Student Leaders Shine at Tommie Barfield’s Inaugural Leadership Day

From the moment you arrived at Leadership Day at Tommie Barfield Elementary, Thursday morning, May 26, and were greeted by school staff and students, you knew you were about to experience something very special.

The event was conducted with Disney-like operating efficiency and friendliness, and the emcees of the event, students Eva Galvez and Xavier Fiore, were reminiscent of the emcees of an Apple Event. Who expects elementary school students to have stage presence? Well Galvez and Fiore definitely did, trading lines while giving attendees an interesting history of their school, which dates back to 1956, when the island was still in its pioneer days. There were less than 50 students then. Today the school has 458 students. Marco’s Tommie Barfield, the school’s namesake, was the first superintendent of Collier County schools.

TBE’s three prior principals, Jory Westberry, Karey Stewart, and Katie Maya were on hand, lending decades of experience at TBE to the event. Current principal Alyssa Ledbetter made sure every detail of the school’s first Leadership Day was organized - all the way down to the bon voyage gift of three chocolate globes inside of a miniature cardboard suitcase that student leaders handed to attendees as they left the building.

Leadership Day is an annual event put on by schools when they are classified as a Leader in Me School. The events are designed to showcase student leaders and share how the school implements teaching and learning with the seven Habits of Highly Effective Kids.

TBE is a Leader in Me school and Collier County Public Schools has recently become a Leader in Me district. There are Leader in Me Schools in over 50 countries worldwide. The program is a product of FranklinCovey Education, a division of FranklinCovey. The Leader in Me program is an evidence-based, comprehensive model that builds leadership and life skills in students, creates a high-trust school culture, and lays the foundation for sustained academic achievement.

At the heart of the program are the seven Habits: 

1. Be proactive.

2. Begin with the end in mind.

3. Put first thing first. 

4. Think win-win. 

5. Seek first to understand, then to be understood.

6. Synergize.

7. Sharpen the saw.

Community members and Collier County Public School educators and Marco Island first responders comprised much of the audience. Marco Island City Council member, Becky Irwin, was impressed with what she saw.

“What a wonderful way to showcase the students,” Becky Irwin gushed. "The dedication of the staff and faculty is truly impressive, and is reflected in the well-rounded students, their school pride and academic achievement. For me, it was fun to see how much has changed, yet stayed the same, as when my younger sister attended TBE when we lived on the island over 40 years ago.”

Hyla Crane, Executive Director of the Marco Island Center for the Arts, walked away impressed.

"The students at TBE provide a bright and shining light of hope for a better future,” Hyla Crane said. "The TBE staff and administrators are shaping talented, intelligent and thoughtful leaders.”

Ledbetter was justifiably proud of her students and team at TBE.

"I am beyond proud of our student leaders here at Tommie Barfield,” Alyssa Ledbetter said. "They worked hard to prepare for today and were beaming with pride as they each got to share their individual genius.”

Ledbetter enjoyed watching her students shine.

"My favorite part of Leadership Day was seeing our leaders in action,” Ledbetter said. "There is so much talent within this building and it is important to provide students the opportunity to share that with others. I could see their confidence grow as they interacted with the guests on campus.”

There was constant interaction between the students and their adult guests. Attendees were divided into eight tour groups led by TBE students. One of the highlights of the school tour was a fifth grade living wax museum where students portrayed famous leaders in history when you pressed a button to activate them. A third-grade marketplace featured booths set up in the school’s courtyard offering handmade items for sale. Attendees were able to buy items with play money that was included in their check-in package. It’s hard to say who enjoyed the marketplace more, the students selling their wares or the attendees who were scrambling to put together enough cash to cover their purchases. The delegation from Marco Island Academy were beaming as they left campus sporting sunglasses decorated by the third-grade entrepreneurs.

As the groups returned to the cafeteria, emcees Galvez and Fiore were again center stage, greeting their guests and asking them which of the tour stops were their favorites. Student speaker Colin Hinton wrapped things up with a heartfelt talk about kindness.

A voluntary leadership panel was held in the media center from 11:30 AM to 12:00 Noon. Four student leaders answered questions while Ledbetter and ESE Specialist Amanda Ray looked on, offering encouragement when needed.

Ledbetter couldn’t have been happier with the way things went.

"Leadership Day left both staff and students alike feeling Proud to Be TBE,” Ledbetter concluded enthusiastically.