It was positive! This tradition has been built and encouraged over many years. This goes back to the culture that was established here, with the long-term presence of parents and families in the community engaging in activities that support the school.

Much of the communication consisted of emails, with our PTA simply sending these out to the membership. Many of our PTA members have served in their roles for a long time and have excelled at connecting with local businesses, promoting our school, and reinvesting in it. We have a really supportive and close-knit community at Highland. Whenever I ask for something, the response is overwhelmingly positive and reliable.

"We have a really supportive and close-knit community at Highland. Whenever I ask for something, the response is overwhelmingly positive and reliable."

Hannaford is a great partner. The manager of the Highland store is awesome and has always been helpful and a big supporter of our school.

I don't believe so, but I do plan to in 2026. I definitely want to utilize social media. This year, I'm going to highlight our efforts and thank the community for coming out to support us. Next year, let's aim higher and make this an even bigger success!

A lot of it goes into our PBIS account, which stands for Positive Behavior Intervention System. We focus on building positives; we highlight successes every month and also quarterly. The quarterly events feature the big-time prizes.

In the cafeteria, we tally points for appropriate behavior. We never take away points; we only give them. We award points not only in the cafeteria, but also at recess. These points are then tallied, and a monthly award is given to the winning class in each grade level.

For example, just yesterday I was at lunch with the fifth graders, and they were excited about the chance for their team to win. Since they were winning on tallies, they asked for unlimited popcorn during lunchtime. We have a huge popcorn machine, so I made a ton of popcorn for them as their reward.

Another example is making snow cones; the kids who earn them can get a snow cone as a reward. Even the students who don't buy dessert are included. Our lunches are free, but the desserts are not. This way, we ensure every child who meets expectations receives a reward.

For quarterly events, for example, we'll have the class earn a cookie decorating party. That's a significant event, and it involves not just classroom behavior, but also behavior in the hallway and cafeteria. The points from all those areas contribute toward this reward.

We focus on attendance rates by highlighting the importance of coming to school. All relevant data is entered into our formula. Based on the resulting points, we celebrate students' success. These recognition events can be expensive, especially with our large student body of 670, so the Hannaford Helps Schools funds are a huge help.

Many of these events are large celebrations focused on our achievements. We discuss the reasons for our success and why we earned the award.

"These recognition events can be expensive, especially with our large student body of 670, so the Hannaford Helps Schools funds are a huge help."

We want to beat our 2025 results. With the help of our community and through the use of social media, I'm confident we'll outdo ourselves. We've got this!

I have a really awesome school! Achieving even greater success with Hannaford Helps Schools would help us plan bigger and better events, offering more activities for the kids. Maybe even allocating funds toward playground equipment. I’m a huge advocate for recess; I make sure all my students go out for morning recess. As soon as they arrive, they get outside and enjoy the fresh air. With our current Hannaford Helps Schools funds, I’m looking to build more resources and spaces where kids can be active.

Posted February 11, 2026.