Ring the bell, vacation is over

New shoes, new hairstyles and the new school year is here. If you blinked, you missed it; summer break is winding down and the 2017-18 school year is here. Ready or not, here it comes.

Once again students will take a deep breath and venture into the unknown world of education, and parents will let out a sigh of relief for the same reason. Teachers will scramble to engage all students entering their world and administration will pull the strings that hold it all together.

There will be a few changes this year at our local school and at schools across the country. Retirees will be replaced but never forgotten. Graduates will look back at high school and hope they left a positive mark. New seniors are ready for their final year and kindergarteners embark on the first of many. The funny thing is, we are all in this together.

From the superintendent to the parent of the brand-new student, we are all in this together. The phrase “it takes a village” takes on a clear and focused meaning as we maneuver through school. It starts with home and the student being prepared and supported to learn. Then the baton is passed to a bus driver, the driver safely and securely delivering precious cargo to the location of higher learning. The baton is passed yet again.

This time a paraprofessional greets the student with a smile and welcomes them to the day. Baton passed to the ladies serving breakfast, fuel for their brain to devour the learning that is coming. Baton passed to the custodian, who cleans up the spills that happen daily, with a smile and a rag, encouraging the student that mistakes will happen, and it is OK. Baton passed.

The teachers take the reins of the day and start the long process of teaching. They will walk the cow over the path many times before the student learns the path themselves. Then the teacher will pick a new and harder path to learn, expanding the mind of the eager student. Bell rings. Baton passed.

You see, it takes a lot of people to lead the next generation to the pool of water that is education. Parents, school board, teachers, para pros, secretaries, librarians, administrators, custodians, bus drivers, food service providers, mechanics, maintenance workers, counselors, nurses, after-school program advisors, coaches and principals. All working together, year after year to prepare a safe and healthy learning environment. But I did leave out one very important piece: the student.

The student is the most important piece. Because all is for naught if the student is not ready and willing to engage in the process. We can develop all the programs, but if the student does not willingly participate and challenge their own brain to hunger for more, then we slow the process. But just because the process hits a speed bump, this does not mean we give up. This system will never give up.

Funding may fail, things may change and people may come and go, but the system filled with child-loving individuals will always be there. We must all work together daily to make it succeed, and if we all work together then our own student will succeed. Success is contagious. It may not always look the same but we can all succeed. First we must want to succeed and then we must act. Others will follow suit. It starts with you and then infects those around you. Pretty soon we are all succeeding.

Get ready. It is time. School starts next week for students here at Lake Roosevelt. Success starts with day one and builds each day. Lets see what we can build together.