Canaan Memorial School: The Power of 1!
Canaan Memorial School is like many rural schools: a mix of relationships between students, staff, parents, family, community services, nonprofits, and social organizations, and volunteers, and the municipal offices, and the town library, and the town celebration committee, and local businesses, and, and, and, and, and…. It is through these many interconnected relationships that a school becomes a hub of the community. It is through these relationships that a school is a community school. It is true that community schools seek to foster the educational opportunities beyond the walls of the school and expand experiential learning for students; it is also true that the programs and opportunities that arise in the community school do so from the unique needs and assets within a community. In this way a community school is as unique as the students and their families and the community in which the school is located. In Canaan, this is perhaps a little bit more true than some other more centrally located or larger community schools in the Northeastern part of the state.
Canaan is a rugged rural region of the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. According to Chuck Patterson, Principal of the Canaan Memorial School, from the school he could throw a stone to the North – it would land in Quebec; to the East – it would land in New Hampshire. Geographically it is the most Northeastern town in Vermont. According to the Canaan town website, Canaan is the “real” Northeast Kingdom. Thankfully this is not a competition, rather just a point of pride for the residents. With a population of just around 900, Chuck observes, Canaan is a very small community that is very tightly knit: they have to be. “When you are geographically isolated from other Vermont towns [and the amenities that are available in larger communities] it develops a strong sense of connectedness out of necessity.”
The K – 12 school serves roughly 184 pupils, and has a staff of 50. The school is the center of community activities and events. “At Canaan Memorial School our community culture is one of service and engagement.” says Chuck. This is clearly evidenced by the well attended family engagement nights that the school hosts. Chuck mentions that these events are attended by multi-generational families, and it seems that even community members without students in the school participate in one way or another. The turnout for school parades, music, and sporting events is always high in Canaan.
For community schools hoping to engage the community in school life, the results of engagement efforts in Canaan are noteworthy. Megan Prehemo, Canaan’s School Nurse, observed of their culture in the school, “It is all about the power of one: all it takes is one look, one smile, one word, one action, one person – and that can make a world of difference to others and to a whole community.” The veritable pebble falling into a pond – in the case of Canaan’s K-12 school, it seems that the pebble is service. Acts of service to others, that is.
Being a memorial school means that there is a memorial located within the school at which there is celebration and remembrance of the acts of service from POWs, and MIA service members on Veterans Day and Memorial Day. It is the reflection upon acts of service to others that inspires students to act in service to their community and to each other. In its role in the school, the memorial operates as a way for students to reflect on how they choose to remember the past, and how that past influences the present moment and the actions of individuals within the community. This reflection is something that is not just theoretical, Canaan developed a service-day program in which students participate in service to their community on the Friday before Memorial Day, and again on Veterans Day. Middle and high school classes work in a variety of service areas: last year students cleaned the community garden at the end of the season. Other students picked up trash, and some worked closely with the Alice M. Ward Library, and Director, Sharon Ellingwood White. Sharon also hosts small groups of students throughout the year who provide service work, and participate in collaborative projects and programs that bridge and build trusted relationships outside of the classroom environment into the community. Sharon enjoys writing letters of recommendation for students with whom she has worked over the years.
Megan Prehemo, the School Nurse, is also one of the school’s grant writers for funding programs such as the summer program for which she is also the coordinator. Megan works with Josee Berry, Canaan’s Student Assistance Program Coordinator, on family engagement activities and community outreach events. These include Family Feud game-nights, Family Shamrock Shuffle, Mentoring Meetings, and more. Josee also coordinates the Girls On The Run program. And there is David Herr, 4th grade teacher, who also works on the summer program, and was leader of the bike program, and the cross country skiing program – a program which received funds from the VREC mini-grant program to purchase equipment including snow shoes, and skis, and funded the construction of a shed in which to store the equipment. David is also one of the leads who helped land a science program in Canaan in the spring, and also runs a boy’s running club. And there are more staff, and community partners – like Frank Sawicki, who is the IT guru for Canaan School, and had served on the Select Board, and is an ordained minister, and is the director of Canaan Naturally Connected (CNC). CNC is a community group that works to connect the residents of Canaan to create a shared sense of belonging.
It is this sort of model: individuals acting within a community, within a community school, who, through one look, one word, or one act of service can make a difference for a whole community. In Canaan it is indeed the power of one that makes this community school such a success for all.
