The Chick-fil-A Leader Academy (CFALA) is a national high school leadership program dedicated to serving the school and community. Students attend monthly meetings where they learn about leadership through labs. The program not only teaches students leadership skills but also empowers students to put their skills into action. Everything is completely sponsored by Chick-fil-A, who prepares the labs and provides all the materials for the students.
The Frenship High School Ninth Grade Center CFALA has around 25 members. Every year the group decides on a Do-Good December program that invests in a service opportunity in our local community. This year, the NGC group decided they wanted to help the homeless in our community and looked to aid the Grace Campus.
Grace Campus is a nonprofit organization that helps the homeless. They do not receive government financial support, so they truly depend on donors. According to their website the Grace Campus's mission is to inspire hope, instill value and equip the homeless in our community. They desire for every person to realize their life has a purpose and meaning. Grace Campus provides temporary shelter for homeless people in Lubbock, they provide meals to them and help them find jobs to improve their situation and motivate them to move forward.
The CFALA students worked hard to raise money for the Grace Campus. Some of them donated not only their time but their own money.
“We hosted a spirit week with dress-up days such as an ugly sweater, pajama day, Christmas colors, Santa hats/head bands, and album cover day,” said Mayra Hook, the Ninth Grade Center CFALA Sponsor. “We had excellent support from parents and our school community. They got involved to help and donate money for the cause.”
The Grace Campus primarily need over the winter was propane tanks to help provide the residents with heaters, since the temperature in Lubbock can drop low during this season. CFALA was honored to donate 602 dollars to this organization. Around 40 dollars were donated in propane tanks and the rest in cash. “I am proud of what my students accomplished with this project,” said Hook. “It makes my heart happy to see this group of young kids caring about others.”
Frenship ISD has a culture of servant leadership, instilling positive behaviors in the students and staff, and serving the community at every opportunity. This culture is characterized by the Frenship Way SERVE Model. The Frenship Way SERVE Model stands for Smile, Engage, Respect, Volunteer, and Encourage.
“The CFALA supports what the Frenship Way already does by inspiring and educating our students to serve with kindness, exemplify positive behaviors, and serve our community,” said Hook.
CFALA is thankful to Jerri Ann Moore at Grace Campus for organizing a visit for the group. Students had an opportunity to learn how an organization like Grace Campus works. The group was also able to hear the testimony of a few of the residents. “I believe this inspired our students to serve and come back in their own time to volunteer with the organization,” said Hook.
The CFALA team is currently working on their biggest project, which is the impact project. They will collaborate with the Student Council at the NGC to raise money to donate to the Children Miracle Network.