By HARRIET PROTHRO PENROD
For this week’s installment, I went to Cush’s Grocery & Market to meet Kasie Mainiero, a lifelong educator who has recently undertaken a new role with Caddo Parish Schools. Having been a teacher at University Elementary School under Mainiero’s leadership as both assistant principal and principal, I can attest to her dedication to all aspects of a child’s education.
Just 18 days into her new role as Child Well-Being Specialist for Caddo Parish Schools, Kasie Mainiero has already visited 36 schools in the community. Heck, she’s already been to five schools before our lunch meeting today.
That’s the way Mainiero rolls. It reminds me of something my grandmother used to say about people who were able to accomplish great things: “She doesn’t let any grass grow under her feet.”
We’re talking about someone who has never been able to sit still for long. She’d rather be up and moving – whether as a pre-K teacher, a kindergarten teacher, a counselor, a coordinator, a master teacher, an assistant principal, or a principal. Those are all positions Mainiero has filled since receiving her bachelor’s degree at Centenary College, a Master’s in Counseling from Louisiana Tech, and +30 from LSUS (she is currently working on her Doctorate in Educational Leadership at La. Tech).
“I’m very excited about it,” Mainiero says of the newly-created position with Caddo Parish Schools. “I’m very positive about the potential it has to make changes (in our schools and community).”
The position has many facets, including: overall student well-being; implementing the new Rethink Curriculum (a computer-based strategy to help provide a safe and secure environment); connecting school administrators to resources in their community; improving the climate and culture of schools; and trauma response, to name a few.
“We have got to help children figure out how to regulate their emotions, especially kids who have been through trauma,” says Mainiero. “And help teachers know how to deal with kids who are dealing with trauma.”
To help meet that goal, Mainiero has been meeting with different community members in town – and she is amazed at the resources that are available.
“The Community Foundation, VOA (Volunteers of America), VYJ (Volunteers for Youth Justice) – there are amazing people out there doing this work in a different way, and some are already doing it in the schools,” she says. “And churches are one of our most important community resources to help schools.”
Mainiero has seen the benefits of focusing on the emotional well-being of students. During her tenure as principal, UES became the first-ever “We Care School” – incorporating a pilot program through Community Renewal International that aims to teach students about giving back, being kind, and caring for others.
As a result, the school saw a decrease in suspensions and expulsions as well as a tremendous decrease in the rate of referrals.
So how does this correlate to academics?
“We’re not going to move that reading (or math) deficit if kids’ needs aren’t met,” explains Mainiero. “When children don’t know how to read, we teach them reading skills. When children don’t know division, we teach them math skills. When children don’t know how to act, we kick them out and say, ‘You should know how to act.’ Kids are so much more than a test score. My goal is for us to make better human beings.”
And, as it is said, it takes a village – teachers, administrators, counselors, cafeteria workers, custodians, community members, churches.
For those who doubt the importance of an increased focus on the emotional well-being of students and its impact on academic performance, I echo Mainiero’s belief when she says, “How’s it been working for us without it?”
Just take a look at the news – the shootings, suicides, and increased violence – and it is evident that something must be done.
“This district is vast, with urban, suburban, and rural schools,” says Mainiero. “There are so many different needs at different places. I’m getting to all these places and trying to assess what those needs are. Everybody is in their own bubble and doesn’t know what other schools are doing and what resources they have.
“My job is to go in and say, ‘How can I help you get where you want to be?’”
Mainiero knows as well as anyone that results will take time. And how will the results be measured?
“That’s one of the hardest parts,” she says. “There are so many variables. It’s going to be interesting. Hopefully, we’ll be able to look at statistics and say, ‘I wonder why our crime rate went down and test scores went up.’ It all indirectly affects so many facets of a child’s life.
“We’re talking about an individual, a person. One little thing could change the course of that child’s life. Small differences over time – that’s how you make change.”
Contact Harriet at sbjharriet@gmail.com
