By Sym Posey | The Birmingham Times
The first day of school is the one of the most important of the year for students, which is why Keira Cox said she made sure her children were present when Birmingham City Schools opened the fall semester on August 7.
“It’s setting the tone for the rest of the school year,” said Cox.
The mom said she never expected her son’s first day attendance would lead to a pleasant surprise — an email from the City of Birmingham.
“I opened it, I screamed to the top of my lungs and I RSVP’d right away,” she said. “To be able to be awarded for doing something you are supposed to do it makes you feel good as a parent.”
Cox was just one parent who received $500 from the City of Birmingham’s Ready Day One Incentive program.
The city and The Penny Foundation, a local initiative, on Tuesday celebrated families whose children registered and were in place at school on Day One during a ceremony at John Phillips Academy.
Two families, from each of the district’s 43 schools, were randomly selected to receive $500 each, thanks to a $43,000 grant from Penny Foundation.
Cox’s son, Keyon Cox, was one of two names from Wenonah High School selected.
For Jelissa Griffin, another recipient, her reaction was similar to Cox’s. “I got an email, and I jumped up, screaming and said ‘I won, I won.’ I consider this a blessing because this could be money for someone’s light bill, rent, water bill,” said Griffin. “It is after back-to-school and some people might have fallen short. It’s like catch up money.”
Griffin’s daughter, Aniya Lindsey was one of two names selected from Jackson Olin High School.
BCS Superintendent Mark Sullivan, Ed.D. said 800 more students were present for the first day on August 7 this year than last.
“I want to thank the city of Birmingham, the Penny Foundation, the Birmingham Housing Authority, for working together to make a difference,” he said. “Randall Woodfin has been a friend of the youth in Birmingham City Schools, aside from the work that he is doing with our attendance in Everyday Counts” which aims to incentivize public housing residents to ensure school-aged children attend school regularly.
Sullivan said a number of initiatives like incentives for attendance; Common Ground, an initiative that focuses on equipping youth and adults with essential life skills like conflict resolution, anger management, and social-emotional development, all help with education.
He also thanked the mayor for ensuring that every school in the city has a full-time counselor.
“When I was a teacher, when I was a principal, if you had a small school, you had a part time counselor, and guess what? students don’t have part time problems,” said the schools chief, “and so in order to address those problems on a day-to-day basis, the city stepped up and provided that incentive.”
Woodfin, who was present, said, “There’s nothing more important than a mayor of any city in America can do than to take care of its youth and its children. Part of that also means taking care of their parents and their families in this city and this community.”
