Brandon Twp.- Last school year, more than half of all students at Oakwood Elementary, 55 percent, were eligible for free or reduced price school meals.
Families must fall below a certain amount of household income to qualify for their children to receive free breakfast and lunch at school, and such a qualification is an indicator of poverty. Schools with a high number of low-income students typically struggle to meet achievement benchmarks set by the state, but Oakwood is beating the odds.
This fall, the Michigan Department of Education recognized Oakwood as a ‘Rewards School.?
‘When you consider the demographics of Oakwood, which includes the percentage of economically disadvantaged students, the expectation is that our accountability score would be substantially lower than it is,? said Oakwood Principal Kristy Spann.
As she speaks, she shows a graph that includes schools throughout Oakland County. At the top corner of the graph are schools in wealthier districts like Bloomfield and Birmingham. The bottom corner of the graph shows schools in poorer districts, including Pontiac. The graph shows a correlation between academic achievement and economic prosperity. As economic fortunes decrease, so does achievement. However, on the graph, Oakwood stands near the top at the 86th percentile in achievement, despite being halfway across the graph for having 55 percent of students eligible for free and reduced meals.
‘Oakwood is an outlier, it stands out from the pack in a positive way,? said Spann.
Because Oakwood made annual yearly progress and has been identified as ‘beating the odds,? as proven by various measures including test scores, the state honored the school as ‘highly progressing.?
Accomplishing this feat is no small task. Those in lower income brackets tend to fare worse academically than those in higher income brackets, Spann noted. Just because someone lives in poverty does not mean they can’t achieve, but they will have more obstacles to overcome.
‘Typically kids from lower income homes have parents who are less educated, with lower vocabularies, that tend to read less,? she explained. ‘Parents may work multiple jobs, they’re more tired, the food is lower quality, the stress level is higher. They need to tend to everything else that is falling apart.?
Spann pulls from a bookcase in her office a copy of ‘A Framework for Understanding Poverty,? by Ruby Payne. The book is one that the Oakwood staff read a few years ago, motivated to learn more to help the economically disadvantaged students at the school. The book made a recent appearance at a school board meeting as other teachers in the district, including those at Harvey Swanson, have also been reading it.
‘It’s helpful to all of us because it builds a knowledge base and skill set,? said Spann. ‘Most teachers are considered middle income earners. Most don’t come with an understanding of poverty and this helps us with understanding students and their families. We’ve had families with their gas turned off, no stove or heat. When (impoverished families) hit a stumbling block, everything crashes, because it’s all so precarious.?
Students from these families may come to school stressed, tired and hungry, she continued, making it difficult to concentrate on learning. These children don’t have the opportunity for swim lessons or extracurricular activities.
Elizabeth (not her real name) knows what it is like to struggle. In 2007, her then husband’s salary was cut in half and they lost their home. Three years later, the couple divorced. Elizabeth has a bachelor’s degree, but was a stay-at-home mother to four children. Her oldest is now 11, and the youngest is a kindergartener at Oakwood.
Her parents have assisted her in getting a house. She receives child support, the majority of which goes to pay the mortgage. She receives $450 per month in state aid to feed the children and herself. She has no other income. Every month, she wonders how she will put gas in the car and how she is going to keep the heat and electricity on.
Elizabeth is in situational poverty as opposed to generational poverty. She had money before job changes and divorce changed her circumstances. Now she has the stress of living day-to-day with limited financial resources.
‘When you’re so down about how you will pay for this, how am I going to do this, it’s mentally exhausting and can easily turn to depression,? she noted. ‘It’s the day-to-day stress of how to pay utilities and my children want to play sports and there is no money, and then you come up to Christmas. Right now the bathroom sink doesn’t work and I don’t know how to fix it. It’s little things like that.?
Elizabeth is hoping to get a full-time job again by the time her youngest child starts first grade next year. She is grateful to have family for her support system, as well as the staff of Oakwood. Her children, who have all attended Oakwood, did well at the school thanks to a caring staff, she said, that is very attuned to what is going on in students? home lives. She added that Spann also is knowledgeable about what agencies can help families in need.
‘She is a huge resource for where to go for what type of assistance,? said Elizabeth.
Spann attributes Oakwood’s success to the staff working together to craft a vision and revisiting it every year. Teachers focus on the emotional and physical safety of students to create an environment conducive to learning and they take the ‘it takes a village to raise a child? mentality to heart.
