Becoming a Bulldog Camp coming to SHS

SANDPOINT — Attention aspiring Bulldogs: A unique, once-a-year sports camp hits Sandpoint on Aug. 18-21 for football, dance and cheer teams. The four-day Becoming a Bulldog camp is open to any and all kids in grades 3-9, and families are encouraged to sign up as soon as possible.

The new camp is designed for the high school students to serve as mentors to the younger grades, and offers nothing but positives, according to Sandpoint football coach Satini Puailoa.

“Our focus is on bringing together three important sports to Sandpoint High School. Learning the fundamentals and, more than winning games, having fun building positive relationships between grade levels of school kids, including women’s teams,” said Puailoa, one of the camp coaches. “It’s our first year doing it at Sandpoint. So far, we are really pleased with how popular it seems to be with kids and families.”

Becoming a Bulldog was the recipient of a prestigious teacher grant from the Panhandle Alliance for Education. Pam Lippi, a physical education teacher at Farmin Stidwell who co-wrote the grant for the camp with Puailoa, lauds the power of good mentors.

“Elementary school is the nucleus of our school system,” said Lippi. “Having quality high school role models working closely with our students has been positive from the standpoint of school priorities like performance, attitude and enjoyment. It’s common sense, really.”

The program has a list of winning stories that extend refreshingly beyond sports performance. The program raised more than $70,000 for causes communities care about most, including hiring youth coaches in football, dance and cheer, and measurably improved classroom safety, school attendance and student literacy. SHS mentors averaged 50 points of improvement (pre and post test) on Common Core reading and writing tests.

According to an article in the National Association of Secondary School Principals, a sample school in the United States loses $2,314,600 per year on behaviors associated with attendance, discipline, expulsions and vandalism.

“Football has the ability to help people cross a lot of barriers,” said program founder and camp chair Paul G. Mauel, a former University of Washington assistant football coach and the current defensive coordinator at SHS. “Sandpoint embraces football and kids, especially in its small business community. Obviously we appreciate the kindness and support we have seen.”

Community members can also get involved. Sponsored by Albertson Barlow Insurance Services, community members of any age or background may nominate people in the community that they feel find the good, and lead and serve our Sandpoint community in positive and diverse ways.

Students will select nominees to recognize each night at camp and through the school year to promote literacy, attitude and human relations development skills for 1,200 Sandpoint students in 2014.

“If you get kids engaged early enough, it makes the community better for the people that live in it,” said Puailoa. “If you start them young, and do it the right way, you can keep the kids involved. There’s a lot of positives that can happen.”

To sign up, or to learn more, visit “www.becoming.today.”

For more information on the camp, call (208) 505-1695 or email campinfo@becoming.today.