Secrets of success

Often when I see students who end up in the office for misbehavior I bring up the subject of being successful at school. Without any scientific research, I'd say more than 90% of the students in our high school manage to navigate their four years here with very few difficulties. I think most schools would argue they have similar statistics. In my previous position, my colleague and I decided to provide students with four "steps to success". These four things were characteristics we believed were consistent among the ninety percent of students who were not having trouble at school. Those things were: respect others and yourself, attend class and be on time, complete your class work and work toward graduation, and have fun and get involved in school activities. Students who do those four things not only don't end up in the office for misbehavior, they actually do well academically.

At Rockford High School, we have taken this same idea and developed the "Rocket Rules for Success". We took the letters in the word "pride" and used each to identify a characteristic of successful students. Those characteristics are: Perseverance when faced with difficulties, Respect for oneself, others, and property, Involvement in school activities, Determination to do your best, and Engagement in the learning process.

I firmly believe that students can become whatever they wish and school holds the keys to open the doors to those opportunities. All one needs to do is be willing to take those keys and unlock the door.

Please encourage your students to exhibit Rocket "PRIDE".