THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, October 22, 1995 TAG: 9510220009
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PHILIP WALZER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 82 lines
It's a little homemade book, nothing fancy. Forty pages long.
It's called ``The Adventures of Buffy and Rocky,'' and it's the real-life story of the abuse that Daniel Baxter's two dogs took from their previous owners. The twist is that it's told from the dogs' perspective.
Week after week last spring, Baxter read his book to a class of fifth-graders at Norfolk's Willoughby Elementary School, where he and other employees of the Norfolk Naval Air Station volunteered.
Dr. Seuss, step aside.
The students loved the dog tales.
``After 18 chapters, they were just clamoring to get more,'' said Baxter, 37, who recently retired as an air traffic control supervisor after 20 years in the Navy. ``Their reading comprehension skills showed remarkable improvement.''
Across the region last week, in forums sponsored by the Community Networking Association, citizens stressed the need for more community involvement in the schools. As former coordinator of the air station's partnership with Willoughby, Baxter exemplifies the promise of such interactions.
``When we stop pointing the finger at someone else and start pointing the finger at the person in the mirror, that's when we'll start solving the problem,'' he said. ``We are the solution . . .''
From 1991 until last spring, Baxter, a Virginia Beach resident, spent three to five hours a week at the school, part of it on Navy time, part of it on his own time. His motto was: Make it relevant. To get kids interested in reading, he read the dog story. To get them into math, he had them run a mock airport - ``Air Willoughby'' - and devise flight plans.
They had to solve scheduling problems: ``Do we have extra planes to make up for the planes breaking down? If a plane can fly ``x'' miles per hour and it flies the distance between here and Washington, what is the flight time and route?''
He also brought students to the air station regularly to shadow the workers. Baxter remembers the fifth-grader who followed him around. ``He was going through a rough time with his parents and divorce,'' Baxter said. ``Because we were giving him focused attention and showing him something that was neat, he came back to school and his teacher told me she could not get him to quiet down.
``He lit up; he was animated.''
Principal William Jennings said, ``He's been the liaison that's made things work.'' Another of Baxter's successes, Jennings said, was a drill team he started to get troublesome fifth-graders back in line. ``You think of drilling and marching as something you don't want to do, but with these children, they really picked up on it. It improved their attitude about school and their behavior.''
Baxter, who's looking for a job, still visits Willoughby monthly as an unofficial consultant for the volunteer programs. He says that other people or businesses who want to help should start small.
``Do what you can do well,'' he said. ``If all you can do is provide financial support for a project or provide computer training to teach teachers how to use Windows, that's significant.''
And it doesn't have to involve money. For instance, Baxter said, what if a dozen employees took 15-minute turns reading books to a class? ``You bring in male role models, and what that shows children is that men can be interested in reading.''
And businesses can team up to offer special touches.
At Willoughby, the student of the month used to get deluxe treatment, thanks to the air station, Freedom Ford and a McDonald's on the base: The auto dealership would provide a limo, McDonald's would offer lunch and the Navy would provide chaperones and dignitaries to welcome the student.
Baxter offers a couple of caveats: Meet teachers beforehand to smooth the way. And don't expect major strides before Christmas: It takes time for the teacher and students to develop relationships, too.
``When you team up industry with the large military population and school districts - and everybody understands who's in charge of what - you can make a tremendous difference,'' he said. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Daniel Baxter says the solution must come from people who care about
the schools and the kids in them.
by CNB