Why We Do YES

By: Ev Nicholes-Fox

GMUHS is approaching our third year of the YES Program but many people don’t know why we do this program. YES allows students to learn and gain skills they normally wouldn’t acquire in a regular school curriculum, which helps students become more well-rounded. These skills can then be applied to life outside of school and after graduation. We call them Essential Skills and Dispositions (E.S. D.S.), breaking into four core skills; Communication, Creativity, Collaboration, and Self-Direction. Each program in YES is built around these four skills, allowing students to put what they have learned into practice. These skills are also what students are graded on, making sure they have met proficiency for each skill and that the program is taken seriously.

These skills directly tie into GM’s ‘Portrait of a Graduate’; traits and skills that students have upon graduating. This portrait helps reflect what GM has taught students as well as gives students a goal on what to accomplish before they graduate. Most of these skills for these portraits are taught in regular class curriculum however some skills require the use of community service opportunities and the YES program. YES helps prepare students for graduation and teaches them lifelong skills that relate to the essential skills and dispositions structuring the programs.