Week 4

Welcome back Everyone!

I hope you've all had an amazing Spring Break! Last week was technically my personal spring break however, I didn't realize that BASIS Ahwatukees Spring Break was this week. So, although I didn't necessarily perform any further research on campus this week, I took this opportunity to recap my trip to D.C, in preparation for arrival back on campus next week to complete the second half of my project. I hope you all are enjoying the information that I've posted and please continue to leave comments below--the feedback is much appreciated!

As I said, this week I took the opportunity to reflect on my trip to D.C and more so, reflect on the BASIS experience as a whole. Thus far, one of the things that I've noticed about BASIS Ahwatukee and BASIS Washington D.C, as they continue to develop a school culture, both campuses strive in building positive relationships. Although I may not be researching every BASIS school, I'd like to make the assumption that this is the same among the entire BASIS community. As I spent time on the D.C campus, I payed attention to the interactions between students, teachers, and staff. I would often listen in on student conversations and what they had to say about their teachers, other students, and staff. Of course there was always a common frustration among the students with their teachers about an assignment they weren't too excited about having to complete. However conversations always held to a some degree or another, a positive attitude. Students provided assistance to one another, while teachers opened up their classrooms and offered any necessary resources to their students. As for the staff and other administrators, everyone maintained a positive and professional relationship between one another. If I were a student at BASIS D.C, I would appreciate the fact that while living in a large city and being exposed to things that can cause various levels of stress, there is a positive attitude maintained that is reflected through the many relationships being built on campus. Even from my own personal experience attending BASIS Ahwatukee, I've always felt the need to emphasize that I've had the unique opportunity to build positive, long lasting relationships--the kind of relationships most people would say you won't have until college but, I'd like to say that BASIS is establishing new norms and traditions. 

Having positive relationships is not only vital to maintaining a positive school culture but, as well as a healthy life. Without these quality relationships, a school campus might become a place in which doesn't offer a safe environment for students to learn and grow together. Whether this relation is between you and a friend, you and a sibling, or you and a teacher/administrator, each of these relationships gives us the chance to invest our energy in making our own and another persons reality better. In essence, these relationships offer us the unique opportunity to invest in our futures. Learning how to build these positive relationships now, is important, rather than waiting until much later in our lives when knowing the right person and having a good relationship with them, may have earned you the keys to part of your success. Luckily, BASIS offers an environment for you to learn these skills from an early age. 

I'm very excited to be back on campus next week to continue my research. For those of you still on break or may be beginning one, I hope you enjoy your time off as much as I have! I look forward to keeping you all updated and remember to check back here next Friday for my latest update!

Best, 

Eli