1st semester Kudos!

The Kudos program is more and more active on campus. Teachers have done a great job recognizing students who go above and beyond to help their fellow members of the community by handing out "Kudos". This year it is completely digital and teachers email the parents directly to tell them about the good deeds their child has done. We have already received many responses from proud and grateful parents. If you received a Kudos from a teacher in the 1st semester, don't foget to get a Kudos candy bar from Sr. Jurado in the World Languages office.

Embrace Diversity

The second theme for this year was “Embrace Diversity”, as a tie in to the “diverse and inclusive” aspect of the Harvard-Westlake Mission Statement. Mr. Brabbée was the creator and presenter for this theme, and he shared a wonderful story about a powerful experience he had as a high school wrestler with someone from a completely different background:

https://docs.google.com/a/hw.com/document/d/1cawrDAeLEY3iBt22snc_siUIi75V3KLh8js_9PH6hsY/edit#

We on the Character Committee also sponsored a diversity board for people on campus to share a little about the important pieces of their identity. The diversity board was a hit, for many people posted post-it notes, pictures, and artwork to express themselves and share their identity with the community.

Pay it Forward

The 2014-2015 HW Character Committee has started this year strong after being influenced by four branches of the mission statement: a diverse and inclusive community, the pursuit of educational excellence, living and learning with integrity, and a purpose beyond ourselves. We began the year by partnering with the All Community Read committee to further promote the idea of paying it forward the idea of paying kind acts forward to others in our community.