As the Avery County Next Step Adviser, Fitz Fitzgerald is responsible for helping students make a plan for life after high school. He guides students in choosing which pathway may be right for them, whether that be college, the military, or joining the workforce. He helps students fill out their FAFSA for college and prepare for the ASVAB for the military — tasks that most Next Step Advisers would be familiar with in their respective counties.
There’s one thing, though, that sets Fitz’s work apart from his peers. He is the adviser at Williams Academy in Crossnore, a public charter school that serves the residential students at Crossnore Communities for Children.
Crossnore Communities for Children is one of the oldest and most highly regarded foster homes in North Carolina, with their original facility in Crossnore, as well as facilities in Winston-Salem and Hendersonville. They’re known for their philosophy of putting students' well-being above everything else, and using social and emotional learning to help students work through any trauma they may be holding.
For Fitz, his work with these students has grown beyond the expectation of just helping students find a path after high school.
“Ever since I started with Williams’s Academy, administration has been saying, ‘we need to figure out a way to get our students engaged with our community and our community engaged with our students,’” Fitz said.
After brainstorming for two months, and several conversations with his wife — who teaches seminar classes at Appalachian State University on the impact and importance of service-oriented projects — Fitz devised a plan to get students off of campus and into their communities in a meaningful way.
“I started reaching out to local nonprofits, and the only organization I heard back from was Feeding Avery Families,” Fitz said. “I sat down with them and explained why I wanted to bring these kids in to volunteer. I just want to take these kids to do something meaningful and put them in touch with their community and their community in touch with them.”
Shortly after this meeting with the Feeding Avery Families team, Fitz began bringing a team of eight students to volunteer.
Students stocked shelves and packed boxes of pantry staples for FAF clients while Fitz supervised. While volunteering, Fitz presented questions to his students and noted a change in their mood and tone by the end of their shift, “Their responses after we volunteered were really, really great. They knew we were doing more than just packing food boxes. Like, we were helping feed our community. You could feel how proud they were of themselves in their responses.”
Alongside building self-esteem, students also genuinely really enjoyed themselves.
When one student was asked what they thought about their day at FAF, they responded, “I genuinely had a good time and I really appreciate Mr. Fitz for taking us to go do this.”
Volunteering at FAF has now become a regular, highly anticipated activity for these eight students.
“All of my seniors at Williams Academy have aspirations and a dream and are working towards seeing them through. As it stands right now, all of them will be leaving Avery county,” Fitz said. It’s Fitz’s hope that his students will continue to pursue connections wherever life takes them after graduation. His goal for them is simple yet meaningful, “Find a place to feel a sense of community and go out and do things.”
Photo of volunteers working in the Feeding Avery Families warehouse
Next Step Adviser Builds Community Through Service