Peer leaders recognize classmates for peace eff orts
By Kate Daly Contributing Writer

Westborough - Sometimes it's hard to see the good people do, especially under the stress of everyday life. But the peer leaders at Gibbons Middle School decided that's just what they needed to do.

"I think 'Peace Player of the Week' kind of opened our eyes that people are helping each other," peer leader Ben Ridley said. "Before, we were focusing on negative things."

Peace Player of the Week was a program the students developed that ran from Martin Luther King Day until Valentine's Day. Now it will continue, although not necessarily every week. The dates of the first phase of the program were set because Martin Luther King Jr. was a peacemaker and Feb. 14 is a day recognizing love, said Ceil Parteleno, school psychologist and peer leader advisor.

"It's a program to recognize people who, without asking, help people out," said Jesse Blackwell, another of the eighth-grade peer leaders.

The 16 peer leaders took on the responsibility of noticing good works and nominating seventh- and eighth-grade students for the title. The peer leaders announced the winners on the intercom, and winners were given a pink feather boa to wear for a day as recognition.

" Some examples of award winners included students who found and returned money, another who helped out by getting the school nurse when a classmate fainted, and one boy who picked up a cell phone dropped by a student and was too intimidated by the large group around it to pick it up herself.

The peer leaders credited Parteleno with coming up with the idea of recognizing students, but she gave them full credit for the success. The program wouldn't have worked nearly so well if teachers had nominated the winners, she said. The key was the peer leaders themselves.

"They made it cool," Parteleno said. "Shane [Anable] thought of calling it Peace Player of the Week."

Peer leader Anna Petrunich brought in the boa. Anable brought in beads and leis because so many people were being recognized.

"A lot of us noticed as the weeks went on, more and more kids were nominated," Anna said. "It caught on."

Peer leader Colin Lees agreed.

"I think it really opened some people up that it feels good to help people," he said.

Anable said some people may have tried to be kind just to be recognized, but that was okay with him.

"It actually was constructive that people were doing it for the award, so more and more people were being nice," he said. "We were surprised so many people took it seriously."

The peer leaders are selected at the end of each year by the seventh-graders, with input from the faculty and staff . Once they become eighth-graders, they spend their time preparing lessons for the new seventh-graders on issues such as bullying, dealing with stress and respect.

The Peace Player program was just one more way to raise the students' awareness.

"I was surprised how people really cared about it," peer leader Eugene Jang said.

Peer leader Michael Colbert said the program opened the peer leaders' eyes, as well.

"We really noticed," he said, "that people do good things and really care about each other."