Sodexo Programs and SMILE Provide Unique Opportunities For Woonsocket Students

This week I must commend the efforts of our business and community partners who provide exciting and fun learning activities outside of the traditional school day for our students in Woonsocket. 

Sodexo, the Woonsocket Education Department Food Service Provider, in partnership with the Community Food Bank, the Smile Program and the University of Rhode Island, have held some very impressive events recently. On February 12, Sodexo held the Future Chefs Healthy Snack Contest and on March 11 and 12, the Smile program held the Middle School Engineering Challenge.  These events, and other important support that our partners provide, will be reported in this article.

Sodexo’s Future Chefs Healthy Snack Contest

Woonsocket students cooked up fun and learned about eating smart for life at Sodexo’s Future Chefs Healthy Snack Contest.  Sodexo hosted the district-wide finals of Future Chefs Healthy Snack Challenge that was an Iron Chef-style culinary competition.  This competition is part of Sodexo’s commitment to student well being.  The program was created to teach children about making healthy eating choices by encouraging them to make their own fun and nutritious snack recipes.

Fifth grade elementary students throughout the district submitted healthy snack recipes and the best were selected to participate in the district-wide final event.  Finalists prepared and presented their creations before being judged on criteria like originality, taste, presentation, and the use of healthy ingredients.  Woonsocket joined 34 other Sodexo-served districts across the country by holding a Future Chefs event during February.

Sodexo Backpackers program

The Woonsocket Backpackers Program is going strong!  The Sodexo Foundation, in partnership with the Rhode Island Community Food Bank, sponsors the award-winning Backpackers Program in the Woonsocket School District.  This is a weekly program where students with special needs at Woonsocket Middle School and Woonsocket High School fill backpacks with non-perishable food items for their peers in financial need.  Their participation in this program allows them to develop important life skills while they lead by example.  They are setting a community service standard for caring that all of us can aspire to meet.

Sodexo’s Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Grant

The Woonsocket Education Department has eight Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture thanks to the efforts of Ellen Shalvey, the Woonsocket Sodexo General Manager who submitted the applications.  Thanks also to the elementary school administrators and teachers who have agreed to participate in this grant.  Everyone’s role in delivering on the grant promises has made this a successful program.  A total of $144,000 for the 2010-2011 school year will be spent to bring fresh fruit and vegetables as well as nutrition education to our children two days per week.  Sodexo researches and scripts a mini-nutrition lesson for the elementary schools’ morning announcements on days when the food is served.  In addition to this program, every elementary and secondary school in Woonsocket now boasts a fresh fruit and vegetable garden bar at lunch. Students may choose from a minimum of 6 different fruits and vegetables available each day.

The Smile Program 

The SMILE Program is an academic enrichment after school program that has been running for seventeen years. SMILE stands for science and math investigative learning experiences.  Visit their website at www.uri.edu/smile to get a full understanding of the scope of activities.  The SMILE program has motivated minority and educationally disadvantaged students in Rhode Island to do well in school and to go to college to pursue STEM (science technology engineering and math) careers.  The program functions as a fourth grade to twelfth grade pipeline to college.  It focuses on students from groups that are currently underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and math professions.  In 2010 the population served was: 35 % Male, 65 % Female.  The student ethnicities served included 41% Caucasian, 30% Hispanic, 9% Asian American, 8% African American, 6% Native American, 2% Cape Verde, and 4% of students from other decent. 

SMILE works in partnership with the University of Rhode Island and seven Rhode Island school districts (Central Falls, Coventry, Pawtucket, North Kingstown, South Kingstown, West Warwick and Woonsocket.)  The University of Rhode Island does not provide any funding to the program.  The SMILE funds come from foundations, corporations, grants, and private donations.  The Woonsocket Education Department uses federal grant money to pay four teacher stipends at $2,500 each for a total of a $10,000 contribution to this program.  The SMILE Program contributes $275,000 to pay for two additional teacher stipends, field trips, supplies, annual events, and four days of teacher professional development workshops for elementary, middle and high school teachers.  

