Thank you.

 

Dear Staff;

I want you to know that you are valued.  You are essential.  I know all that goes into educating our students under typical circumstances - but your work during this pandemic is far from typical.  It's literally nothing school systems have ever done.  This isn't what you signed up for, and yet you're doing it anyway.  You're creating distance learning plans, navigating plexiglass, sanitizing, distancing, reminding, worrying - about people at home and at school, sanitizing some more, revising the way you've always done things - often adapting in a blink of an eye.

But remember... you're the first educators to tackle a challenge like the one we're facing now.  Years from now, 2020 will be remembered as the year we all learned how to live life at a distance from each other and continue to function as a society. The year we learned how to educate and connect to kids in a completely different way.

Pause for a moment and realize that what you're doing matters.  It matters not just for the students in our school today, but also for the future.  You're part of a large-scale systemic change, and you are making history.  So do you wonder why you're exhausted - mentally and physically?  This is hard work.  And I want each and every one of you to know how much I appreciate your hard work, thoughtful decisions, commitment to our building, and overall, maintaining a positive "can do" attitude throughout all of this.

Please take the Thanksgiving break to spend time with loved ones that may have been placed second due to school-related things, and to spend time on yourself - rejuvenate, rest, and enjoy the time off.

From the bottom of my heart, thanks for all you do -
Sue