Students at Quest Charter Academy now have five fun, new ways to enjoy recess, thanks to the work of some dedicated students, their support coordinator and a grant-funded project focused on health and leadership.
Early in 2024, Stephanie Young, student support coordinator at Quest, a K-8 tuition-free charter school in Taylor, volunteered to launch a project funded by a health-focused grant received from the Michigan Health Endowment Fund. The students led the charge, says Young.
“The grant could be used for whatever the students wanted to do,” she says. “The stipulation was to create a student wellness team and have them come up with a project. I was there to support them in their planning and keep them on track.”
Students working together to improve wellness for their peers
A team of six middle school students, chosen for their demonstrated leadership skills — and potential to become leaders — formed a wellness team to lead the work. The wellness team met weekly, sharing ideas and planning. They began by surveying their peers in the 700-student school.
They asked how they could improve the physical and mental health and nutrition of the student community at Quest.
The wellness team compiled the data and narrowed down potential project ideas. All the students loved the idea of partnering with a local Humane Society to bring animals to the school to reduce stress, but recognized the challenges in this plan. They presented their top ideas to the school’s principal, who helped them make their final decision.
“They decided to go with the idea of painting activities on the blacktop, mostly because they didn’t have many things to do outside at recess other than the playground,” explains Young, adding that middle school students love being with peers, but aren’t necessarily drawn to swings and slides.
“They love that interaction with their peers that they don’t get in the school building, but they weren’t really moving that much. We brought in a licensed counselor to talk with the wellness team about the importance of physical activity for mental health and for learning. I learned a lot and I know the kids did, too. They were able to take what they learned and actually do something about it to make the school a better place. I’m insanely proud of them,” Young says.
Recess activity centers boost healthy activity for all ages
Four months after they formed a wellness team and started planning, they painted games on the school’s outdoor blacktop. With six brand new activity centers, physical activity during recess is now more inclusive and fun for all ages at Quest Charter Academy.
Here are the activities the student wellness team created:
- Four Square: a classic, fast-paced game for four kids and a ball that bounces
- Hopscotch: a fun hopping and jumping game several kids can play together.
- Long Jump: kids challenge themselves and others to see how far they can jump
- Start and Finish Line: a 40-foot long “track” for kids to race each other
- Football Field: 100 feet, styled as a football field with “yard” markers, perfect for older kids
- Color Rush: a unique game created by the wellness team based on a popular virtual world video game called Roblox. “In one of their planning meetings, they created rules and sent them to the teachers. That was part of their planning, as well,” Young says.
Students gain real-world skills while making healthy activity accessible
During the project timeline, Quest’s wellness team shared their progress with other schools and communities across Michigan that also received the grant, documenting with photos on a sharing platform called Padlet. They were able to share what health means to them and learn other health perspectives, too.
The student wellness team members learned valuable real-world skills along the way, including how to conduct a survey and work as a team. They learned how to create ideas and communicate them to their peers and school administrators — which gave them agency over their work. “That’s huge because a lot of these kids are just told what to do most of the time,” she says.
And, the students on the team increased their social-emotional awareness, based on a pre- and post-project assessment. Five showed an increase, and one, who was already at a high level of awareness, remained consistent. “We were able to show with data that this has done something for these kids, which I think is really important. You can say anything you want to say, but we have the data to back it up, which I think is cool,” Young explains.
The flexibility and support to make a health-focused project become a reality
Because Quest Charter Academy is a charter school, it has the flexibility to champion a program like this one. But just as important, says Young, is the school’s commitment to equity.
“Here, every kid gets what they need,” she says. “They don’t all get the same thing, but they each individually get the amount of support that they need.” Using flexibility to look at each student and see what they need to thrive in school is the foundation of Young’s work, day in and day out.
“I think a charter school is a great place to be able to have that mindset because (charter schools) can be more flexible and have more wiggle room,” she says. “They were learning leadership skills that they will also be able to take with them into their future. I think that’s just as important. I think being in a school like this definitely gives that kind of flexibility to be able to do things like this.”
As an employee of the nonprofit Communities In Schools Michigan, Young is placed in Quest Charter Academy to provide integrated support to students and families in wide-reaching ways, from working one-on-one with students to set goals, to increasing attendance and planning events so families can be involved in their children’s education. Quest is the only school in Taylor to have a Communities In Schools support coordinator.
Young says she wants her students to have positive memories from their time at Quest. If a child’s pants ripped or they were hungry and needed a snack, Young is there, consistently, to get the students what they need.
“I want to have that kind of impact where, years later, kids can look back and say, oh my school had these supports for me, and this was awesome.”
Quest Charter Academy in Taylor is a charter public school authorized by Central Michigan University. Learn more about The Center for Charter Schools at Central Michigan University.
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