Paying It Forward – A Lesson For All

Speech delivered by Linda E. Saris, Executive Director of LEAP for Education
Great Expectations, 15th Anniversary Fundraiser April 4, 2017

In 2000, a movie called Pay it Forward came out and was based on a novel by the same name written by Catherine Ryan Hyde. In this the book a social studies teacher challenges his class with this assignment, what if the world is just a big disappointment unless you take the things you don’t like about this world and you flip them upside down and you can start that today. Find something you don’t like about this world and find a way to fix it. The student asks so if we don’t change the world you will flunk us? No, but you may just squeak by with a C. The story then follows 12 year old Trevor, a child that sees so much despair in the world and wonders if he could change the world by extending acts of kindness to three individuals in need and then asking them, in turn, to pay it forward to three others.

Paying it forward is different than paying it back. Paying it back occurs when someone does something kind for you and you return the favor to them. In paying it back, it sometimes can feel like an obligation or debt that needs returning and the exchange typically ends when the favor is returned.

Paying it forward, however, is when someone does something kind to you and you return that kindness to someone else. The theory of paying it forward, is that it keeps on giving as each person, in turn, pays a kind act to someone other than the person who helped her out. Three favors for 3 other people. Paying it forward can be a purer and more selfless act than paying it back because it does not hinge on fulfilling a debt or obligation without promise of immediate personal gain. Of course, in a larger sense, and in the long term, paying it forward could contribute to a better society, thus benefiting us all.

By being here today, you are ALL paying it forward. And many, probably most, of you also pay it forward at home, at work, and in the community by supporting family and neighbors and, yes, even strangers through small and large acts of kindness and more sustained efforts as volunteers.

Here at LEAP, we value academics, social-emotional development and 21st century skill building. And, of course you hear me talk about building social capital and teaching kids how to think critically and make good choices. We have over the last few years also stepped up our commitment to community service through service learning and civic and community engagement – teaching our students to be good stewards of the environment, the arts, and social justice. Not just because it looks great on a student’s resume and college application. But also because it teaches important job skills and academic concepts and, most importantly, it teaches kindness, empathy and respect for others and the larger world around us.

I gathered many stories of LEAP students who are already paying it forward. You already heard from Kelly and will soon hear from Manny. In the interest of time I will only share one.

Natasha is a senior at Peabody High School – I quote Natasha “I find that my LEAP adviser, Betty Haggerty, has taught me to never doubt myself, and dream big while also thinking realistically. My closer friends have thanked me for LEAP despite not being in the program. This is because with the knowledge that LEAP has given me, I have been able to become the “Betty” to my friends and help them on their way to college.
Let our students be a model of how we can move forward and make America kind again.

Speech delivered by Linda E. Saris, Executive Director of LEAP for Education
April 4, 2017