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Compass Club at Matthews Takes Moral Focus to the Next Level

The Moral Focus virtues taught at National Heritage Academies (NHA) schools help guide the actions of our students. A group of students at NHA school Matthews Charter Academy are taking steps to help others as part of their learning.
 
The Compass Club was started to give scholars a chance to share what they’ve learned with their community through events like fundraisers, beautification projects, neighborhood cleanups, and food drives. They also distribute valuable information to their fellow students about online safety and create cards for patients at Levine’s Children’s Hospital.

staff appreciation cards 
Last year, the group worked with community partners to collect 1,219 pounds of food for Common Heart Food Pantry at Thanksgiving.
 
“That is over four times the amount of an average donation to their nonprofit, which is usually around 300 pounds,” Matthews Admissions Representative Mary Funderburk said.
 
The mission of the club is “Giving Direction to Moral Focus; Aiming our Sights on Changing Lives through Leadership in our Community.”

matthews compass club 
The group holds a monthly Moral Focus event or fundraiser to demonstrate how the Moral Focus word can be extended to helping each other, the school, and the community. The events are planned by the Compass Club Steering Committee, supported by the after-school Compass Club, and participated in by Matthews Charter Academy students and their families.
 
A monthly assembly presentation is also held to introduce the monthly Moral Focus Event, explain how it connects to the monthly focus word, and introduce how the students and families can participate.

Matthews canned food donations 
“The club hosted a school clean-up after our Halloween event to emphasize respecting the school grounds,” Funderburk said. “They also donated over 500 books to Promising Pages in Charlotte.”
 
Keep up the great work, Compass Club!

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About Matthews Charter Academy
Matthews Charter Academy is a tuition-free, public charter school in Matthews, North Carolina, serving students in kindergarten through eighth grade. It is part of the National Heritage Academies network, which includes more than 100 tuition-free, public charter schools serving more than 65,000 students in kindergarten through 12th grade across nine states. For more information, visit nhaschools.com.

Visit Matthews Charter Academy's blog to read more stories like this.