Article published on June 11, 2012 by the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette
Imagine on Broadway has a new crop of tour guides for the school – and they’re not the teachers or administrators one might expect.
These days, when a parent or community member stops by to tour the school, it’s the students who show them around the building.
“It gives us a chance to help people and show them what our school is,” said fourth-grader Maia Brown, one of the student tour guides. “We talk about how focused we are on work and how we always get it done.”
Maia, 10, was one of eight volunteers in student government who volunteered to be part of the student tour guide program, which started this year. School leader Ra’Chelle Spearman thought the opportunity would encourage leadership, while at the same time letting the kids have fun.
“The students can give the most accurate information, because they’re the ones most involved in everything,” she said.
Third-grader Armando Alexander, 9, said being a tour guide takes a certain skill set.
“You have to be able to answer any of their questions because they’re not going to know anything about the place,” he said.
McKinzie Smith, 10, says she tells visitors that her favorite thing about the school is the year-round calendar, because “when we get back to school, we haven’t forgotten anything.”
Hannah Peterson, 11, said her favorite thing about Imagine on Broadway is the teachers.
“They make learning fun,” she said. “I want parents and people who come here to know that this school is a great place to come.”