EAFK: Making a Difference!



Linda Gallicchio

I posed the following question to Ed Irick (assistant governor in Rotary District 7750) and Ann Golden, both past presidents of the Rotary Club of Greenville Evening, which sponsors the Early Act First Knight program (You may recall that we’ve had articles about EAFK in Volume 2, Issues 2 and 3.)

What it has meant to the Rotary Club of Greenville Evening  to be involved in the project of supporting the EAFK program, beginning with Powdersville Middle School .

EarlyAct FirstKnight (EAFK) provides us with an opportunity to literally expose students to Rotary’s Four Way Test and the Rotary principle of “Service Above Self,” from their first day in kindergarten through their last day in high school.

We have developed pride in being the first Rotary club to sponsor EAFK east of the Mississippi.  We also have a sense of ownership in the program since we are the first.  We are the club with the experience.

Greenville Evening Rotary feels a great sense of accomplishment from sponsoring EarlyAct FirstKnight in Powdersville and, beginning next school year in Wren Middle School. The statistics from Powdersville Middle School principal, Todd Binnicker, show us that the program is working well. Several times a year, the faculty and students attend one of our regular club meetings and we hear first hand of what EAFK means to them and how it is changing their school.  The greatest sense of satisfaction came when four students, two teachers and principal Binnicker spoke to our club recently. The students articulated the results and their gratitude to us, each in their own way. The one example of a bully apologizing to one of the students was powerful. We know that we have done a good thing and can see the evidence.

These students can cite the Four-Way Test and say it with us at our club meetings. They expressed a pride in their school that they have not felt before. The emotional dividends are part of what EAFK means to our club. We also take satisfaction knowing that every one of the EAFK students is a potential future Interact, Rotaract and Rotary Club member.

Our intent is to sponsor an Interact Club in the new Powdersville High School beginning this fall.  Students from Wren and Powdersville Middles schools will attend this high school in the fall.  All we need now is to introduce EAFK into the elementary schools that feed the two middle schools.  We will need help from other clubs to do this.  The potential to make this a reality is another reason for our club’s solid support of EAFK.  It means Rotary and ethics in the classroom everyday in all grades.  This has sparked an interest in our club to do even more for our community and its young people.

Because we believe so much in the program, we are sponsoring a second EAFK program in Wren Middle School.  This has made our club stronger because it has caused some members who, in the past, have not been very involved to take a more prominent role in the club’s support of EAFK. 

Finally, our club feels gratitude for being able to provide a service that can change a school’s culture, which then spreads to its community.  A more ethical society will benefit all.

The response from Ed led me to contact Powdersville Middle School principal, Todd Binnicker to ask:

Have you seen a difference in your discipline tracking pre-EAFK and now? If yes, what are the “top 5” categories that you are most happy to have seen improvement in?

Mr. Binnicker said that his data is for calendar year 2010 as he does not yet have this semester’s analysis. He compared discipline in 2009 (pre) to 2010 (with EAFK).

In his words: These are probably my top 5 categories.  These all influence learning in the classroom.  Many of the other categories display behavior outside the classroom.

I do not have the data yet for the second half of this school year, but I do expect the numbers to level off.  Having implemented the EAFK now for three semesters, our school climate and culture have changed and student’s behaviors are overall better because they have been immersed in the Rotary Four-Way Test and have a daily lesson of character education.