such as smiling at 15 people, paying compliments, switching it up at lunch, playing with someone new at recess, or writing teachers and peers kind notes. They could also complete some of the challenges at home.

The school also got the bulletin board involved as an interactive component. One week, for the “Be the ‘I’ in kind” challenge, teachers took pictures of students in front of large letters spelling out the word “kind,” except the students themselves stood in for the “I.”

For another activity, students were asked to spot other kids executing acts of kindness and then write them down on slips of paper to post on the board. There were also numerous slips containing random acts of kindness that the students could voluntarily take and complete.

“We had to keep replacing them,” Jones said.

One feature that turned out to be more successful than she anticipated was challenging students to sit with different peers at lunch. She noticed several occasions where “kids were sitting by themselves and other kids who don’t normally sit with them would go over and keep them company.”

Nearing the end of each week, she added, “I saw a huge change in where the kids were sitting and who they were talking to.”

Principal Juli Wozniak said she feels the challenge was successful and students have continued displaying thoughtful behaviors, like opening the door or asking “How are you?”

“It’s carried on,” she said.

District news

• In other district news, at the February board meeting, Michael Aloi, an audit compliance manager at Portland-based Pauly Rogers & Co, gave a report on the district’s audit for June 30, 2019. The firm audits the district’s financial statement and checks for compliance based on standards set by Oregon Administrative Rules, as well as federal and state laws pertaining to grant recipients. According to Aloi, there were no findings and “everything was great.”

• The Cannon Beach Academy has submitted an application to renew its charter. According to Roley, the board will review the application and discuss it in a meeting with the district’s curriculum personnel. The curriculum meeting will take place before the March school board meeting, at which time the board can approve the application. According to Cannon Beach Academy Director Amy Fredrickson, the application addresses the academy’s history; where they currently stand in terms of staffing, enrollment, and test scores; and their goals to continue expanding the student body, staffing, and funding. The school’s long-term goal in relation to its current facility, Fredrickson said, is to enroll 75 students, with maximum classroom sizes of 25 students.

• The Seaside High School Associated Student Body hosts a blood drive with the American Red Cross at the school starting at 8:30 a.m. Friday, Feb. 28. The public is welcome to sign up and attend.