INSPIRED | Head of Class, Deep River Elementary
OCTOBER 31, 2019 — Allison Cooper lives and breathes Deep River Elementary.
For Cooper, a teaching assistant and bus driver at Deep River, the day begins at 6:20 a.m. with her bus route. Then she's on to her classroom where she goes over her notes before helping Mrs. Coggins divide the class into reading groups. Before long, it's time for lunch, and she needs to help guide 200 kids coming into and out of the cafeteria. Then it's back to the classroom for a couple hours, and then she's back on the bus. Her day ends around 3:30 p.m.
“We work hard here,” Cooper explained. “Everybody puts in a huge effort to teach our kids, and we care about them a lot.”
Joyce Williams is another person for whom Deep River means the world. As the school's head custodian, Williams is responsible for many of the things most people take for granted – always providing a good first impression by making sure the school's entryway is clean, for example, and keeping up with things like water fountains and bathrooms.
“Deep River is special to me because we're like a family here,” Williams said. “It's not just about the teachers, it's about the cafeteria workers, the custodians, the teachers, everyone. If one of us sees a child running down the hall or something, we're able to treat them just like a teacher would.”
Cooper and Williams are just two of the often unsung heroes of a place like Deep River Elementary. Now, they and all of their colleagues are being recognized for all of their hard work, and in one of the most useful ways possible – with a little bit of extra money. That's because the school has been named the winner of the 2019 Lee County Education Foundation’s Head of Class award.
“It means a lot,” Cooper said. “It gives us the recognition that we did it, we did our part and helped these children grow. It made me feel appreciated, like I did what I was supposed to do.”
Williams concurred.
“I'm not biased, but I see what takes place here, and there's no school more deserving,” she said. “Right now (the financial award is) a nice little extra. We're raising four grandchildren, and when you have four extra heads in the house, anything extra is nice.”
The award is a project of the Lee County Education Foundation, which has been giving the prize to an individual school in Lee County since 2011. The award recognizes Lee County Schools' best-performing elementary school on a number of criteria, including test scores and school demographics. The winning school's staff – from the principal to the custodians – split the $50,000 award in a merit-pay program that has been hailed by leaders from across North Carolina as an innovative way to reward achievement by a public-private partnership.
Deep River Principal Amy Lundy and her staff found out about the award – the second they've earned since 2015 – last week.
“I found out when I got off the bus,” Cooper said. “I keep my phone by my side when I'm on the bus in case someone needs to reach me, and I looked down and that's when I saw.”
Deep River's students and staff, as well as educators from across the county and several community leaders, gathered Wednesday at the Dennis A. Wicker Civic Center for a ceremony where the award was officially given to the school by Lee County Education Foundation Chairman Bill Horner, III. At the ceremony, Lundy said everyone has a purpose, and that Head of Class recognizes that purpose in everyone.
“Sometime we don't stop and take time to appreciate what's going on around us. We're so busy comparing ourselves to other people and pointing out what we can't do instead of celebrating what we can and what we have done,” she said. “I love that part of my job, watching each of you teachers grow. I watch you develop a heart for our students, I watch you stay determined even when you want to give up, and I love how you acknowledge that you have a purpose for your life – to teach.”
Another speaker on Wednesday – fourth grader Nevelon Henry-Green – said he's learned at Deep River that everyone matters.
“I say thank you to everyone who makes Deep River Elementary School the place it is today,” Green said. “Everyone is important and everyone adds value to our school. We would not be the same without you.”
Inspired is a digital digest published each week during the academic year by Lee County Schools to highlight accomplishments of students, faculty and staff. This issue from October 31, 2019, is reprinted with permission.
The 2019 Head of Class award is presented to Deep River Elementary. Photos courtesy of Loren Brett with The Sonder Photography.