The school’s annual Race for Education returned this year as students from every grade level took turns walking and running around the Wheatland MS track. Each time students completed a lap, they received a stamp, turning the event into a visible celebration of movement and school pride.
For many students, the stamps became badges of pride. They filled arms, hands, and even faces as students counted their laps and shared how far they had gone. As students counted their laps, Principal Amy Martz turned the moment into quick math conversations. Four laps around the track equal one mile, giving students a chance to figure out how far they had gone based on the number of stamps they collected.
“I did 12 laps,” some students told Martz throughout the day.
For Martz, those moments are part of what makes the event so meaningful. Race for Education is not only a fundraiser. It is also a chance for students to set goals, push themselves, and see the results of their hard work.
The tradition began years ago, when Smith-Wade-El was still Buchanan Elementary, and continued after Martz became principal in 2021. This year, the school’s Family Teacher Organization set a fundraising goal of $6,000 to support supplies, activities, and experiences for students.
Students and families exceeded that goal, raising $7,721 through donations and a coin drive.
“It’s amazing because they know that it’s going to come back to them tenfold,” Martz said. “They know that hard work is going to get us things for next year that we’re going to need and trips.”
The fundraising goal also came with an incentive students did not forget. If they raised $6,000, they would get to dump a bucket of ice water on Martz. They reached the goal. Then they passed it.
After a full day of activities, including PBIS Palooza, students gathered outside for the long-awaited moment. Martz tried to make them work for it, first sitting under a trash bag and then pulling out an umbrella as students booed and laughed. Eventually, the umbrella came away, the water came down, and the playground erupted.
Martz said the cold was worth it.
“Just to put the smile on their faces, that’s what matters,” she said. “They worked hard.”
For Smith-Wade-El, the day showed students that goals can feel big at first, but effort, teamwork, and community support can move them forward. At the end of the school year, Martz hopes students carry that lesson with them.
“No matter what you put your mind to, you can achieve it,” she said. “At first they thought it was a really hard task. ‘We’ll never get to $6,000.’ And then when they saw that they got well over that, they knew that their hard work paid off.”
Martz also credited the school’s FTO and families for helping make the day possible.
“We are very lucky to have our families, just the community itself come together for the sake of our students and our staff,” Martz said. “We’re just very lucky here.”
This year, that support showed up through every lap and one very cold bucket of water. Give them kudos on social media.
