At more than 100 years old, Newark’s Bruce Street School for the Deaf is one of the oldest schools for deaf and hard of hearing children in the United States. Anyone who attended this year’s Deaf Awareness Day, which celebrated students’ accomplishments throughout the school year, could see why the school is so successful. From kindergartners to alumni, including an Adjunct Professor at Montclair State University, the event featured the skills, talents and determination of students past and present.
This year’s theme Great Habits Make Great Leaders showcased the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and the Franklin Covey Curriculum The Leader in Me, which the students have adopted as their school culture. With the assistance of prominent individuals in the deaf community — such as a telecommunications manager, an American Sign Language instructor at the Newark Public Library and 2013 NJ — the students’ performances focused on each of the following habits:
- Habit 1: Be Proactive (I am responsible for me)
- Habit 2: Begin With the End in Mind (Always have a plan)
- Habit 3: Put First Things First (Work first then play)
- Habit 4: Think Win-Win (everyone can win; everyone can walk away happy)
- Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood (Listen before you talk)
- Habit 6: Synergize (Together we can achieve more)
- Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw (A balanced life is the best life)