YOUTH DEVELOPMENT SPECIALIST:
Ms. Beth Keller
SCHOOL:
E. A. Laney High School
SCHOOL PHONE:
910-350-2089 ext. 439
I am in my third year at Laney High School and am thrilled to be a member of
the Laney Buccaneer Staff. My main objective here at Laney is to
incorporate positive youth development principles while working to reduce
substance abuse and incidents of violence. I am passionate about this mission
and aim to fulfill these goals by encouraging student involvement and
supporting student-faculty relationships.
IT is important to highlight what is being done by students to work towards
this mission. During the 2006-2007 school year, the Students Against Violence
Everywhere group was revived and SAVE members from Laney were able to attend
the National SAVE Summit in Raleigh, NC on March 31. We learned more about
what we can do to create a violence-free culture here at Laney and had lots
of fun meeting other SAVE members from across the country. We worked to
establish this culture through Peer Mediation. During 2006-2007, 26 trained
Peer Mediators completed 34 mediations.
During the 2005-2006 school year, Peer Mediation was developed and 25 Peer
Mediators were trained in mediation skills. In addition, the Teens Against
Tobacco Use group implemented tobacco-free awareness programs for the Great
American Smokeout, Kick Butts Day, and World No Tobacco Day. We spent World
No Tobacco Day Downtown Wilmington with the Project 1200 Display. This
impressive display of 1200 pairs of shoes demonstrated the 1200 lives lost to
tobacco EVERYDAY in the United States.
Before settling into New Hanover County and my position at Laney, I worked as
a Senior Facilitator and Marketing Specialist for Pathfinder Outdoor
Education based in St. Petersburg, FL. I enjoy incorporating my experiential
learning and adventure programming background while working with the faculty
and students here at Laney. I also spent two years as a full time volunteer
with an AmeriCorps program called Athletes in Service to America. In this
position, I spent time in two high schools and community centers tutoring,
mentoring, and coaching students. And last but not least, right after
graduating from Illinois Wesleyan University, I spent six months in New
Zealand as a professional softball player and coach. I am currently working
towards a masters degree in Youth Development and am integrating this further
knowledge into my work at Laney. Please do not hesitate to contact me if I
can be of service to you.
The Mission of Student Support Services
Student Support Services provides supplemental alternative programs for "at-
risk" students who may need or require support outside the mainstream
classroom.
The Mission of Safe and Drug Free Schools
To Continuously Improve NHCS as a safe and orderly environment that supports
positive youth development through the provision of Substance Abuse/Violence
Prevention Services.
