Students at Lake Butler Elementary School received a surprise visit from a former NFL tight end on Wednesday.
Hayden Hurst, who spent seven seasons in the NFL before announcing his retirement in March, visited Lake Butler Elementary to celebrate the first year of a student wellness partnership between the Hayden Hurst Family Foundation and the school.
In an interview with Mainstreet, Hurst said he started the 501(c)(3) organization in 2018 with his mom and dad. The foundation’s mission is to raise awareness of mental health issues in young people and teenagers “by funding mental health services or programs.”
Become A Member
Mainstreet does not have a paywall, but pavement-pounding journalism is not free. Join your neighbors who make this vital work possible.
The organization sponsored a move-to-learn brain-break app – Rallee – for every K-4 classroom at Lake Butler Elementary this school year.
In an interview with Mainstreet, Matt Damaskos, co-founder and chief technology officer (CTO) at Rallee, noted that they are a nationwide K-8 wellness app.
Photo by Nick Anschultz Hayden Hurst poses for a photo with a third grade class at Lake Butler Elementary School and members of the Union County High School football team.
According to the Hayden Hurst Family Foundation website, the program “uses five minutes of physical movement and mental health activities to energize students’ ability to focus and learn.”
“We’re on Chromebooks, we’re on iPads, [and] we’re going to be rolling out for smartphones, as well,” Damaskos said. “The real key is teaching bite-sized, healthy habits, both physically and mentally. “
In the same interview with Mainstreet, Lake Butler Elementary Principal Michelle Fuist said the great part about the program is that it is bite-sized.
“It doesn’t take a whole class,” she said. “It takes a transition time – three to five minutes. The kids are on it, they readjust, and they’re back to learning. So, it’s that perfect sweet spot between giving a small chunk of time for a big reward, getting them back in focus and learning.”
Fuist said having the app at the school has been “groundbreaking,” adding that the program has reduced student discipline and outbursts.
Photo by Nick Anschultz Hayden Hurst speaks to third-grade students at Lake Butler Elementary School.
As part of his visit to Lake Butler Elementary, Hurst, a Jacksonville native, made a surprise visit to a third-grade class, where he spoke with students and led them in a live Rallee session.
“Fitness is so important,” Hurst said while addressing the students. “It doesn’t have to be crazy, crazy activity. Anything where you can get up and move. I know it helps me.”
Hurst was joined in the classroom by Union County High School football coach Robby Pruitt and three team captains, as well as his wife, Brooke; their son, Nolan; and his mom, Cathy, who now serves as the foundation’s vice president.
In addition to joining Hurst for a live Rallee session, each student was given a drawstring backpack filled with goodies.
During his visit, Hurst also hosted a Teacher Appreciation Recharge Station with the foundation to give back to teachers during Teacher Appreciation Week.
Fuist said they plan to implement Rallee next school year as well. She added that Lake Butler Elementary is part of the Florida Positive Behavioral Interventions Project (PBIS). PBIS is a program of the Florida Center for Inclusive Communities at the University of South Florida, with the purpose of “increasing the capacity of Florida’s school districts to promote positive behavior.”
Photo by Nick Anschultz
Last year, Fuist said Lake Butler Elementary was awarded silver status, meaning the school is heading in the right direction in getting all its students to learn how to “regulate themselves and be part of a behavior system.”
Fuist said this year, Lake Butler Elementary has applied for gold status.
“We expect to get it,” she said. “Our kids have done phenomenal in understanding culture, understanding how to respect each other, using our tiger acronym to kind of remind them of the rules, and then implementing Rallee, giving them tools to express themselves.”
Nick Anschultz is a Report for America corps member and writes about education for Mainstreet Daily News. This position is supported by local donations through the Community Catalyst for Local Journalism Fund at the Community Foundation of North Central Florida.
Photo by Nick Anschultz Hayden Hurst places a drink on a table for the Teacher Appreciation Recharge Station.