Gavin Fondaw traded desert mountains for cornfields this summer, swapping his hometown of Sierra Vista, Arizona, near Tucson, for a brand new address in Benton. A few weeks into fourth grade in Mrs. Hernandez's classroom, the move is already paying off. "It's definitely been the best school I've been to," he said.

Prior to living in Sierra Vista, Fondaw lived in Bisbee, so he’s moved before. So while he moved before, this time the move to Illinois was to live with his dad full time. His grandmother already calls Benton home too, giving him an instant network of family nearby as he settled into a new town, a new home, and a new school all at once.

That support system runs even deeper than one household. Gavin has two stepbrothers named Noah and Jeremiah, who are seventh graders at the same school, and their mom - Gavin’s stepmother - works at Benton as a janitor. "A lot of people in the family here," he said of the connections he has already found throughout the building. For a kid starting over in a new state, having that many familiar faces around campus has made the transition feel far less like starting from scratch. Mrs. Hernandez's classroom gave him one more soft place to land while everything else around him was new.

Making friends has come easily too, something Gavin says was harder back at his old school in Arizona, called Coronado Elementary, where he was bullied and mostly kept to a small group of three friends. At Benton, none of that has followed him. "No one's bullying me here,” he said. "I know almost everybody in my entire class," clearly pleased with how quickly Benton has felt like home. He is nine and says being tall hasn't caused the kind of teasing he experienced over his weight.

Outside of school, Gavin spends plenty of time gaming, especially Roblox, along with rounds of Fortnite with his stepbrothers whenever there is something new to unlock. He has mostly cleared what Fortnite currently offers and is waiting on the next update before diving back in. He also says he genuinely likes nature, even if it competes for his attention with video games. He describes himself as someone who gets bored easily. “I'm more of a social person, and I like to have friends more than just be all over traveling.” Traveling used to be a bigger part of his life growing up, but given the choice between more travel and being homeschooled, he chose to stay with his dad and attend school in Benton.

In the classroom, math has become his clear favorite subject. Social studies ranks a close second, with science not far behind. An observation that Gavin made is that both math and science are patterns, so they have a lot in common. Once a week, on Mondays, he gets a rotation through music class, which fits nicely with a dream he has been holding onto for a while. Someday, Gavin hopes to become a famous singer.

Six weeks were all it took for Gavin to decide Benton Grade School was the best school he’s attended so far. Between family down the hall, a classroom full of friendly faces, and a teacher he likes, the pieces fell into place quickly for a fourth grader who arrived hoping for exactly that kind of welcome. Six weeks in, Benton already feels friendly, and that’s good enough for now.