Oct 1st, 2012
LAKE WALES – Bok Academy students put their best foot forward Monday (Oct.1) to stomp out bullying.
Oct. 1 is the official Blue Shirt Day World Day of Bullying Prevention, and Bok’s 540 students turned up in a wave of blue shirts including many shirts with custom messages created by the students themselves.
Principal Damien Moses kicked off the rally by talking to students about a time when he felt bullied by messages that were posted on social media.
Guidance counselor Leanne Thrift asked other school employees to stand up if they had ever felt bullied, and nearly every adult stood up. Thrift talked to students about different types of bullying and shared statistics about bullying.
When Thrift learned about the StompOutBullying.org initiative, she asked Moses if she could organize awareness activities and a rally at Bok Academy.
Stomp Out Bullying was created in 2005 as a national anti-bullying and cyberbullying program for students.
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PHOTO #1: Bok students Chelsea Redner, Lucy Otero and Elicia Garza pose in one-of-a-kind shirts before the Stomp Out Bullying rally.
PHOTO #2:Sixth grade student Delayne McBee wears a shirt she created herself.
PHOTO #3: Student Hannah Ward made her own Stomp Out Bullying shirt.
PHOTO #4: Erica Reeves’ shirt included shoe laces!
PHOTO #5: A student uses his iPad to record Principal Damien Moses’ speech to students during the rally.
PHOTO #6 & #7: Some students also decorated the backs of their shirts.
PHOTO #8: Principal Damien Moses speaks to Bok Academy students about bullying and cyberbullying.
LAKE WALES – LAKE WALES – Polk Avenue hosted its first-ever Hispanic Celebration earlier this month (May 3) with food, fashion and fun from Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba and Guatemala.
LAKE WALES – Janie Howard Wilson Elementary musical and visual arts students shared their talents Tuesday (May 14) in a year-end “Soaring in the Arts” performance and exhibition for their school community. Music teacher Micky Caban and art teacher Tiffany Weaver coordinated the event.
LAKE WALES – Lake Wales High’s Zach Gill signed a baseball scholarship with Warner University during a Thursday morning (May 16) ceremony at the high school.
