Berlin Elementary becomes a new Lighthouse School
The Berlin Elementary Lighthouse student body members gather together under one of the many lighthouses located at the school. Recently, Berlin Elementary became an officially registered Leader in Me Lighthouse School.
Lighthouses are designed to shine light and serve as a beacon to guide people to safety.
Recently, Berlin Elementary became an officially registered Leader in Me Lighthouse School, an honor designed to lead young people to allow their light to shine through leadership and compassion.
According to Darren Blochlinger, Berlin Elementary principal, this is something the school has been working toward for some time.
The school was reviewed March 17 when several leaders from LIM paid a visit to the school. They went through all the paperwork and effort the school has documented to become a Lighthouse School, spending the day with a variety of people.
On April 1 Blochlinger got the call from LIM that they had reached Lighthouse status.
“This means a lot to us since we’ve been working toward this goal for some time, since 2019,” Blochlinger said. “It’s really exciting.”
Blochlinger said qualifying means the school has met all the required elements necessary — from leadership, culture and academics — that make it a mature leadership school.
“The Leader in Me framework focuses on how a school is teaching and modeling leadership,” Blochlinger said. “It focuses on the culture of your school and then how we are teaching academics and how students are involved.”
Blochlinger said the new designation won’t change the way the school conducts its Leader in Me program. Students will continue to take a leading role in designing programs and creating a Leader in Me culture throughout the school.
LIM teams will continue to evaluate Berlin Elementary every two years to get a sense of how things are progressing as the school works toward maintaining its Lighthouse status.
Blochlinger said it is exciting to see the program reach this level, and he, the staff and students are eager to take the leadership programs to an even greater place.
One thing the designation does is open the door for other schools seeking to develop LIM programs to come and visit Berlin Elementary to gain insight into how to begin and what steps to take to grow and develop the leadership culture.
“When we first started, we went and visited Shreve Elementary and Wooster Township School because they were Lighthouse Schools,” Blochlinger said. “It’s exciting to be a school where other schools can come, visit and learn.”
Blochlinger said the LIM program has made a huge impact on the school, noting the curriculum focuses on teaching the whole student.
He said characteristics like teaching the students to take responsibility, develop leadership qualities, make good choices and other high-character traits are an integral part of the LIM program.
“Hopefully by doing that, this gives kids the opportunity to see the importance of them being responsible leaders,” Blochlinger said. “It’s about building a strong school culture, and ultimately, when they take responsibility for their academics and education, it will result in a greater education.”
Blochlinger said it hasn’t happened overnight, but the staff has seen small changes taking place over time that have impacted the way students interact, set goals, and develop greater leadership skills in the classroom as a whole and as individuals.
He said one of the evaluators paid them the ultimate compliment.
“She said ‘thank you for creating good human beings,’” Blochlinger said. “That is the ultimate goal.”
He said building character and leadership qualities while educating the students has been rewarding for everyone at the school.
The LIM program hasn’t just impacted the students. Blochlinger said it has made quite an impression on the staff, himself included.
“It’s made a big impact on me,” Blochlinger said. “I think without it I would have never looked at things from the point of beginning with the end in mind. What is the big picture we want to get to and what are the steps that are going to get us there?”
He said the staff is of the same mindset, and the language and actions in the LIM program go home with the students each day to become part of their family and community life.
He said hearing parents thanking him and the staff for pursuing this program is commonplace because it helps young people get through some difficult times and causes them to think through problems and challenges.
He said it also has helped create an attitude of getting the important things in life and school done first and then enjoying the fun things.
“We’ve learned to listen with our hearts and our eyes as well as our minds, instead of simply having an answer right away,” Blochlinger said. “Sometimes it’s more important to simply listen. It’s a message that has helped both the students and the staff.”
As a new LIM Lighthouse School, Berlin Elementary hopes to convey all the qualities of the program to other schools to help build character and leadership in every way possible.