THE DISTINGUISHED HIGHLANDER HALL OF FAME GALA HIGHLIGHTS EXTRAORDINARY HIGHLANDERS aldwin-Whitehall BALDWIN-WHITEHALL SCHOOL DISTRICT NEWS
Positively contributing to the community is a central value of the District . As part of the celebration of our 75th anniversary , the District first began recognizing Distinguished Highlanders in 2015 . The tradition continued this year as the Distinguished Highlander Hall of Fame welcomed the Class of 2017 during its second induction ceremony on March 11th , 2017 . The Hall of Fame Gala , hosted by the Baldwin-Whitehall Educational Foundation ( BWEF ), honored the accomplishments of alumni , faculty , staff , residents , and volunteers of the Baldwin-Whitehall School District with a Mardi Gras-themed awards ceremony .
Four alumni were inducted into the Distinguished Highlander Hall of Fame : Adriane Aul , a Pittsburgh community ambassador and civic activist ( 1996 ); Joseph Kuklis , CEO of Wellington Strategies , LLC ( 1989 ); Edward Lutz , owner of K & L Printing and founder of Cold Comp ., Inc . ( 1959 ); and pediatric nursing pioneer Dr . Margaret Shandor Miles , professor emerita at the School of Nursing at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill ( 1955 ). The newest inductees will join the 11 honorees from the class of 2015 at the permanent display in Baldwin High School .
Nearly 200 attendees gathered at South Hills Country Club to honor the awardees in an evening that brought together Highlander supporters from as far away as Florida and California . Through auctions , raffles , and a very generous anonymous donor , BWEF raised more than $ 10,000 during the event . These funds will be used to support ongoing technology initiatives in the schools and as scholarship opportunities for graduating seniors from Baldwin High School . Community support exceeded the previous gala as well — over 100 different businesses , sponsors , and donors helped make the event a success , including the Henderson Brothers ’ cocktail-hour sponsorship .
Organizers shared , “ The Foundation ’ s goal is to provide opportunities to students by supporting district initiatives , funding teacher grants , and providing scholarships . Only through the generous support from donors and time from devoted volunteers are we able to make Baldwin-Whitehall a place to be proud of . Thank you .”
“ DO THE RIGHT THING ” PROGRAM REWARDS STUDENTS FOR POSITIVE BEHAVIOR
In 2014 , Baldwin-Whitehall D . A . R . E . officer Dave Artman was attending a police awards ceremony in Miami when he first learned about the Do the Right Thing student reward program . Started in 1990 after a high school student found a loaded gun and surrendered it to the police , the initiative serves as a community effort to honor students ’ most impressive positive actions . The Miami program is now emulated in school districts across the country , including Baldwin-Whitehall , who adopted the program in 2014 after Officer Artman asked Superintendent Randal Lutz how the District could get involved .
Now in its third year , the program honors up to ten K – 12 students each month for their positive impact on our community . Students can be nominated by faculty , staff , parents , or community members for their outstanding efforts to make BWSD a safer , happier , and more welcoming place . As BWSD ’ s
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Director of Curriculum Andrea Huffman explains , “ this isn ’ t just about picking up a dropped pen or recycling something ; this is about going above and beyond what ’ s expected of students in their daily actions .”
Examples include the BHS girls ’ basketball team volunteering at a local food bank , BHS sophomore Mikayla Davic creating her own stage productions to raise money for the Make-A-Wish Foundation , and one 5th-grade student who recently volunteered to donate her birthday money to the building of a playground at her elementary school . Her parents offered to match her donation , which inspired her to raise even more money from her family and friends . Ms . Huffman notes , “ as a 5th-grader , she won ’ t even still be attending that school when the playground is built . But it was important for her that the students who come after her will have that playground to enjoy . This is the community spirit that Do the Right Thing celebrates .”
Ms . Huffman is proud to see that the Do the Right Thing program spreads awareness of positive actions among both the students and the faculty . “ This year we also created a new program , Highlander Heroes , which recognizes the positive efforts of one teacher and one administrative professional each month ,” says Huffman . Clearly , positive reinforcement is contagious .
If you ’ d like to nominate a student for Do the Right Thing , visit http :// bit . ly / BWDTRT to learn more . Students honored by the program are recognized by Dr . Lutz at each month ’ s school board meeting , where they receive a certificate and a t-shirt courtesy of Light Brothers .