The SMILE program achieves its goal by providing a year round schedule of science and math hands-on activities in a fun but rigorous atmosphere. There are activities designed to provide and integrate university experiences, real world experiences, mentoring, learning activities, college guidance and career explorations. Clubs meet weekly after-school to do hands-on math and science activities.  Students also attend an annual weekend-long event for each age group including: The High School Challenge, The Middle School Engineering Challenge, and Elementary Outdoor Science Adventure.  In addition, each district plans and implements a Family Science Night.  For the teachers there are three professional development workshops at the University of Rhode Island during the year.  The success of SMILE can be measured by the following data:

1. 97% of the SMILE seniors have graduated from high school.
2. 93% of the SMILE seniors have entered college and have either completed their degree or are still in school.
3. Currently there are 50 former SMILE students at URI and 71% of them are in STEM majors. 
4. Currently there are 10 former SMILE students from Woonsocket at URI, seven of whom are in STEM majors.

The SMILE Middle School Engineering Challenge Weekend

The SMILE Middle School Engineering Challenge is an annual event. This year the students worked in mixed teams from around the state designing, building and testing bridges built from chopsticks and hot melt glue.  Mentors from industry, University of Rhode Island faculty, and University of Rhode Island students guided the SMILE students.  They helped them through the brainstorming, decision-making, trials and tribulations involved in the project.  There were engineering students from the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE), and other groups that also presented college and career information. 

The URI Dean of Engineering, Ray Wright, welcomed the SMILE students on the first day.  The challenge began when the Steere Engineering Firm presented the engineering challenge.  The SMILE students formed 16 mixed teams with students from Central Falls, North Kingstown, South Kingstown, West Warwick, and Woonsocket.  The SMILE students designed, built, and tested a truss bridge made from bamboo chopsticks, hot melt glue sticks, and a poster board road deck.  Many teams redesigned, rebuilt, and retested bridges in the afternoon & evening.  They found the weight of their bridge using a scale and calculated the efficiency of the bridge using the formula (load / bridge weight = efficiency.)  Then the SMILE student accountants calculated the total cost of the bridge by keeping track of the amount of each material used, cost per item, and credits for returned items. The SMILE Middle School students set a new SMILE record for the weight a bridge can hold at 89 pounds.

The SMILE students ate lunch and dinner at URI Butterfield and Hope Dining Halls.  They participated in University of Rhode Island student leadership activities that promoted harmony and team cooperation.  Forty-eight mentors from industry (including APC, Toray Plastics, Rhode Island Division of the Federal Highway Administration,) and University of Rhode Island faculty and students rotated around the teams, listening to ideas and encouraging students.  The SMILE students also participated in recreation activities including swimming, basketball and volleyball at the URI Tootell Recreation Center and stayed overnight at the Holiday Inn in South Kingstown.

On the second day, the National Society of Black Engineering Students presented four activities about going to college and what engineers do.  Student groups rotated through these presentations.  A bridge walk around, displaying each team’s bridge, and models of some bridges around the world was followed by lunch and a closing ceremony.  Many Parents attended the closing ceremony and 22 students who have been in SMILE for 3-5 years were recognized.  Each school took 3 bridges along with extra chopsticks to redesign and test in SMILE Clubs.  Students also received certificates of participation and give-a-ways from the University of Rhode Island bookstore.

 In summation

Community collaboration provides so many advantages for our students and staff.  We need to find ways to recreate more partnerships like these so that we can increase similar benefits to all students.

Sincerely,

Robert J. Gerardi, Jr., Ph.D.

Superintendent of Schools

Woonsocket Education Department

"The secret is to gang up on the problem, rather than each other."

Thomas Stallkamp

"Individually, we are one drop. Together, we are an ocean."

Ryunosuke Satoro