Aaliyah Cassidy, an eighth grader at Claggett Creek Middle School, said she didn’t expect to receive an award for being a “good kid.”
Through elementary school and the beginning of middle school, Cassidy frequently received referrals for being disruptive in class. She struggled to connect with her peers and adults in school and with low grades.
Now approaching her freshman year of high school, Cassidy was one of over 20 students across Salem and Keizer recognized for her efforts to grow personally and academically.
The annual Turnaround Achievement Awards honor eighth graders and seniors from across the Salem-Keizer School District and some private schools. They typically struggled with personal hardship or academics early in middle or high school but found success by their final year.
Schools nominate a student for the award each year.
Cassidy was one of three Keizer students honored in early May. The others include Logan Bejar Wrighthouse of Whiteaker Middle School and Melissa Garcia Cortez of McNary High School.
“I’ve been super proud of her all year,” Cassidy’s grandmother, Cammie, said. “When she told me she got this award, I was like, ‘Good, they’re recognizing it as well,’ because she’s made huge efforts this year.”
In a video played at the event on why Cassidy was nominated, Claggett Creek Counselor Robert Cox said Cassidy “has shown an awesome ability to grow her self-awareness and kind of critically reflect on who she is as a scholar and as a person, and then who she really wants to be.”
Cox noted that Cassidy found opportunities to grow through connections with mentors and participating in orchestra and sports.
Cassidy said a pivotal moment spurring her growth was the possibility of being barred from the orchestra class because of her behavior.
Cassidy plays the cello in Claggett Creek’s orchestra, although she knows how to play other orchestral instruments as well. She said she began orchestra in fourth grade.
“Everyone in my family was always good at sports, and I had kind of nothing, so I wanted to have something,” Cassidy said. “I thought maybe I could do it through music.”
Cassidy said that through fifth and sixth grade she got referrals almost daily for being disruptive in class. She was often scolded for “telling off teachers” during class. Other examples of behavior leading to referrals included drawing on her face with markers during class and knocking off a protective case around a fire alarm and not being honest about that with school staff.
She often felt targeted or ridiculed by adults in the school, and struggled to build relationships with them.
Near the end of the sixth grade, school staff told her she would be barred from orchestra if her behavior didn’t improve. Not wanting to lose the activity, she adjusted.
Through seventh grade Cassidy worked to reduce her classroom disruptions and recognize when harsh opinions were not appropriate to share with teachers or other students.
Referrals – which resulted in calls home and conversations with school administrators – dropped to roughly twice a week, and then several months without any by the end of the year.
Her desire to change extended to relationships and academics.
Cassidy explained that she worked to filter her words to other students and avoid phrasing opinions that might hurt feelings.
Academically, Cassidy believed she is capable of good grades but didn’t apply herself to classes. She enrolled in the Advancement Via Individual Determination program offering academic support and found strategies to help her overcome her habit of procrastinating. Participating in orchestra and sports, including volleyball and wrestling, allowed her to bond with others and make friends. She also found mentors in some teachers, including orchestra teacher Lea Jacobo and instructional assistant Sandra Flores.
NEWS TIP? Contact reporter Krista Kroiss at [email protected].
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