Buchanan Community Schools is located in a rural area in Southwest Berrien County and comprises approximately 1,600 students. We are known as the Buchanan Bucks, and Bucktown Pride is a common mantra, whether you are in the schools or out in the community. Buchanan has always been a small, hometown community where generations of families have grown up, and Buchanan Community Schools have always been the center of activity.
 
Bucktown Pride has renewed energy. Slogans such as “Welcome to the Woods!” “Back to the Woods!” “Fear the Deer!” “Don’t be a Bully, be a Buck!” and “Herd Dat!” have popped up and become part of everyday language. What started as a small effort to involve students in a positive sportsmanship event quickly turned into a major effort around school pride and anti-bullying.
 
During the 2012-2013 school year, our Athletic Director asked student representa­tives and their advisor to attend a Michigan High School Athletic Association positive sportsmanship event. We soon became part of the “Battle of the Fans” competition. These students, with help from teachers, engaged the student body; it wasn’t long before the stands were full, games were sold out, and businesses were involved in supporting events.
 
At the same time, we had another small group of students approach our high school at-risk interventionist with a concern about bullying in the school. They wanted to do something about it and were consequently named the “Do-Something Group.”
 
They started small with events such as “A Day of Silence.” On the way to work one morning, high school principal Sharon Steinke heard an ad on the radio from Secret Deodorant. She spoke with our high school interventionist about the ad, and with help from Secret Deodorant and Proctor and Gamble, our Mean Stinks campaign was born. The “Do-Something Group” changed directions.
 
The day the Michigan High School Athletic Association was scheduled to come and watch our spirit team in action, we had to postpone the game due to weather. The rescheduled game was also the day we concluded our Mean Stinks campaign. Stands were full with commu­nity members, and downtown business members were sporting Buckwear, Mean Stinks campaign t-shirts and bracelets. The high school students are now known as The Herd, the gym is renamed The Woods, and if something positive is going on, “Herd Dat!” is used as an affirmation. The entire community was involved and we became the 2013 State Champions of Battle of the Fans.
 
The Herd and Mean Stinks campaigns were so successful that the board of education agreed to an additional spirit club being added to extracurricular activities. In addition, our high school students traveled to the middle school and elementary buildings to hold pep rallies, teach students cheers and invite them to games. Something positive had come into our schools, and we wanted it to grow.
 
Both events technically ended at the end of March but the spirit remains. In August 2013, we had an apartment fire which affected more than 35 school families. The Herd stood at corners downtown and collected money on behalf of fire victims. They collected over $1,300 in less than two hours!
 
The first meeting for The Herd in fall 2013 included nearly 60 students who wanted to take part in the spirit team. Several middle school students asked to take part, and this year the Junior Herd was born. The spirit continued, and we were once again finalists in the Battle of the Fans competition.
 
It’s hard to separate The Herd from our Mean Stinks students as many of them are the same. It’s hard to separate school spirit from the students who are becoming the “upstanders” in efforts to combat bullying. Behavior incidences are down district wide and school/community spirit is skyrocketing.
 
In addition to the continuance of the Battle of the Fans and the Mean Stinks campaign, many high school students are now connecting in a positive manner with our community. As a fairly new member to the Buchanan Lion’s Club, I learned about the Leos, the youth organization connected to the Lions. We asked our National Honor Society members and their teacher advisor to attend an information meeting. When they returned, I asked how I could be of help.
 
Our National Honor Society students already had a plan. At their first meeting, we expected 25 to 30 students to show up but instead ended up with nearly 150! The Leos have been active all over town doing everything from raking lawns, baking cookies with senior citizens and helping collect warm clothing, food and gifts during the holidays.
 
The Leo Club will be official in March when students will be inducted formally as charter members of the Buchanan Leo Club.
 
While Buchanan is a small town with a small school system, our students are essential to the success of our school environment and to the outreach in our community. Instead of being criticized by the community for vandalism, we are now receiving positive press that “once again our Buchanan students show they care.” Students are involved in something positive within their school and community.
 
Who is a member of The Herd? All K-12 students are at the core of Bucktown Pride. It takes pride to be Buck!

This article first appeared in the Michigan Association of School Administrators' MASA Leader magazine. Read the full issue here.