Small Tasks, Great Purpose: Building Servant Leaders at NCA
Jalcynn Jasko
ID-2446
School Name:Naples Christian Academy
Grant Request Grade:Pre-K K-12
Grant Request Subject:Other
Additional Details
The goal of this project is to provide the materials and resources needed to launch the
Servant Leadership elective, a new middle school course built around a simple but
transformative idea: true leadership begins with a servant's heart. This funding will directly
equip students to practice leadership in three concrete, ongoing roles within our school
community — operating the Middle School store, welcoming new students, and mentoring
our youngest Warriors. Rather than teaching leadership as an abstract concept, this elective
gives students real responsibility and real opportunities to serve, while anchoring every task
in the biblical call of Colossians 3:23–24: to work at everything with all their heart, as for the
Lord.
Throughout the semester, students enrolled in the Servant Leadership elective will rotate
through and take ownership of three primary leadership roles:
• Operating the Middle School Store — students will manage inventory, handle transactions,
create signage, and practice responsibility and customer service in a real, functioning role.
• Welcoming New Students — students will assemble welcome kits, greet incoming students,
and help them feel oriented and cared for from their very first day.
• Mentoring Younger Students — students will visit younger classrooms, lead small kindness
initiatives, and serve as consistent, positive role models for our youngest Warriors.
In addition to these three roles, students will write and distribute encouragement notes
across campus, help build and maintain a schoolwide "Kindness Wall," and participate in
regular class discussions connecting their leadership experiences back to biblical principles
of humility, service, and character. Students will reflect on Colossians 3:23–24 and related
passages throughout the semester, considering how even small, everyday tasks —
restocking a shelf, writing a note, greeting a new student — can be done with excellence and
sincerity as an act of worship.
This project benefits students at every level of our school community:
• Participating students grow in responsibility, communication, and follow-through by taking
ownership of real leadership roles rather than hypothetical ones.
• Participating students develop character and humility, learning that genuine leadership is
measured by service to others rather than recognition or status.
• New and younger students experience a stronger sense of belonging and welcome,
supported by peers who are specifically equipped and resourced to notice and care for them.
• The broader school community benefits from a visible, sustained culture of kindness and
encouragement, modeled consistently by student leaders rather than a single event or
initiative.
• The school builds a pipeline of trained student leaders who carry these servant-leadership
habits forward into future grades and roles within the school.
The requested funding of $293.19 provides the physical materials students need to carry out
each of the roles described above. Without these supplies, the Servant Leadership elective
could teach the concept of servant leadership, but students would have no tangible way to
practice it. Funding is organized into six categories, each tied directly to a specific student
activity:Encouragement and note-writing supplies (cards, sticky notes, stickers, pens, and
envelopes) allow students to consistently create and distribute tangible acts of kindness
throughout the school. Materials for welcoming new students (folders, pencils, bookmarks,
and gift bags) let students assemble a genuine welcome kit rather than offering only a verbal
greeting. Supplies for mentoring younger students (recognition tickets, small treats, and Bible
verse bookmarks) give students concrete tools for their classroom visits and kindness
initiatives. Inventory and operational materials for the Middle School store (merchandise, a
cash box, and signage) are essential to actually running the store as a functioning leadership
role rather than a simulated one. Classroom and community-building materials (the Kindness
Wall kit and a framed copy of Colossians 3:23–24) create a visible, lasting reminder of the
elective's mission within the school. Finally, recognition materials (certificates and a custom
stamp) allow the program to affirm and celebrate students' growth in servant leadership over
the course of the semester.
