Whitko Jr.-Sr. High School Students Train For Leadership
Whitko Jr.-Sr. High School Students Train For Leadership
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Staff Report-
Whitko Jr.-Sr. High School Students Train For LeadershipPIERCETON — For nearly 15 years, the Peace Keepers have been a positive force inside the walls of Whitko’s Jr.-Sr. High School.
Even before it was a junior-senior high, the Peace Keepers were the first responders to everyday events. They are students in seventh through 12th grade, and they are all on the front lines of influencing their fellow students to make wise choices, especially when it comes to those “gray areas” in life that seem to muddy the clarity of making the right choice, according to a news release from Whitko Community Schools.
Mental fortitude, self respect, fair tone, proper response, being assertive, and understanding personality types were all topics of discussion throughout the three-day overnight event hosted at Koinonia’s conference center by Whitko Jr.-Sr. High’s Peace Keepers. Koinonia is a theological term often used in referencing fellowship or communion with others.
On this trip, students were not merely active participants in the training, they were administering the schedule and leading the way in big and small tasks alike. Preparing meals, cleaning up after sessions, and setting up before each session, the upperclassmen carried the bulk of the weight as an example to the underclassmen to set expectations.
“We tend to make judgements on people before we even get to know them,” said Mike Hanback in front of the group of nearly 20 students. He has led the Peace Keepers for over a decade.
Role playing various scenarios assisted the students to better understand how a situation could look when they are confronted by it in real life. Sometimes students would have to role play a specific scene.
During another session Hanback called “Flash Judgements,” students had an opportunity to view black-and-white portraits on a projected screen and assess different qualities about individuals without being given any background information whatsoever. Based solely on appearance, the students processed some of their initial judgements, and then Hanback stood the topic on its head.
When asked about the retreat to Koinonia, junior Meagan Christoffel said, “We are five-year-returning [students], and it’s honestly the best experience. Most people only see Mr. Hanbck from the teacher standpoint, he’s a very, kinda like, very assertive – he puts on that approach – and when we come here, like we saw the masks yesterday. We saw a completely different him. He threw his mask away and completely broke down. We get to see that vulnerability with him. And the kids realize that there is so much more to people. And that’s what they get from him. They get that this is something that actually is meaningful. That’s just one of the great things about Mr. Hanback.”
Some sessions were aimed specifically to break down comfort zones by creating moments with laughter and creativity. Many of the mixer games helped the group to unify.
The most challenging experience by far and most memorable to the students was the trust walk, according to the news release. This activity paired each student up with a partner. One would be blindfolded while the other would lead them through the grounds of Koinonia
