As students head back to school, one school district is helping make sure kids feel excited and like they belong.
I visited Copley-Fairlawn Middle School Thursday morning to see how they're making sure no one feels left out.
A mix of nerves and excitement. You remember that feeling. The transition from elementary to middle school can be scary, but what if it didn't have to be?
What if it looked like a party, and what if those intimidating older kids were your cool, new friends and mentors?
That is exactly what happened Thursday at the fifth-grade orientation at Copley-Fairlawn Middle School, which is earlier than most districts begin the inclusion of middle school.
The event was hosted by WEB leaders, which stands for Where Everybody Belongs.
A WEB leader, Samantha Brinkman, said seeing the fifth graders enter the gym was awesome.
"Seeing all the kids' faces when they walked in and seeing the streamers and everyone cheering for them," said Samantha.
WEB leaders, like 13-year-old Samantha, are 8th graders. So, the oldest kids in the building are looking out for the youngest, which they were just a few short years ago.
"I had my own WEB leader when I was in fifth grade," said Connor Fortin, 13, WEB leader. "It meant the world to me."
The program is now in its fifth year. Josh Harris, the lead advisor and a seventh-grade teacher, told Katie it's making a difference.
"The excitement is giving that power to the eighth graders," said Harris. "Giving power to their peers and saying, 'Hey, let's make middle school awesome together!'"
An example of how much the program means to the students, Mr. Harris says this past spring, 80 seventh graders applied to be one of just 44 WEB leaders. It is an elite and coveted role.
"I'm really happy they're here to help me with whatever I need," said Claire Lewis, 10, a fifth grader.
Claire told me she was excited to start middle school but nervous, too.
I asked her what she was most nervous about.
"Probably, like opening my locker and getting to my classes," she said.
WEB leaders will also wear the signature blue shirts they had on at orientation on the first day of school. That way, the fifth graders can easily find them and ask questions.
The WEB leaders have also devoted the final week of their summer vacation to planning Thursday's orientation to make it special.
Plus, they'll check in with the fifth graders throughout the year to see how they're doing academically and emotionally and send notes of encouragement.
"It shows how much we love everybody and want everybody to feel welcomed because everybody here belongs," said Samantha.
Nerves and excitement, now mixed with connections and care from upperclassmen who've walked in their shoes, make middle school more comfortable and feel like they fit in.
There is also a similar program in the high school to help with that transition. Harris says it started with the proof of concept of the WEB program in middle school.
