A new furry addition, taller than most of the students, has been roaming the halls of Oak Grove Elementary.
Bailey, a 4-year-old Great Dane, and his owner, Holly Shupe, have joined the staff of Oak Grove this school year from Arizona and brought along the concept of having Bailey join the school as a therapy dog.
"His job is to love on people and be loved," Shupe said.
Bailey began his duties as a therapy dog two years ago by volunteering at a hospital in Arizona. He received multiple basic obedience training classes and is registered through the Therapy Animal Program of Pet Partners, a national volunteer organization.
Once moving to Poplar Bluff, Shupe kept Bailey working by visiting the John J. Pershing VA Medical Center before joining first through third grade students at Oak Grove Elementary.
"This is my first year in the school and everyone knows my name," Shupe said with a laugh. "If you want to be known, bring a dog to school."
When deciding to incorporate Bailey into the school setting, Shupe talked with the entire school about their new addition and visited with all the students.
"I have seen so many good reactions," she said while having Bailey at Oak Grove.
When not with her, Shupe said students and even teachers ask where Bailey is and why he's not at school.
Not only is this Bailey's chance to give back and be a part of student's lives, but he also brings the Oak Grove group closer together, Shupe added.
"Bailey teaches children how to interact with animals, many who may not ever have the chance," she said. "He also allows students to see their teachers in a different light when interacting with Bailey."
Bailey's role as a therapy dog goes beyond just being a cute presence in the school.
Students experiencing behavioral or emotional difficulties have shown a dramatic increase in engagement when a therapy dog is present, according to Shupe's research.
Shupe has been working with Great Danes as therapy dogs for a number of years. Bailey is her second therapy dog and hopes his sister will eventually fill a role as well.
When first starting out with therapy dogs, Shupe recalled a young man who would throw his backpack every time he entered a classroom.
"I brought the dog in and told him if he had good behavior, he would be allowed to take the dog outside for a walk," she said.
By then end of the semester, Shupe said the student and dog were laying back-to-back reading.
"The student hated to read, but would with the dog," she added.
In another instance, Shupe took Bailey to visit patients at a hospital. A mother asked if he could visit her son in the emergency room.
Letting Shupe know her son was diagnosed with Autism, the mother said while he may not acknowledge Bailey, she would appreciate him stopping by.
"The boy walked up to Bailey and started talking to him about his cat at home," Shupe said.
The mother became emotional explaining to Shupe her son doesn't talk to many people, which in turn made Shupe emotional as well.
"This is why we do what we do," she said. "Because we never know."
While at Oak Grove, Bailey visits children once a week and is brought in with some of Shupe's specialized student groups.
The 150-pound Great Dane, who weighs more than two students combined, also makes walk-throughs in classrooms for students to pet while doing their school work.
While Bailey is not ready to attend school all week or for the entire day, Shupe said her goal is to bring him a couple times a week.
"He gets loved out," she said.
Bailey is also used as a reward for those students who might need more of an incentive.
"I have seen a lot of change in children with behavior issues," she said. "They know the dog is coming and get rewards."
Another goal of Bailey is to have student's reading books out loud to him.
Reading to Bailey provides students who are struggling or working to reach a goal in a safe outlet to improve their reading skills without the fear of comments or laughter.
"He's not going to tell you (that) you did wrong. This isn't the job of correcting children," Shupe explained. "Sometimes they just need to read out loud."
To help the gentle giant reach some of his own goals, Bailey's Buddies has been incorporated into Oak Grove Elementary's Club Day.
Once a month, 13 students are allowed an hour to help teach Bailey new tricks while learning about animal's traits, care, non-verbal cues and more.
Many of the traits and non-verbal cues cross over to interaction lessons involving other children as well, Shupe said.
The curriculum goal of Bailey's Buddies is for students to become calm, confident, caring individuals who will grow up knowing their actions make a difference in the lives of people, animals and the environment.
Shupe is also teaching students that dogs share many of the same feelings as people as well as traits such as loyalty, patience, obedience, friendliness and acceptance.
During the first meeting of Bailey's Buddies, students were able to begin the process of teaching Bailey through a game. Students gathered in a circle and called Bailey toward them with a treat in hand and then had the dog sit and lay down.
"It's very empowering for a child to have a big animal do what they ask," she said. "You see the children come out of their shell."
With the help of Bailey's Buddies, Shupe will next have the students assist in teaching Bailey to lay next to them while reading and look at the book's pages.
"My dog is my child," Shupe said. "I bring him to communicate with my other kids to help them relax and do their very best at school."