Belonging in Rural Schools: Elevating Student Voice through the GRAD Partnership Storytelling Contest

This year, school leaders at rural schools across the country asked their students to answer a simple question: what does agency, belonging, and connectedness at school mean to you? Students submitted answers in a myriad of ways: essays and poems, drawings and paintings, and digital media. The responses may have taken many forms, but  between peers, trusted adults in the building, and a feeling of empowerment emerged as trends throughout the project. 

The participating schools and students for this Student Voice Project are all a part of the GRAD Partnership. Rural Schools Collaborative facilitates the Rural Cohort, in partnership with hub partners who serve as GRAD Partnership intermediaries: The University of West Alabama Center for Reimagining Rural Education, Missouri State University’s Center for Rural Education, North State Together, The Rural Education Institute at East Carolina University, and the Arizona Rural Schools Association. The GRAD Partnership works with schools to foster student success systems, which are ways of organizing school systems to bring together the integration of actionable data, supportive relationships, strategic improvement actions, and student-centered mindsets. 

Each GRAD Partnership intermediary leader set a simple directive to each of the ten schools they support: ask your students what it means to them to experience agency, belonging, and connectedness at school. Schools then selected a winning submission, and from there, intermediary leads determined a top selection from their respective regions.

“These submissions gave us a meaningful window into how students experience school,” shared Annah Rogers, GRAD Partnership Black Belt Regional Hub Lead. “What stood out most was how often students connected their sense of belonging not just to academics, but to relationships: to coaches, teachers, teammates, clubs, and peers who made them feel seen and valued.”

In the Black Belt region of Alabama and Mississippi, students submitted deeply personal reflections highlighting the importance of connection and support systems within their schools.

 Annah reflected on the Student Voice Competition: “The student connectedness contest is a great opportunity to elevate student voice by allowing students to tell their stories. Not only does this empower students, it provides valuable data for schools. By understanding what makes their students feel connected, schools can design more effective strategies for increasing connections. In the Black Belt Region, each school nominated their first-place winner to participate in the regional contest. Next, a team of UWA faculty and staff, all of whom had background information on the goals of the GRAD Partnership, selected their top three contestants from the pool. There was a unanimous vote for Christian to win first place.”

Christian Doss, a student at Kemper County High School, captured this sentiment in his poem, “Coach.”

Annah shared “Student responses from the contest revealed the power of connection and finding your “place” in school. For many students, extracurriculars (sports and clubs) were a strong source of connection, but for other students, it was a caring teacher, or a friend. I think this shows that connections can be found in a variety of places, and that even one caring relationship can make a difference in a student’s life.”

For the Arizona Rural Schools Association, the chosen submission came in the form of a drawing from 8th grader Logan at Paloma Elementary School District. Logan’s artwork reflected themes of friendship, school pride, and belonging through vibrant imagery and symbolism connected to his school community.

In Northern California, the top submission came in the form of a poem titled “The Reason I Show Up.”

In another powerful example of student voice and expression, from the Southeast, Kelis Alexander, a proud Northeastern High School (NHS) alum, submitted a mural she created after graduation. The artwork features wings symbolizing strength and confidence gained through her school experience. Kelis shared: 

Pictured alongside her mural is Kelis J. Alexander, 2018 NHS graduate and 2023 Bachelor of Science in Graphic Design graduate of East Carolina University, as well as her uncle, SRO Sergeant Anthony C. Alexander, 1985 NHS graduate and Sergeant of the SRO Division of the Pasquotank County Sheriff’s Department—both proud representatives of the NHS legacy.

Across regions and submission types, students consistently pointed back to the same idea: schools are at their best when students feel known, valued, and connected. Whether through athletics, friendships, clubs, classrooms, or trusted adults, students described belonging as a feeling deeply rooted in relationships and community.

As rural schools continue working to strengthen student success systems through the GRAD Partnership, these submissions serve as both celebration and reminder: student voice matters. When students are given opportunities to share their stories, schools gain insight and inspiration for how to build learning environments where every student feels they belong.

Rural Schools Collaborative would like to thank all the schools and students who participated in this contest and shared their stories with us. We would also like to thank our rural GRAD Partnership Intermediary Partners for generating this project and sharing their stories and submissions.