Pictured are Autumnskye Seagrave and Katarina Pattison, the two Cassadaga Valley students working to create marketing materials for the district’s “Make The Valley Proud” campaign. Photo submitted

SINCLAIRVILLE — Cassadaga Valley Central School is looking to improve district pride through a new campaign called “Make The Valley Proud.”

Superintendent Tammy Mangus said the idea of ​​improving the district’s community pride in the school already began during her interview process before taking on the role of superintendent.

“When I interviewed, many of the maintenance crews talked about how they wanted to improve district pride,” Mangus said. “As part of my entry plan, I detailed my commitment to lean in, listen and learn more to create a campaign to show everyone what Valley Pride could be if we all were invested. Throughout these first months, I repeatedly asked people what they hoped others would say about us when they learned we live, work, or attend the Cassadaga Valley Central School District. Through collecting answers to this question, our “Make The Valley Proud” campaign was born.

Throughout this process, Mangus said, something quickly became clear: The local school community has an “unwavering” dedication to the district. To ensure the actions the district took aligned with what they wanted people to say about them, Mangus said four key intentional actions were created to proudly state that “these Cougars can roar.” The roaring part of the title creates an acronym meaning the following: Respect – the district respects its guests and each other, Ownership – This is their school, and they are proud of who they are and what they do, All-in! – the district is “All-In” with heart and focuses on its goals and is accountable for the results, as they all believe in their potential, and accountable – the members of the Cassadaga Valley School District are all stewards of how people perceive them, and I want to make the neighborhood proud.

“The campaign is still in the design phase, with two student leaders, Autumnskye Seagrave and Katarina Pattison, creating the marketing materials we will need using their graphic design acumen,” Mangus said. “They will design signature posters regarding the features of ROAR and will also design templates to showcase students and staff who ROAR.”

This leadership opportunity began with a marketing meeting in which students asked critical questions about the campaign to ensure that the product they created would meet the needs of what the school aspired to create, a Mangus said. The campaign is expected to launch with the district’s fall newsletter and will feature a staff member who clearly demonstrates they can “ROAR” through the actions they take. Mangus added that in mid-winter, the school will ask students to identify other students to similarly demonstrate how they can also “ROAR” through their actions.

Mangus reported that when asked about the project, students said they were excited to be able to work on it and participate in the design of the school, and that having the opportunity and chance to show their creativity is a privilege.