In Gratitude

For the past four years, I've had the privilege of serving as the Superintendent of Schools for the St. Johnsbury School District. While at times the role feels isolating, and it is, any superintendent will tell you, that it is a complete team effort. No superintendent is successful without a tremendous supporting cast - and I've got one of the best. 

In my graduation remarks on Friday night to the 8th Grade Class of 2022, I shared something that I have paraphrased from Aaron Sorkin, a playwright and screenwriter responsible for one of my favorite TV shows of all time, "The West Wing." I like bands more than I like solo acts. I like team sports more than I like individual ones. I like teams. When you're successful on a team, there are people to celebrate with along the way. It's a little bit easier when you're struggling on a team because there are others with you to share in that struggle. 

I am so proud of what we have done in the past four years, particularly the past two. And I am grateful. 

To the Board of School Directors: Thank you for being financial stewards, mindful of the line between operational work and Board work, and for always being student-centered, first and foremost. 

To our Teachers: Thank you for your love, professionalism, and commitment to growth for every single child that comes into our building. 

To our Paraeducators: Thank you for your love, support, and dedication to all of our students. 

To our Support Staff: Thank you for ensuring our organization runs smoothly, is welcoming, and feels like home. 

To our Food Service Personnel: Thank you for your commitment to nutrition, endless smiles, and creativity on our trays. 

To our Facilities Staff: Thank you for a building that is not only clean but also well maintained and cared for, with an eye toward the future. 

To our Leadership Team: Thank you for seeing the big picture, your willingness to have the hard conversations, and your courage to lead. 

To the St. Johnsbury Community: Thank you for supporting our work through positive budget and bond votes over these past four years.  

I know I have grown so much while serving this wonderful community. I hope you feel the same way!

One of My Pet Peeves

As an educator for more than twenty-five years, there are plenty of things that people say to degrade the work of those of us who have chosen this profession. To be clear, I include every single person in a school district as an educator, from the Board members to facilities and administrative staff. In addition, of course, are the paraeducators and the teachers. 

One of the things that people say that bothers me the most is this: 

What are the top three reasons to be an educator? June, July, and August. 

First of all, let's be clear about something. There is only one month in the entire year with no students attending school, and that's July. We have students until June 15 this year, and our students will return before the end of August. 

Secondly, educators often take classes over the summer to improve their practices. We know for a fact that the one thing that improves student outcomes more than any other factor is teacher instruction. Some educators have other jobs over the summer. Some choose to continue to work in the building, or at home, long beyond their contracted days. 

Finally, if those examples were not true, I wish every single educator could take this summer fully off to rest and recharge from this year. Honestly, this year was more complicated than any other year we've experienced since March of 2020. There was so much hope for this year - and it was dashed by the omicron surge and a long hard winter. More recently, there was the omicron variant, along with substantial staff and student absences throughout the year. 

The staff absences pose a unique challenge of putting the right people in the right places. Our Co-Principals spent more time than they care to admit ensuring that our students could be safely supervised. They did a phenomenal job, as we only had one day where we closed due to staffing. The student absences are a bit more complicated. 

Imagine in a class of twenty, half of the class is absent on a given day. What do you do? Do you move ahead with your plans and prepare to catch up the other ten? Or do you wait for the ten that are absent to come back to class and teach the entire group at once? What if there were ten missing the following day again, but it was a different group of ten? Can you sense this math problem spiraling a little bit? 

There is no easy answer to any of this. And still, our educators showed up. Every. Single Day. We had Board members volunteering to be substitute teachers. We had paraeducators who did not have a consistent assignment for weeks at a time. We had Facilities personnel working in the Kitchen, and we had administrative staff juggling several desks at a time. 

So can we please agree that the top three reasons to be an educator are: the students, the students, and the students? Because there is not a school building in this entire state (nor our country) that doesn't reflect the love, devotion, and commitment to children more than we saw this year.