East Fayette

Elementary just completed its four-week certification process to become

Kamaron Concept III (KC3) by participating in a variety of activities

designed to help students learn about the power of words and the feelings

they evoke. Last year Braelinn Elementary became the first positive label

certified school in Fayette and the nation.

Ross, president

of the Kamaron Institute whose initiative is to help schools, businesses,

organizations and homes become a safe haven where only positive labels

or words are used, developed the certification process. In order to become

a positive label certified school, each classroom must have a minimum

of two activities per week focusing on the effects of labeling. One activity

that everyone must participate in is reading Ross' book, "Casey and

the Amazing, Giant, Green Shirt."

The story centers

on a young boy named Casey who finds his grandfather's old Army shirt

and notices that a badge is missing from it. He asks his mother to make

him a badge to fill the space and she gives him the task of deciding what

the badge should say. Casey takes a whole week, choosing a different word

each day: special, brave, smart, nice, fast, patriotic and loved. Through

his journey to find the perfect word for his badge, he learns about the

joy of positive words and the pain of unkind ones.

Throughout

the school, teachers, students, parents and staff members are seeing a

noticeable difference in attitudes and increased in acts of kindness toward

each other. Perhaps the best component of the program is that it requires

the participation of students in addition to teachers, staff and parents.

"Motivation

here at East Fayette has always been high but in my 30 years of teaching

I've never seen it soar to the heights it has after completing the Casey

program," commented principal Faith Hardnett. "It has brought

about such unity among teachers, students and parents. The program teaches

our children life skills that parents and teachers have taught them. If

we can build on that foundation and nothing else, then we will be giving

our children skills that will carry them through life."

Even people

who are not at the school on a regular basis report having noticed a positive

difference in attitudes after implementation of the program. One substitute

teacher says she wishes more schools would adopt the Casey program.

"I have

noticed that the students at East Fayette are in general kind and considerate

to one another. I credit 'Casey's Amazing Green Shirt' for their good

attitude. As a substitute teacher, I wish more elementary schools would

share this program with their students," said Bona Gray.

In honor of

East Fayette becoming KC3 certified, Ross presented the school with an

engraved plaque and awarded the first ever Outstanding Service Award to

the school's counselor Leslie Fear who was instrumental in bringing the

program to the school.

Additionally,

Ross presented Lynn Gunter (first grade teacher), Glenda Martinez (kindergarten

teacher), and Carolyn Morris (third grade teacher) with a creativity award

for developing unique positive label activities for their classrooms.

Each teacher received a gift certificate from Peachtree Education Station

in Peachtree City.

Positive label

certification for Fayette schools is being provided under the CARE (Children

at Risk in Education) umbrella of programs. The certification program

is also included in the official character education resources of the

National Museum of Patriotism.