President John Mayfield keeps pushing the boundaries and called the meeting to order at 12:06. David Hartman then led the prayer to get the meeting started. Next, Cara Sauceda led the club in the Pledge of Allegiance, and we sang “Let There Be Peace on Earth” in an effort to unite everyone with all that is going in the world lately. We then did a round of Rotary and shook hands.
Our guests for the week included Makenzie Foster, Gene Kinkaid, and David Adams (Potential Member). They were all guest of John Deason, but Andy had to buy lunch for one of them since John was short on cash, lol.
For the Sunshine report, James Hughes gave an update on Jim, who is doing much better. Steve Priester informed the club that Arnold Oliver had taken a pretty nasty fall and is recovering. Judy Koetter let the club know that her son, who has MS and Fibromyalgia, is having a procedure to help with some of the pain. Please remember to keep them in your thoughts and prayers.
President John reminded everyone to RSVP to Annual Party coming up on the 26th. There was also an announcement that there would not be any help from the NCO Academy on Saturday, June 14th for Flag Day. Cara shared with the club that she will have a signup sheet at the next meeting for interviewers for the Youth of the Month interviews. We are looking for interviewers for June 25th through October. Please let her know if you are available.
President John also announced that with the new caterer, there were more entrées served than guests at the last meeting. He reminded everyone to please limit their entrée to one choice, but they could get as much fixings and dessert as they wanted.
There were a couple brags this week. David Kelley shared with everyone that he officiated his first wedding last weekend, and thanks to Clarke Eyecare, his new contacts saved him from having to break out his readers. Andy Kocher shared that his 6-year-old granddaughter lost a tooth while staying with them, and he had the privilege of playing the loudest Tooth Fairy possible.
Josh stepped up and introduced our speaker for the week, Maria Manks, who is with Academy4.
Academy4 is a non-profit organization that partners with school districts to identify campuses with high poverty levels that they then provide mentors to all 4th grade students at that campus. In 2024 they served 55 campuses in DFW area, including Fain Elementary in Wichita Falls. Their program also partners 5th graders with a 1st grader to serve as mentor to them as well. With about 4,500 4th grade students and 8,000 1st & 5th grade students, they served over 12,000 in 2024. Over 80% of the students they served live in poverty areas. The program expanding in 2025, with 60 campuses already signed up. They are also looking at adding an additional school in Wichita Falls, with the most likely candidate being Booker T. Washington.
The students participate in Fun Fridays once a month, where they start off with 2 45-minute Spark Clubs participating in activities that involve topics like STEM, art, sports, music, and cooking. As Spark Clubs end, the mentors arrive and connect with their 4th graders. They attend a LEADERS Assembly that introduces the leadership topic for that month. They use LEADERS as an acronym for Listen, Encourage, Attitude, Develop, Example, Respect, and Serve. They focus on one of the topics each month. After the assembly, the students and mentors spend time hanging out and doing fun activities.
The program specifically targets 4th grade students mainly because 4th graders are more receptive to mentoring than 5th graders and 4th grader students typically still like adults.
Their evaluation of the program shows that the positive relationship formed with the mentors increases overall student engagement, gives the students a greater sense of self-worth, helps improve attendance on Fun Fridays, promotes the adoption of leadership traits, helps improve classroom behavior, and gives the students a more positive outlook on life.
The program typically partners with other local organizations such as churches and civic groups to provide the mentors and volunteers for the monthly meetings. The time commitment for a mentor is around 90 minutes once a month. Additionally, the club relies on fundraisers to cover the cost of sessions and activities. The organization has an angel donor that covers most of the overhead so that around 90% of every dollar donated goes directly to the mission. The total cost per campus is around $25,000 annually, or about $40 per student per session. Volunteering as a mentor or donating funds are ways that Rotarians can support Academy4.
After a few questions from the audience, we concluded our meeting with the Four Way Test and President John ringing the bell at 12:56, trying to make up for the late start.