The "A Letter To Teachers From A Retired Superintendent And Friend Of Mine" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Reading the "Perspective" section of my Sunday LNP newspaper when I came across an article titled "A letter to teachers from a retired superintendent."  I taught school at Manheim Township High School with a great friend and teacher named Brenda Smoker.  Brenda taught at MTHS for more than 20 years with me before eventually becoming the Superintendent of Hempfield High School.  Brenda is now retired from her teaching and administrative position, but she still loves to help those entering the field of teaching.  Her note of encouragement to new teachers begins with...Unlike you, I didn't go through COVID 19, which turned our world upside down.  I have to say, from what I can see, you did more than OK.  You answered the call, even though, like most of us you were underprepared for such circumstances.  Yet, you made the most of a very difficult situation.  Today, you are once again looking forward to your new classes.  You are perhaps a little wary and I totally understand.  You have become political fodder and you are taking arrows from multiple directions.  You are possibly being accused of acknowledging critical race theory, accepting LGBTQ+ realities supporting "woke" agendas, presenting biased information, resisting the banning of books in your libraries, and more.  Politicians might view you as working in failing schools, but you, your students and their parents know better.  Do not buy into the political messaging that is attacking pubic education.  That is what the detractors hope will happen.  Do not be distracted by the rhetoric.  The best you can do is to continue to do your job well."  She goes on to say, "It is always interesting to me that everyone - because they have been in a school at one point in their lives - thinks they are an expert on education.  Those of us who have served in education understand that it is a profession that requires education, training and on-going in-service work to be effective.  The fact that so many of you make teaching look so easy, does not mean that it is.  Here is my message to you: Rise above all of it.  I know you can.  You are uniquely positioned to make a difference.  You care deeply about your students, so focus 100% of your energy on them.  You know you will encounter students who are coming from privileged backgrounds who will be more than ready for your teaching.  You will also encounter students who have not had the benefit of strong parenting or enrichment opportunities or even preschool education.  Some will come from poverty that did not allow for stronger supports.  Some will not have English as their first language.  That doesn't make them less intelligent, or less willing to respond to competent, caring teaching; it simply places more hurdles before them.  However, you can make a real difference in helping to level the playing field for them.  Reflecting on my colleagues when I was a teacher, as well as the many teachers I had the privilege of encountering as an administrator, I know with every fiber of my being that you only want to make a difference for the children in your charge.  So as the official start of the 2023-24 school year begins, I wish you all the best and remind you that the students who challenge you most are the ones who need you the most.  They will be slow to trust, as many students have come from life circumstances that have made trust difficult.  Your success as a teacher will not only be measured by those who have been primed for learning by supportive parents and fortuitous environments, but by those who have not experienced those privileges.  For administrators who may be reading this: Your teachers need your support more than ever.  Get into their classrooms, observe their teaching, and give them constructive, supportive feedback.  At the end of the day, teachers normally will go miles and miles for their students, but positive recognition (compliments, written notes, emails, etc.) from administrators will fuel them even further.  These things will give them energy to continue to do what they need to do, and want to do, for their students.  Never underestimate your power to help your teachers do their jobs.  Here's to a fantastic 2023-24 for each and every one of you.  Remember always that you have the ability to make an enormous difference in a student's life.  That is an amazing power, and I encourage all of you to use it wisely.  I'm betting on you and, though they might not be aware of it, so are your students.  Brenda's letter to teachers can go a long way in helping teachers with this year's classes.  I only wish I would have had someone such as Brenda write a letter to me such as she did to those reading her story in the Lancaster Newspaper.  I considered my teaching career as successful, but it would have been made much easier and perhaps more fruitful had I read Brenda's letter before I began my career in teaching.   Thank You! Brenda for all you did while at Manheim Township as well as Hempfield.  Both school districts were so lucky to have had you working for them in the past.  From...L. W. a former I.A. teacher at MT and blog author .   And finally.....Go Streaks!!  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.