Former student talks about the value of CIS
By Phyllis Moore
Published in News on November 4, 2016 10:48 AM
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Travis Sauls, left, a graduate of Goldsboro High School, shared his story at Thursday's annual meeting of Communities in Schools, with the school's success coach, Barbara Wilkins
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Dr. Michael Dunsmore, at podium, superintendent of Wayne County Public Schools, speaks about the impact of the hurricane on the district's calendar, testing and overall upheaval of students and staff, during Thursday's annual meeting of Communities in Schools.
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Tammy Keel, principal at Mount Olive Middle School, was one of the featured speakers at Thursday's annual meeting of Communities in Schools.
Travis Sauls always wanted to be a firefighter.
But that was a pipe dream for the little boy who didn't have his own room and grew up terrified by the spiders, roaches and sometimes possums coming in through the kitchen floor.
He was embarrassed by his mismatched socks and clothes, and didn't want to bring friends home.
He got bullied in elementary school and by middle school, had joined a gang.
Barbara Wilkins, a success coach at Goldsboro High School, shared the story of the "awesome young man" she met five years ago when he entered GHS.
When he discovered the school's fire academy program, she said, he approached her about enrolling.
At the time, it was only offered for those in grades 11 and 12, she said, but an exception was made.
He thrived, finding his purpose and pursuing it heartily.
Since graduation last spring, he has gone on to complete his EMT training at Wayne Community College in August.
He now works full-time with Wayne NET, and had shown up at Thursday's annual meeting of Communities in Schools fresh from a 24-hour shift.
"Whenever they need somebody, I go in a heartbeat," he said.
His aspirations of becoming a firefighter, hopefully a paid one, are still intact, he said.
Lisa Johnson, assistant fire chief with the City of Goldsboro, who got to know Sauls in the fire academy program, praised his performance, breaking the news that his dream is closer than he led on.
"Travis was in our hiring process last year, for the following year," she said. " And we have some openings. He's been told, but he's very humble about it, he will be coming on board with us the end of December.
"So get ready. Our new rookie school is in January. He'll do it. He's got the drive to accomplish this."
That is just one example of the success being seen in the CIS program, said executive director Selena Bennett, during the gathering at Goldsboro Event Center.
"We serve students in a variety of different ways -- to help them become productive citizens, to give back," she said.
The local program provides success coaches at six schools, mentoring and after school leadership programs, oversees the Teen Court program, as well as an annual school supplies drive that this year brought in more than $24,000 worth of supplies for students.
Tammy Keel, principal at Mount Olive Middle School, shared how beneficial the mentoring program had been at her school.
"We ask our volunteers to commit to 15 to 20 minutes a week to come to the school and show heartfelt interest," she said. "You never know what kind of impact you are going to make on the life of a child.
"We believe that 15 minutes pulled out of a class have a long-term benefit."
Despite successes of the program, the recent hurricane had an impact on the school district as a whole, said Wayne County Public Schools superintendent, Dr. Michael Dunsmore.
"We still have students that are in shelters," he said, telling how at least two students had birthdays while displaced and living in the shelters set up in the aftermath of the storm.
But that was just a portion of what the district has dealt with in recent weeks, he said.
Students and staff missed eight days, with flooding complicating things further. And not just putting buses back on the roads, the superintendent said.
Another factor was those high school students that also drive to school, Dunsmore said.
"When we're putting those buses out we stay around later in the evening," he said. "I want that last call -- 'My bus is back, safe.' But we also have to have those bus drivers get home."
Schools are back in session, he said, and there are still efforts being made to provide "normalcy," he told the crowd. Among the fallout now being dealt with are seeking "forgiven days" from the legislature for time missed by students and staff. The hope is that efforts may be made to amend some of the calendar laws, he said, although that ultimately will not help when end-of-grade testing time approaches.
"If the students' basic needs aren't being met, they're not going to learn," he said. "If they come to school hungry, if they come to school cold or don't have coats or shoes, (are they) going to be able to learn in the morning? But we're going to expect them to take that test.
"I always challenge people -- look at that child, not necessarily as a student but as a child of the future."