By Greg Mellen
When office manager Taina Perez told Jennifer Adams there was a discipline problem outside, the Aliso Viejo Middle School Assistant Principal jumped into action.
She was surprised to see a group of students standing outside the door of the attendance office.
“I thought they really must be misbehaving,” Adams said.
As Adams ventured a few more steps outside, she saw the entire student body lined up several deep on both sides of a walkway leading down to the sixth-grade assembly area.
Then the students started applauding.
“I turned around,” Adams said. “I thought there was someone behind me.”
Photo by Michael Goulding
The ruse orchestrated by the school’s front office worked perfectly and caught Adams completely off guard.
The gathering of students and teachers was orchestrated as a surprise for Adams, who had just been announced as one of eight finalists for the Parenting OC’s 2022 Top Teachers and Employees contest. The winner and top five will be announced in March.
As Adams walked toward the outdoor stage on campus, she exchanged high fives with cheering students, many with placards that read “We Love Ms. Adams.” As the song “Sunday Best,” blared from a sound system, fellow faculty member Sara Hosseini said into the microphone, “I guess the secret’s out.”
Recalling the reception brought Adams to tears.
“Just being seen and valued is an amazing experience,” Adams said. “That’s what I try to give to the kids every day.”
Adams said she didn’t even know she had been nominated for the award, which was surprising since, “I tend to be nosy.”
The chief culprit in the nomination and the surprise announcement was Hosseini, who teaches social science among her many duties at the school and was a nominee for the award last year.
When Adams asked Hosseini if she made the nomination, Hosseini said, “Of course I did. You’re like my hero.”
Adams has been at Aliso Viejo Middle School for 10 years, after spending seven years at Newhart Middle School in Mission Viejo. Before becoming an assistant principal six years ago, Adams taught Theater Arts and English Language Development.”
“Whenever I go into the office, she’s super helpful and kind,” said seventh grader Skylyn Jansen.
“She’s one of those who’s always out there helping,” said seventh grader Amy Bahena.
The two students were part of the Associated Students Bureau, which designed most of the placards.
“That’s what we were working on all week,” Skylyn said.
“We kept it secret,” Amy added.
Photo by Michael Goulding
The Parenting OC Leadership Award is described as “a lifetime achievement honor that goes to an individual who has paved the way for others, created change, and led the way, and has devoted their career to education.”
According to the nomination, “Jen has demonstrated her ability to adapt as a leader in the face of the pandemic. Her first concern has consistently been the well-being of every member of our school community. She has reminded everyone to take care of themselves and has encouraged all of us to give each other grace.”
Adams has also worked with the district’s Autism Specialist to develop a program called HOME BASE, based on the needs of students with autism.
Andrew Fredriksz, a School Counselor at Aliso Viejo Middle School, wrote in support of the nomination, “Prior to HOME BASE, our district only had two specialized programs to support students, but neither addressed the needs of students with autism. As our school pilots this program with Ms. Adams overseeing it, the district may expand it to schools across the district.
Photo by Michael Goulding
One thing that sets Adams apart from many is her approach to discipline, which she says is “restorative and trauma-informed.”
According to Adams, middle school-aged children are still developing their social, emotional skills and may have trouble expressing their issues.
“I’m a strong believer that behavior is a communication,” she says.
Rather than punish, Adams favors trying to find out the root of the behavior.
As an example, early in Adam’s tenure as assistant principal, about 5.5 percent of students were being suspended, mostly for fighting.
According to the nomination, “The following school year, Ms. Adams implemented a school-wide intervention to teach students emotional regulation, de-escalation strategies, and prosocial communication skills.”
Photo by Michael Goulding
The strategies led to a more than 40 percent reduction to 3.2 percent of students being suspended in the next school year.
“There’s no one that fights harder for the students than Jen,” Hosseini said.
According to Hosseini, one of Adams’ favorite sayings is “Clear is kind.”
The idea is that if expectations and acceptable behaviors are made clear, students will understand and often fall into line.
Talk to students, administrators, and teachers, and the one word reiterated time and again in reference to Adams is “kind.”
Fittingly, the week Adams was announced as a finalist for the Leadership Award was “kindness week.”
