This month’s National Renaissance Students of the Month are Kennedy Ruhter and Paisley Wallis from Cabot Middle School School South in Arkansas. Nominator Ryan Davenport wrote:
The Ren Team of Cabot Middle School South jointly nominates Kennedy Ruhter and Paisley Wallis, members of the Ren Student Leadership team, for demonstrating exemplary teamwork and upholding SOUTH student values. The core values of SOUTH students center on leading with self-control, optimism, unity, trust, and high standards, ensuring every peer feels genuinely valued and included. Their dedication to creating an inclusive environment sets an inspiring example that deserves to be recognized through the Jostens Renaissance National Student of the Month Awards. At the start of the school year, Kennedy and Paisley were placed in a class alongside a peer who historically struggled with social interaction and had unfortunately faced unkind treatment from other students. Unaware of this background, and as the student’s parents and the school counseling team were actively working to help the student feel safe and motivated to attend school after two years of severe attendance struggles, Kennedy and Paisley stepped up naturally. By practicing active listening, showing patient understanding during difficult moments, and consistently validating their peer’s feelings, Kennedy and Paisley used deep empathy to build trust and bridge the gap. Through their genuine friendship, daily encouragement, and outgoing attitudes, Kennedy and Paisley seamlessly welcomed this student into their friend group and activities. As a direct result of their joint efforts, the student is now actively engaged with classmates, and their attendance has improved by more than 80% compared to last year. By collaborating to uplift others and represent their school community, Kennedy and Paisley clearly demonstrate why they deserve this nomination.
What are you involved with at your school?
We are both part of Panther Pals (Student leadership for Ren) and are Rally leaders .
What is something you appreciate about your school’s culture?
We like the positive culture our staff brings with morning greetings and High Five Friday. We appreciate the school’s culture of recognition, with weekly Students of the Week and different recognition at rallies so all of us can be recognized.
What is a favorite Renaissance moment for you?
Kennedy: Participating in the Renn Rallies is an incredible experience. Serving as a student host for the Welcome Back Rally allowed me to lead our school community in one of our favorite events. The rallies generate fun energy and school spirit!
Paisley: As part of the Panther Pals program, I had the privilege of welcoming our teachers on their first day back before the school year officially began. We greeted them with high-fives and positive sidewalk chalk messages. Seeing their smiles made waking up early during break completely worth it to make our teachers feel respected and valued.
How has Renaissance affected you personally?
Being part of the Panther Pal Leadership Team teaches us how to be leaders in different ways at school. We lead, but we also serve people without them knowing we are helping. We enjoy giving our teachers encouraging notes and small gifts and seeing how it impacts them for the rest of the day.
Who inspires you to Fight Forward?
Paisley: The kids who get left out are the main reason we want to fight forward. We saw a girl who wasn’t being treated nice or welcomed at all. We just wanted her to feel included and cared about, so we went out of our way to make her feel good and part of the group.
Kennedy: To me, fighting forward means making sure everybody in our whole school feels included. Students need help, but a lot of times we forget that teachers and staff have hard days too. We should treat everyone with kindness because we don’t know what’s happening in their life outside of school.
Why is empathy important to you?
Life gets really tough, and you never know what someone is secretly dealing with. When someone is struggling at school, it’s super important to imagine how you’d feel in their place so you can be a good friend and support them.
Kennedy and Paisley will receive a water bottle and a decal in recognition of thier achievement.