NatStuCo Update: Winter 2021
Twenty-two million kids rely on free and reduced-price meals. Up until recently, 1 in 7 lived in a household without consistent access to food—and that number is estimated to now be 1 in 4 as a result of COVID-19. Hunger in children can lead to stress, malnourishment, and poor mental health—impacting academic performance and progress....
Advise, Volume 49 (2020-2021)
Active Voices: Winter 2021
Picture this all-too-familiar situation: hollow eyes, masked faces, and slouched shoulders—and you, standing in front of your leadership group trying to get your message across to a class of teenagers. At that moment, you may find yourself thinking: How can I get through to these kids? With both students and teachers returning to school separated...
Advise, Volume 49 (2020-2021)
Building Community Connections: Winter 2021
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit and schools shut down, it couldn’t have come at a worse time for the many students working on a big community-wide project at South Fayette High School in McDonald, PA. Each spring, every student in the school is involved in a fundraising “Mini-thon” that, over the years, has raised about...
Advise, Volume 49 (2020-2021)
The Middle Ground: Winter 2021
March 13, 2020, is a date that resonates deeply with our family. Here in Los Angeles County, that Friday was the last day of school as we knew it. Our daughter, Libi, was in her final months of seventh grade. Schooling in the weeks that followed was like “triage education,” doing our level best under...
Advise, Volume 49 (2020-2021)
Honor Society Update: Fall 2020
Advisers across the country are entering the school year with a host of unknowns. The typical back-to-school excitement is tempered with concerns over maintaining physical health for yourself and your students, regulations for masks and social distancing, and addressing grief and trauma that students may be experiencing. There may be questions about how your Honor...
Advise, Volume 49 (2020-2021)
The Middle Ground: Fall 2020
Most of us entered 2020 with high hopes, as we often do at the beginning of a new decade. That hope soon dwindled as we opened the year with Australian wildfires that killed a staggering 1 billion animals. It dwindled further when we witnessed increased social injustices—including George Floyd’s death. On top of it all,...
Advise, Volume 49 (2020-2021)
Prudential Spirit of Community Awards: Fall 2020
When schools shut their doors in March due to COVID-19, cancellations came with them: proms and playoffs, field trips and fundraisers, concerts and internships. But if you think volunteer projects got called off, then you don’t know Generation Z. Even as their lives were upended, students across the country stepped up this spring to respond...
Advise, Volume 49 (2020-2021)
From the Director: Fall 2020
Here are some guesses regarding where you may be this season: You are worried about your students, friends, family, and community members. You have been logged into a computer for more hours in the past several months than your entire life. You may have binge-watched one or several dozen Netflix or Hulu shows online. I...
Advise, Volume 49 (2020-2021)
Remote Possibilities: Fall 2020
One word seemed to describe the sentiment among advisers as the COVID-19 pandemic numbers fluctuated from state to state, the jarring school shutdowns were still recent in everyone’s memory, and the new school year approached: Uncertainty. In various ways—using technology, creativity, and the energy of their students—advisers managed to keep student leaders engaged through the...
Advise, Volume 49 (2020-2021)
Empowering Young People to Vote Amid COVID-19: Fall 2020
At DoSomething.org, our mission is simple: to enable the greatest number of young people to do the greatest amount of good in their communities by volunteering. To go a step further, we aim to transform young volunteers into lifelong, habitual voters as another way to make our communities a better place. Millions of students across...
Advise, Volume 49 (2020-2021)