Students act as school leaders

EAST COUNTY — Three Gene Witt Elementary students brought home more from the school’s winter carnival last month than stuffed animals and painted faces.

After outbidding their classmates during a silent auction at the school’s Feb. 8 event, Christopher Matris, Callie Bua and Mallory Shirey earned a chance to swap seats with their teachers and administrators.

The trio took on their newfound roles March 5, as they played principal, assistant principal and music teacher, respectively.

Christopher, a kindergarten student, patrolled the cafeteria that afternoon, walking up and down the aisles between tables in the dining area. As he brought napkins and forks to students, he also opened cartons of milk for them and answered questions from his peers.

“I just wanted to be in charge,” Christopher said, while grinning at Principal Myra Russell. “I like getting to help my friends and the other people, but, I really like being in charge.”

Christopher had no trouble keeping up with Russell, who frequently asked the 5-year-old if he needed a bathroom break or wanted to sit down for a few minutes. He assured her he felt fine; he didn’t want to miss a thing, Russell said, laughing.

Mallory, the stand-in music teacher, also preferred the more hands-on approach to leading the school, rather than watching music teacher Julie Hebert at work. Mallory taught fourth-grade students how to play “Old MacDonald had a Farm” on the recorder with Herbert’s help.

As assistant principal, Callie, a fifth-grader, spent the day visiting classrooms and learning about the job with the real position-holder, Tia Henderson.

The three students ended their half-day rule with a meal from their restaurant of choice — McDonald’s.
Callie and Mallory’s families each bid $65 for the music teacher and assistant principal positions, while Christopher’s family offered $150 for the principal role. Money raised at the auction benefited the school’s Parent Teacher Organization.

For six years, the PTO has offered students chances to bid on the positions in hopes of teaching them about the duties of Witt’s leaders.

“The program teaches students that we (administrators) aren’t just sitting at our desks all day,” Russell said. “We’re taking lunch duties and walking around helping students. We’re moving around all day.”

THEIR WORDS
Christopher Matris
Age: 5
Grade: Kindergarten
Role: Principal
Thoughts on the job: “I just wanted to be in charge.”

Callie Bua
Age: 10
Grade: Fifth
Role: Assistant principal
Thoughts on the job: “I liked going into the classrooms and talking to the younger kids.”

Mallory Shirey
Age: 11
Grade: Fifth
Role: Music teacher
Thoughts on the job: “Its been really fun getting to teach them to play music.”

Contact Amanda Sebastiano at [email protected].