Each morning over the announcements, the students and faculty of HHS hear The Six Attributes of the Homewood Spirit read aloud by HHS principal Dr. Joel Henneke as a reminder of the environment that the school seeks to create.
The Six Attributes of the Homewood Spirit serves as a code for the students and faculty of HHS to implement in their day to day lives:
- Respect yourself, others and the environment.
- Make good choices, even when no one is watching.
- Celebrate uniqueness, everyone is different.
- Words matter, think before you speak.
- Seek ways to serve others.
- Be your personal best in all that you do.
“Those are the attributes that we shape our character education around,” said HHS assistant principal Jana Flinkow.
Now, the education program is being further developed based on the standards of the Hope Institute.
The Hope Institute is a national training program that focuses on professional development, school culture, school climate and educational expertise, held at Samford University for nearby schools.
HHS has taken part in this program for the past three years with assistant principal Mindy McBride heading it up the first year, assistant principal Ganae Gaines last year and Flinkow this year.
The participating faculty and staff attend seminars that focus on character development, as well as how to get the message across to the school and the community, creating the touchstone phrase.
Participating HHS English teacher Ansley Vanderpool said that the goal of the program is embodied in the Martin Luther King Jr. quote, “Intelligence is not enough. Intelligence plus character – that is the true goal of education.”
Henneke said that they aim to take a holistic approach to dealing with issues at school and improving the atmosphere.
“How can we take what we’ve learned through the Hope Institute about culture, school climate and student engagement and do something here at Homewood that would have a positive impact on students,” he said.
Henneke said the current effort to further develop the program is to “make those roots go deeper,” including more people in the process and putting it out into the community.
HHS math teacher Holly Drake is another one of the participating teachers this year.
“As teachers, it is important that we not only help our students grow academically, but also help [them] develop strong moral character,” she said.
Drake said that the HHS Hope Institute team’s goal is to make the Six Attributed of the Homewood Spirit an integral part of school days, evolving to become more than just a list that students and faculty hear every day.
The faculty and staff of HHS were asked what the Six Attributes mean to them earlier in the spring semester, allowing them to have a part in defining the message.
Now, students have had the opportunity to fill out the survey, giving input on the name of the program and the meaning of the attributes.
“I want there to always be an understanding of the depth of what it means have respect for yourself and others,” Henneke said. “Celebrating diversity means that it’s okay that somebody is different than you.”
Although everyone has different thoughts and convictions, the attributes are intended to create unity and a doable set of ideas to live by.
Henneke sees the program’s development as the school’s part in combating divisiveness in the world, helping all who enter the school and community feel accepted and valued.
“My hope is that it becomes a part of who we are and what we do,” he said.
