{"id":260,"date":"2013-02-27T14:08:28","date_gmt":"2013-02-27T14:08:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/?p=260"},"modified":"2014-04-15T19:54:20","modified_gmt":"2014-04-15T19:54:20","slug":"compass-keepers-club-cookes-laura-beth-lawver","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.vbcpsblogs.com\/core\/compass-keepers-club-cookes-laura-beth-lawver\/","title":{"rendered":"Compass Keepers Club: Cooke’s Laura Beth Lawver"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"CompassKeeper_Lawver\"<\/a>Outside there is a steady staccato of rain \u2014 a pat, pat, patting on the windows that keeps time with the chaos and crunch of wet-soled sneakers on concrete. Inside Cooke Elementary School though, first grade teacher Laura Beth Lawver\u2019s smile is pure sunshine; a welcoming beacon for students and their families even on the rainiest of days.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe is nothing short of amazing,\u201d said Cooke Principal Barbara Sessoms. \u201cI can\u2019t begin to tell you how much she means to this school and to our students.\u201d<\/p>\n

A Princess Anne High School graduate, Lawver knew that there was no place she would rather teach than at the Beach. So after college she accepted a position at Cooke, where she is now in her ninth year teaching. She is also the sponsor of the school\u2019s Anchor Club, an after school program for students deemed homeless.\u00a0 There, she said, her eyes were first truly opened.<\/p>\n

\u201cBefore Anchor Club I didn\u2019t really know how much homelessness affected this community,\u201d Lawver said. \u201cI don\u2019t think a lot of people really understand how many of our students and their families are facing these challenges and how that follows them into the classroom.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lawver remembers that first year having a student that was more than a handful in class. It wasn\u2019t until she volunteered as an Anchor tutor and saw her student in the program that she began to understand what was behind his behavior. Two years later, tutoring wasn\u2019t enough and Lawver stepped up to run the program. Still, she felt she needed to do more.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe thought of sending them home every afternoon to do homework in a hotel room, to a place where there isn\u2019t room to play or a warm meal just broke me,\u201d Lawver said. \u201cAnchor was two days a week but it wasn\u2019t enough.\u201d<\/p>\n

So she turned to Virginia Beach United Methodist Church. Thanks to their partnership, Anchor Club has grown leaps and bounds and now offers students a safe and education-rich environment Monday through Thursday every school week \u2014 two days at Cooke and two days at the church. Students get a warm meal, homework help and a place to play. But the students aren\u2019t the only ones who have gotten something out of Anchor Club, Lawver said. It has changed her as well.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am a much different teacher, a much different person, since working with the Anchor Club because it opened my eyes to what our students bring with them into the classroom,\u201dLawver said. \u201cThey call me the school social worker because when families need help, they call me, but I wouldn\u2019t have it any other way.\u201d<\/p>\n

There isn\u2019t much that makes Lawver\u2019s smile waver. That is except for the thought of children returning to Anchor Club year after year. It breaks her heart to see students come back, she said, because that means their families are still struggling with homelessness.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou love them so much, but the best gift in the world is if they don\u2019t come back,\u201d Lawver said. \u201cNot seeing them means they\u2019ve moved on to something more stable, a better home. And that makes your heart feel good.\u201d<\/p>\n

People often tell Lawver she should consider going into administration. She just smiles that wide, unabashed smile and shakes her head. Her heart is in the classroom. After all, she is a believer \u2014 in the ability of all children to excel; in a shared culture of responsibility where families, schools and the community help children flourish.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs teachers what we do goes way beyond reaching a child academically,\u201d Lawver said. \u201cIf we are doing it right, what we do as educators also lifts children up and meets their needs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Compass Keepers Q&A:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

What is your favorite pastime?<\/strong>
\nPlaying with\u00a0my daughters.\u00a0(Ages five and 18 months)<\/p>\n

What is your favorite book:<\/strong>
\nThe Chosen by Chaim Potok<\/p>\n

What is your favorite television show?<\/strong>
\nCriminal Minds<\/p>\n

What is your favorite kind of music?<\/strong>
\nAnything Country<\/p>\n

What would be your dream vacation?<\/strong>
\nI’d love to travel to Australia.<\/p>\n

*Do you know someone\u00a0who should be featured as a Compass Keeper? Send your nomination to news@vbschools.com<\/a>.<\/em> <\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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