Cassidy Turley in June sponsored an all-school ice cream social for the 325 students of Robert Lee Frost Elementary School 106 in Indianapolis to celebrate the successful completion of another year of the Winners Walk Tall character and values development program. The year-end celebration also marked a continuing partnership between Cassidy Turley and IPS 106.
“Cassidy Turley’s involvement is making a big difference in many of our students’ lives,” said principal Tina Foster. “They’re professional people who have been doing invaluable motivational mentoring and character education with our students.”
Through the Winners Walk Tall program, Cassidy Turley employees visit a particular School 106 classroom every two weeks to teach an interactive lesson on character and values, lessons that teachers simply do not have the time and resources to cover as they focus on core subjects like math, science and English. Winners Walk Tall topics include everything from goal-setting to how to care for the environment to the importance of giving back to the community and standing up for others.
Cassidy Turley has been involved with Winners Walk Tall in IPS for 11 years.
“It’s all about forming relationships outside of traditional class time,” said Foster. “Students want to meet expectations when they see they have someone else pulling for them. It’s priceless when there is someone else who shows they care.”
Blaire Huntley is one Cassidy Turley employee who has invested heavily in the program this year, and found it more than worth her while.
“Youth today are bombarded with technology and social media and are trying so desperately to compete with celebrities and false images of perfection. It’s a lot of pressure,” said Huntley. “One of the most memorable lessons I did with my class of sixth-grade girls this year centered on being thankful for what you do have, and the responsibility we all have to give back to our communities. I brought in pictures of celebrities and talked about their community involvement and how they’ve given back. I think this resonated with the girls because they realized that many of the people they look up to did not abandon their commitment to public service once they became famous.”