“This is York,” an outdated motto that admin decided it was time to update. Years in the making, the new slogan “We Are D.U.K.E.S.” has been created by a team of councilors, social workers, deans, teachers and students in hope of seeing character development in the school environment.

The restorative practices PLC came up with the idea for “We Are D.U.K.E.S.” during the 2022-2023 school year. With Assistant Principal for Culture and Climate Tim Dykes leading the process, it was finalized this summer. With new leadership and a new school year, this fall was a natural time to introduce it. Creating it was a lengthy process that started with the slogan then proceeded to make it an acronym, generating words to embody expectations for students and staff alike. The letters of D.U.K.E.S. stand for dependable, unified, kind, engaged and strong.

“My idea was that we need to create a set of characteristics and expectations that are universal to our building, students, adults, everybody, because it shows what we’re about,” Dykes said. “This is how we treat people, this is how we act, it’s a common language for everybody to share.”

In the 30s and 40s, teachers would tell students “This is York,” as a remark to remind them to stay on task or to tell them their behavior wasn’t going to be tolerated here. Adam Roubitchek, Assistant Principal for Instruction who holds a doctorate in education, worked with a Professional Learning Community (PLC) to create a motto that better fits school values with a similar feel, hence there being words behind the letters in “D.U.K.E.S.”

“The goal is so that we all can live up to our internal and external expectations,” Roubitchek said. “We can all have a good sense of what’s right and wrong and give us a little more context to make those right decisions.”

These words were purposefully made to be proactive. It’s branding with meaning, a framework for school culture we can all adhere to.

“We all come from different families and different backgrounds with a different set of values, but these are some things that are pretty universal that we can agree on,” Roubitchek said. “This builds unity and a view that makes us a community. It’s something we can all get behind and make us closer, while also making it easier to make good choices.”

Students nominated by councilors and teachers were a part creating this as well, by helping come up with words and voting on them. These students were intentionally chosen as leaders who aren’t the face of a club or sports team in order to get diverse perspectives. Tessa Shultz, a junior chosen to be on the student culture committee, feels that the intent of the motto was very clear and reasonable.

“I think the goal we had in mind was to give students something to follow by,” Schultz said. “When they see ‘We Are D.U.K.E.S.’ they can think back to it and know what to do.”

The new school motto is aiming to hone in on what we want to stand for. Whether these principles are top of mind or not, it’s easier to follow through with them when there is something to point back to. With a new school year comes new advances in policy, but the “We Are D.U.K.E.S.” mantra is not meant to be restrictive.

“There’s a tendency in education for there to be rules, saying all the things you can’t do,” Dykes said. “Instead of framing it that way, it’s more of here’s what we’re about and because of ‘that,’ let’s do ‘this.’”

Together, admin and students came up with these ideals, determining what being a duke means to them. Generating these values that the school as a whole can encompass provides a sense of unity, unity being what the U in Dukes now stands for. Each level of the school community has ownership of these characteristics, though it’s not rules to follow as much as words to abide by.

“I think it’s important for students to know we’re not just trying to crack down on all kinds of rules, but we also want to reward students,” Dykes said. “It’s a more constructive way for doing good things in the building and celebrating that success.”

As for celebrating successes, rewards students can expect could range from spirit weeks, events in the commons and being chosen to be “Duke of the week”. Following the school’s new slogan, there are more advancements in the planning stage still to come.

“The hope is that it affects York in a positive way,” Shultz said. “We hope it will create an environment where students know what matters.”

With a student population of 2,534 and a staff population of 218, it’s the intention that this umbrella of values can make a difference in the school being a more comfortable environment. A larger community with a close-knit bond.

“We are trying to make a really big place feel a lot smaller,” Dykes said. “The goal is to create a community with shared expectations. No matter where a student or an adult is in the building, everything can be redirected back to the same message.”