We live in an era where most leap for bigger and better before taking a step back and really asking — is bigger actually better? And what sacrifices do we take to get it?
In the northwest corner of Caribou County, resides a small, yet thriving community that stands by bigger isn’t better. Bancroft, Idaho, is home to the North Gem Cowboys.
North Gem School was originally built in 1932 when a number of neighboring small schoolhouses decided to come together under one roof in Bancroft.
Today Bancroft’s roughly 350 residents work hard to keep their hometown and its small school vibrant, relevant and growing. The North Gem School is still a one building schoolhouse where students in grades K-12 are educated.
It’s uncommon for any school district today to function completely within the walls of one building but when you ask anyone who attends, has attended, teaches or has taught at North Gem, their answers are all the same: “We would want it no other way.”
Many who have graduated as a North Gem Cowboy have returned to raise their families in the town.
There are a small number of students in every North Gem classroom and this provides teachers with the opportunity to give specialized attention to every student — a big advantage small schools have over their much larger counterparts. This year’s entire North Gem senior class has less than 10 students. The school’s other grades have between 10 and 15 students each and the entire school has approximately 130 students.
Raini Hayden graduated from North Gem in 1998, now serves on the North Gem school board and currently has three children attending school there.
“I grew up in this school so I really don’t know any different,” she said. “It was fun to see the older kids you looked up to randomly give you a high-five and feel shocked they knew my name. It was nice knowing my older sisters were never far away either. I absolutely love raising my kids in this small K-12 school. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve known one of my younger girls was struggling and could ask my oldest to make a point to give her a hug and make sure she’s doing OK. It’s an amazing thing to witness to go to a middle school game and see the high school kids crowd the bleachers cheering on the younger kids. The connections these youth have is extraordinary.”
North Gem has an abundance of pride and honor for their community and school.
The school’s superintendent Dr. Todd Shumway said, “After years of teaching and being an administrator in both large and small schools, I have found there is something that puts these smaller schools ahead of the rest. Something no large school district will ever be able to mirror. Teachers at North Gem know each child very well, in any grade. They know their students almost as well as their own children. Being a smaller school we have the ability to work with each child on a unique one-on-one level and approach each child’s needs with extra care. At North Gem we educate beyond just test scores. We stress the importance of being good, kind, caring humans. We teach this just isn’t a school but a home for all to feel welcome.”
Dr. Shumway, who will leave North Gem this summer to go on a three-year mission to New Zealand with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, has found that at a smaller school like North Gem curriculum can be adapted quickly to benefit students based on their needs from year to year.
“That just can’t happen in larger schools,” he said. “There are advantages when the elementary teachers can collaborate with the secondary education teachers. They know and see what is going on in the entire building and it helps give students more than just an education. We give them an experience of what community should be and create a ‘big family’ feel. The halls are filled with kids looking out for each other.“
Senior Samantha Yost said life at North Gem School and in Bancroft teaches people to look out for each other.
“Life in a small town is very community oriented. Everyone knows everyone,” she said. “While sometimes it feels like your business is everyone’s business, I grew up knowing no matter what I was doing I would always be supported. It’s like having a really big extended family. I wouldn’t pick anywhere else to grow up. It teaches you a lot about being selfless and taking care of the people around you.”
Hayden knows there are struggles for not just their school but all small schools. Struggles larger schools just don’t have to face.
However, she shares that it goes both ways.
“We don’t have to deal with things the large districts do either,” Hayden said. “We know we can’t offer all the class choices the large schools can but there are so many options for students with (Idaho Digital Learning Alliance online) classes which open so many doors and options (for our students). If we dwell on what we don’t have, we lose sight of the positives. We have accomplished a lot for being so small. We have amazing staff members who put their heart and soul into what they do and bring their absolute best to our students. We have small classes and that definitely benefits students, especially those who need extra help. I have always liked the quote ‘bloom where you are planted.’ That is exactly what the students and staff do here at North Gem School District.”
You’d be hard pressed to find anyone jumping for bigger and better at North Gem. They thrive on less is more and finding much success in their love for education in a small town.
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