Hilton is one of Rochester’s largest central school districts: Five schools; more than 360 teachers; administrative, food services, janitorial, and maintenance staff; and 4,500 students. That impressive footprint makes one thing clear: You can positively impact any large group when health and wellness are your priorities.
But where should you begin?
Hilton Central School District Wellness coordinators Mike Ellicott, Eileen Mendoza and Alyssa Eisenhauer are tasked with providing more opportunities to improve staff health and wellness. From brainstorming sessions with Principal Marco Damico came the idea to create a designated space where staff members, at least in the high school, could find a respite from the day to decompress and rejuvenate.
The idea originated with Ellicott, a health and sports science teacher and soccer coach. Ellicott transformed his classroom into a pleasant learning environment.
“People work best in relaxed, comfortable spaces,” Ellicott says. “Over the last three years I’ve phased chairs and desks out of my room.”
Ellicott’s room is filled with couches, seat cubes, standing desks, exercise balls and bean bag chairs. Students use clipboards and lap boards designed for Chromebooks, and foam rollers and massage balls are also available.
Ellicott reports that students are eager to come to his class now. Even Damico and other teachers often stop by to use the foam rollers or take a break in a bean bag chair.
Inspired by Ellicott’s success, the co-coordinators decided to replicate his classroom on a smaller scale. They opted to use a corner in the faculty lounge because of its central location and accessibility.
Dubbed the Wellness Corner, the space is portable and offers some privacy provided by white-board partitions. Padded floor mats covered with foam rollers, massage and exercise balls and yoga blocks invite staff to do light stretching and exercises. The front half is decorated with posters describing simple exercises and stretches, and a weekly affirmation, such as, “My day is going to be amazing,” is posted by the door.
“I post the affirmations by the door in hopes they will read it on the way out and take the message with them as they return to the classroom or office,” Mendoza says.
The back half reflects a monthly theme. Ellicott tasks his class to decide a theme and create a display. November was “Happy Planksgiving.” Students displayed healthy Thanksgiving recipes and a list of easy-to-do activities — Plymouth plank, Squanto squats and pilgrim pushups, for example. Staff members could enter their names at the turkey display for a chance to win the monthly drawing.
Ellicott and Mendoza report the response from staff members has been very positive. Mendoza points out the Wellness Corner is near a copy machine that routinely breaks down, causing lots of frustration. “Teachers can go to the Wellness Corner and take a deep breath,” she laughs.
Eventually, everyone hopes to have a dedicated wellness room. “It’s a work in progress,” Ellicott says.
In addition to the Wellness Corner, the Wellness coordinators arranged to provide free chair massages in December from Integrated Chiropractic and Massage Therapy as yet another way to help staff unwind and relax.
“We are just trying to give people a break and a different space for a positive experience,” Mendoza says.
