|
Gale Ollie, parent of one Orr High School graduate and one former student:
When I got called to be a volunteer at Orr High School, my sons didn’t want me to do it. They were afraid for me because the school was so violent.
But I went and got involved as a greeter, and I’ve noticed big changes since AUSL took over.
Most of the fighting last year was between kids wearing different school colors, because we had four schools and four different uniforms all in this building. It was very confusing for the kids. My 16-year old son left the school because he didn’t like it. But AUSL came in and made Orr one school, with one principal, and one uniform. That really united everything, and it made a big difference.
The kids are more involved, more focused. The security is much better and there is much less fighting. The teachers are more helpful.
I also feel much more welcome at the school as a parent. I was involved last year, before AUSL came into Orr, and I would go to meetings and things like that. But it was nothing like it is now.
This year, some of us parents even went to the neighborhood gas station and asked them not to serve the kids past 7:45 in the morning so that the kids get into school on time. The gas station agreed. They even locked the door at a certain time. The kids were really mad at first, but when they saw it wasn’t going to change they got used to it. And now they’re in school on time.
The new principal really has a heart for the children and it really seems like there’s more unity now. Like we’re all in one accord.
I was approached one morning by a security guard who works at the government building across the street from Orr. He told me that he can see the difference in the school already, because before, the kids would be standing around outside and they wouldn’t go in. And there would always be fights. “You guys are making a difference,” he told me. |
