Today members of the Board of Education discussed the fate of popular Staples High School club: Kool 2 Be Kind.
Kool 2 Be Kind, more commonly known as K2BK, is an anti-bullying club started by four Westport woman: Cindy Eigen, Lynne Goldstein, Sarah Green, and Melissa Schoen. Staples students and parents volunteer to visit third grade elementary classes in Westport, acting as mentors as they teach the children the message of kindness.
The club has been running for four years; however, the Board of Education is considering cutting the club from next year’s budget.
The Board of Education specified that the were looking to combine K2BK with the Responsive Classroom program which is similar to K2BK. According to Superintendent Elliott Landon, the Board of Education wants the high school students to continue to work with the elementary students (K-5) through the Responsive Classroom program.
Throughout the course of the meeting, many K2BK students and parents spoke to the board expressing how imperative it is to have a program such as K2BK because it teaches children at a young age how to prevent bullying in order to avoid issues further on in life.
Two young girls from Greens Farms Elementary School also spoke about how much K2BK has impacted their lives.
Kylie Cohen, who is in 6th grade, can remember clearly K2BK coming to her school in third grade. She recalls all the lessons she learned from the high school students who she looked up to as “role models.”
Sebastian Hood ’14 explained to the board that there was no support for children being bullied when he was in third grade. “It missed my generation, but it still has worlds of good to do for the next ones.”
After the members of the club spoke, a few board members responded. Paul Block said that he has four young kids so he appreciates everyone standing up and fighting for what they believe in. He is a big supporter of making a safe school climate.
The board is considering putting the K2BK decision on the agenda for the next meeting so it can be debated between the public and the board members.
