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Roseville Middle School Staff Surprise Students With Uplifting Letters

Roseville Middle School staff members recently presented handwritten thank-you notes to students who inspire them. The beautiful moment was captured on video. Before watching the video, you may need to…

Roseville Middle School teacher Julie Cooper and student.

Roseville Middle School teacher Julie Cooper and student.

Used with permission of Joe Genest

Roseville Middle School staff members recently presented handwritten thank-you notes to students who inspire them. The beautiful moment was captured on video. Before watching the video, you may need to grab a box of tissues. "In January, staff at Roseville Middle School presented handwritten notes to students who inspired them to come to school each day… #rosevillepride," the video caption reads.

The video was posted on the middle school’s Facebook page on February 15 and has since gained over 430,000 views. "The Roseville Middle School: Be The Reason" video also caught the attention of NBC Nightly News’ Kate Snow.

The ‘Be The Reason’ video was in the works for two years before the full launch, said coach and reading teacher Stasi Earl. She said she approached the school administration with the idea and wanted to build upon relationships students have with teachers with handwritten letters to students. The letters would include why the students inspire the teachers. This would give students something meaningful, impactful, and tangible.

Roseville Middle School has over 700 students. To guarantee that a majority of students receive a card, Earl asked teachers, secretaries, custodians, and cooks to participate in the project. “It takes everybody in the school for it to function,” Earl told us.

Earl has been teaching for over 20 years and wanted to give students something to remember for the rest of their lives. She didn’t anticipate the video having such an impact outside of the community.

The video was not only for students but staff as well. Many teachers faced a lot of challenges during the past two years. One of those challenges teaching hybrid classes during the pandemic. “It was a tough year for teachers losing purpose,” Earl told us. ‘Be The Reason’ was also a reminder for staff to answer the question, ‘Why do we do what we do?”

“You inspire Ms. Moore and I to come to work every day,” said Earl told a student. “You light up our classroom with your kindness and you’re going to make the world a better place,” Christine Beckner, a teacher read.

After the video was filmed, it was well over 8 minutes long, Earl said. The editor of the video, Joe Genest managed to get it around 4 minutes. “The 4-minute video you see doesn’t have all of the students. It didn’t bother the students who aren’t in the video because they still received a letter with encouragement that they show off,” said Earl. The project was such a success that the school plan’s to present handwritten uplifting notes again for the students.

Below you can view the 4-minute video with lots of smiles, hugs, and tears.

Kayla is the midday host on Detroit’s 105.1 The Bounce. She started her career in radio back in 2016 as an intern at another Detroit station and worked her way here. She's made stops in Knoxville, TN, Omaha, Ne and other places before returning to Detroit. She’s done almost everything in radio from promotions to web, creating content on social media, you name it. She’s a true Michigander, born and raised. So, you can catch her camping or vacationing up north to exploring the downtown Detroit or maybe even catching a sports game. During her free time, Kayla enjoys watching movies, roller-skating, crafting, and music festivals. She and her husband together dip into many of the great things Michigan has to offer. Together they also like to travel. A few hobbies of hers include wine and beer tastings, crafting, hiking, roller skating, movies, home improvement projects, gardening, and festivals. She’s always looking to take on more local events happening in the community. She loves connecting with the community. When writing, Kayla covers topics including lifestyle, pop culture, trending stories, hacks, and urban culture.