Grace Anderson, a grade 11 student at K.V. High, is the first student in Canada to win the Jostens Renaissance monthly award. (submitted by KVHS)
A Grade 11 student at Kennebecasis Valley High School in Quispamsis is the first person in Canada to win a national award through Jostens Renaissance.
Grace Anderson received the Jostens Renaissance National Student of the Month Award for June.
Melissa Wright, Anderson’s teacher, said she never missed a beat when schools were closed by quickly adapting to events moving online.
Anderson said she loves the program because it focuses on student empowerment.
“Even if they are not #1 in everything, they can still achieve greatness within their live and within their school and I really love seeing the difference that we make,” Anderson said.
Wright, who is the coordinator of the program, nominated Anderson for the award.
“Grace is always the first to show up to any event and the last to leave. She never misses a meeting (even our virtual ones now) and is always asking how she can help. Even during this pandemic she is going above and beyond,” Wright said.
Anderson said they adapted some annual school events such as Kiss A Grad Goodbye and Thank A Staff Member to work virtually when classes moved online.
Elizabeth Folkins of K.V. High was recognized last November as the National Renaissance Staffulty of the Month. (submitted by KVHS)
“Even though we’re online, it’s still really important to recognize that teachers are working super hard, in fact probably harder than they were before and graduates really deserve the recognition,” Anderson said.
When asked how she feels about getting this kind of recognition herself, Anderson said she was “super excited” because this will raise the profile of the program in Canada.
“Super exciting to see now they will start seeing see a bit more of what we are doing here and how we have adapted Jostens Renaissance to focus more of what we need to tackle as a school,” Anderson said.
The Jostens Renaissance program follows the 5 Rs: respect, reward, recognize and reinforce which equals results.
It’s not the first time KV High has won an award linked to the program.
Back in November, Elizabeth Folkins was named the Jostens Renaissance national staffulty member of the month.
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