ALABASTER – Five Oak Mountain area students were recognized on Wednesday, Sept. 18, with Character in Action awards.

Anna Kate Prum, social worker with Shelby County Schools, said the awards were established five years ago to honor students who have made good choices and had a positive impact on their schools and communities.

The students’ parents are also recognized during the awards presentation.

Each month prior to meetings of the Children’s Policy Council, schools in a particular area in the county submit one nomination along with examples of how the student has displayed strength of character.

“As I was reviewing nominations this week, I was really struck by the specific scenarios about these students,” Prum said.

Those presented with awards on Sept. 18 included:

• Nono Mukai, Inverness Elementary School. “Nono takes initiative,” her nomination read. “She can be trusted to always do the right thing even when no one is watching. When she sees something needs to be done she will do it before being asked. Nono is always kind. She is willing to help other students. She even helps new Japanese students feel welcomed by talking to them in their native language.”
• Parker Verant, Oak Mountain Elementary School. “Parker has exhibited unending respect for all stakeholders at OMES. I have seen Parker interact with English Language Learners and students with special needs with integrity, respect and empathy. He does not ignore nor gawk at those different from him; he embraces their differences with a smile and kind word. Parker is the kind of friend who is loyal for a lifetime. Throughout the second grade year, he put others’ needs above his own. Parker packed extra snacks to ensure no one would go without.”
• Eli Myers, Oak Mountain Intermediate School. “Eli has a sense of awareness that is not commonly seen in students his age. He understands things from others’ perspectives and he is able to maturely reflect on his response. At recess one day, while waiting to be picked for a team, I overheard Eli explain to a classmate, “I may be friends with the team captains, but I know I’m not the most athletic person and that is what the captains have to look for when making their teams. Whether Eli was protecting his own sensitivity being one of the last to be chosen for a team, he had a way of looking at the situation from someone else’s perspective and respecting their decision.
• Caleb Salter, Oak Mountain Middle School. “Caleb Salter is well known by teachers and staff members as a respectful, hardworking, mature and responsible student at Oak Mountain Middle School. He chose to apply and interviewed to be a Peer Mediator as an eighth grade student. He was selected based on his quiet leadership skills and empathy for others. Students feel comfortable with Caleb and know that whatever situation they go to him with, he will handle it responsibly and with sincere care. Caleb is not one to draw attention to himself, but has made Oak Mountain Middle School a better place because of his positive attitude, his desire to do the right thing, and his outstanding reputation and his teachers and peers.”
• Aaron Brooks, Oak Mountain High School. “As part of the Young Men on the Mountain Club, Aaron (and others) wanted to find a way to thank the OMHS bus drivers. Aaron, with the help of his grandmother, assembled some goodies and presented them to the bus drivers last year. He was also one of the young men who were invited to the State House to discuss how education makes a difference in his life and others. This upcoming school year Aaron has been invited to participate in Shelby County Student Leadership Conference and is an active member in Oak Mountain’s Student Government Association.”