‘In this building you are looking out for 290 kids who aren’t in your class as well as the 25 who are,? she said. ‘We don’t discriminate by class, economic status, color, whether a student is gifted or talented. We meet them all where they are and help them grow from that point.?
‘It’s really nice to have the hard work of staff and families affirmed,? said Spann of Oakwood being recognized by the state. ‘We are affirmed that what we are doing makes a difference. Now we have to keep reaching beyond our grasp.?

When he was a child, his mom, Dahl Enoch, was told he shouldn’t play sports at all.
‘I was sick,? said Devere, ‘but I didn’t think I was sick. I had some problem areas. I knew nothing was wrong with me?
Devere had seizures starting when he was 9 months old, 2-3 a day. He had no warning and there was no apparent cause.
Dahl moved her son and daughter to Clarkston seven years ago. Her family needed a change and she thought Clarkston would be a better area for them.
She was right. She found doctors that helped to diagnose Devere, and she found support that her son needed.
His illness slowly became under control and he was able to play sports.
Through his hard work and dedication, Devere helped his powerlifting team to take first place last year.
He took second place for the competition after losing by five points to a powerlifter from Battle Creek
‘I just had a bad day,? said Devere. ‘I wasn’t doing enough weight. It happens.?
This year the team took second place and lost to Lake Orion by four points.
‘We have a good coach,? said Devere. ‘We get the job done.?
He tried powerlifting after he tried playing basketball in his freshman year.
‘I didn’t know what I was doing,? said Devere. ‘I didn’t make the team. I wanted to try powerlifting. It worked out. Then, I started getting good at it.?
He won first place at the March 15 state powerlifting competition, lifting 1,645 pounds in three categories ? 635 pounds in squats, 385 in bench, and 625 in bell lifts ? setting a state record,
He also plays football, starting out as a running back and full back. Throughout the years, he has gained weight and now plays as a full back and defensive tackle.
Devere was born in Saginaw and lived in Flint for 10 years until he moved to Clarkston.
After moving here, Dahl was still reluctant to let him play sports. He would still be ill and would miss a lot of school because of it.
‘I began praying and asking God to heal him with much faith,? said Dahl. ‘God did just what I had asked of him to do.
Dahl was a single mom and kept busy taking care of her family, working, and in the process of earning her college degree.
Dahl would become sick at times.
She remembered being ill at one time with a major headache and didn’t know how to end the pain.
A 7-year-old Devere walked into her room and placed a soaking wet towel his mom’s head. He had soaked the towel with vinegar.
‘Instantly my blood pressure went down. I said son, ‘where did you learn that?? He replied, ‘momma, I seen it on Nickelodeon.?
‘He told me, ‘mom , I need you here to take care of me, who else will???
A few years ago, Dahl got really sick. She didn’t think she would make it to watch her son succeed.
But Devere never let his mother’s spirits fall.
‘He said ‘mom, I am going somewhere and I need you here to see my success and so that I can take care of you.??
He continues to face challenges. The seizures caused him to lose 30 percent of his hearing. When he was 9, he had a surgery to correct the damage.
Devere also suffers from asthma. He was watching a commercial with his hero Jerome Bettis, who displayed an inhaler. They told his doctor, Dr. James O’Neill.
Dr. O’Neill gave him a prescription for the inhaler and he was able to play sports.
Last May, Devere was also diagnosed with a severe case of sleep apnea. When the test results came back, they found out he would stop breathing 642 times a night. It was deadly.
After having another test done, one of his doctors got him a machine to use to help him at night.
‘I will not ever forget his Coach Chad Looper,? said Dahl. ‘Thank you for helping me raise my son. Everyday he says ‘I am going to be someone because my Coach Looper told me I had what it takes and he cares about my grades as well.?
‘I want to give special thanks to Coach Dan Fife, Coach Kurt Richardson, and Coach Tony Miller,? said Dahl. ‘These coaches really care about their athletes. I would also like to thank Dr. James O’Neill for always telling Devere to get an education, leave drugs and girls alone. He has often encouraged Devere to know what he wants to major in college, go in with a plan.
‘I thank God. Without God, Devere would not be the person and young man that he has become,? said Dahl. ‘There is faith and there is hope, if you just believe.?
Dahl sends a special thanks to the Pilarciks, and Pastor Greg from Clarkston Community Church
During his free time, he plays Halo and disc golf.
He plans to play college football at a division one or division two school. He has aspirations to make it as a professional athlete, either as a football player or prolifter.
‘I want to be a professional athlete,? said Devere. ‘I am working hard for that.?