HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — Young Middle Magnet Student Resource Officer Rodney Riviere smiles at the crowd in a packed gymnasium.
It's the last day of "Anti-bullying Week." A week Officer Riviere spearheaded.
"He came to me with this concept. And I was like, 'That's a lot of work.' And he's like, 'I know,' and I said, if you got it, I'm with you like we are going to do this together," said Principal Dr. Henrissa Barry.
The whole week ended on a high note: a friendly basketball game between students and teachers.
The students roared during the game.
"That's the exact response I hoped for," Officer Riviere said.
The students made signs. The step team came up with an anti-bullying step. Throughout the school, the message was well-received.
"The kids are taking to it very strongly. They're coming up to me; I have kids coming up and saying thank you. I have kids who normally don't even speak, they just pass by, and they're coming up and just giving me a hug," he said.
Young Middle Magnet sits in East Tampa's College Hill neighborhood. The same area where Officer Riviere grew up.
"These kids know there's somebody there that looks like 'my brother, ' looks like 'my auntie,' this is my cousin," he said. "I can relate to them. Because I grew up in the same areas, so I know what they're going through."
This week wasn't a one-and-done week full of activities and moments to be seen. Instead, the school has built a focus on connecting with the students throughout the year.
"I think it boils down to a few things: consistency, support, collaboration of our teachers, with each other, with the parents, with myself as a leader, that consistency is key. And when we set structures in place for students, they thrive," said Principal Barry.
The students are also incentivized for good work. First, there are the four P's: punctual, polite, prepared, and productive. Then, throughout the week, the students receive Buffalo Bucks for displaying any of those principles and once Friday rolls around, the students can use those bucks in the school store.
"They have to produce those positive qualities in order to get paid. And they love to get paid because then they come in and buy whatever they want and or do things with their friends that they wouldn't ordinarily be able to do in school," said Principal Barry.
There are various things the students can buy from the store: snacks, time to play the X-Box, purses, nail polish and even a chance to go outside and play basketball during lunch. But, while the students enjoy those rewards, it isn't what the bulk of the Buffalo Bucks are spent on.
"The students love the hygiene products, right? They like to look good; they like to smell good. And so one of the things that we see them purchasing a lot of is our deodorant sprays, our body sprays, perfume, hair, gel brushes, combs, really the things that we think of as necessities, right? That they don't always have access to at home," she said.
The students will even use those Buffalo Bucks to buy gifts.
"A young man student came in here. He had maybe 60 Buffalo Bucks. He spent all his Buffalo Bucks on blankets, hats, deodorants, toiletries. And I was like, 'What are you? Why are you buying all of this?' Because all at once, it's kind of, you know? And he says, 'Well, I have to get a blanket for my mom; I need hats for my brother.' He did not have enough money to get all that. I didn't have the heart to tell him," Officer Riviera recalled.
He says he let the student take the items, no bucks necessary.
"I had a single mom. I had the urge in me to help my mom so she doesn't have to spend for me. And this gives them the opportunity to make sure their mom doesn't have to spend," he said. "The area we're in right now and the area the schools located in, a lot of times $5 can be a lot, $20 can be a lot. These kids literally are getting stuff that they can help their parent with for free. All they have to do is come to the school. Do the right thing."
A school store stocked thanks to the generosity of a Tampa Bay Buccaneers star.
"So during the Superbowl, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers player Antoine Winfield Jr. Threw a peace sign to another player on another team. Well, that resulted in a penalty, right? And so he decided to do something positive, with his consequence for that penalty, which was a fine. He matched what the fine was from the NFL and put it into our school store," said Principal Barry.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Bucs Foundation remodeled and stocked the store. That generosity has lasted the last two years.
"We are very, very grateful to Antoine Winfield, Jr. and the Buccaneers for using taking that negative concept and turning it into something positive. It was also something that we could utilize to teach our students about how everyone makes mistakes. But how can you take your mistake and make it a stepping stone and turn it into something positive? And they get to experience that every single day now, as a result of what he did and what he decided to do after he was fine," Principal Barry said.
Around every corner is a learning lesson. They're not just reserved for inside the textbooks. It's the lessons inside and outside of the classroom that the school attributes to its recent success. Young Magnet Middle had the highest growth in any middle or high school in Hillsborough County last year in school grades.
"Sometimes, you know, they want to buck against the structures, but they thrive on the structure. And so, one of the things that I can say has attributed to the success is the consistency and the structure that we have had over the last two years. In addition to us incentivizing their positive behaviors, we want to point out the good things that they're doing. So that we can see them continue to do those good things," she added.
Growth through positivity starts with role models like Officer Riviere and Principal Barry.
