A letter to Hopatcong, NJ, Teachers and Staff

Hopatcong administrators, teachers, and staff members:

Thank you for another year of dedicated service to the youth and families of our community. As I reflect on my 39th year in the education profession it is apparent that much has changed over the decades. We are at a transition point in the profession that has placed public school employees under a microscope as expectations rise each year. The remarkable thing is that our teachers, staff, and administrators all respond remarkably to the formidable challenges we now face.

It is with all sincerity that I express my heartfelt gratitude to all of you for the devotion that you demonstrate every day to the young people we teach and the community we serve. As I visit each school (I try to get into a classroom each day) it is apparent to me that we are blessed in this educational community with exceptional faculty and staff members. I witness great teaching and wise counseling each and every time I visit one of our schools.

Perhaps my reflections are simply nostalgic manifestations of the wonderful relationships I experienced from my own years as a classroom teacher. My personal observations however are validated by the extensive research and work in teacher evaluation that was the subject of my dissertation at the College of William and Mary. It is abundantly clear that we employ some of the very best teachers and staff available. The result: our students are nourished and challenged to reach the highest possible individual outcomes, thanks to each of you.

I have said on more than one occasion that the whole of public education contains many components: academics, arts, activities, and athletics. We are about teaching the “whole child” and creating experiences that prepare our youth for life in an ever-changing democratic society. While social norms appear to be eroding at a rapid pace, the public schools in our community hold onto standards and values that appear to be almost non-existent in the greater society-at-large.

This makes the accomplishments of our teachers even more remarkable. Children come with many needs: developmental, intellectual, emotional, social, physical, medical, etc. We meet the challenges that confront us every day and somehow find a way to meet the demands placed upon us. No child is the same as another (think about how different siblings are) with every child demonstrating the need and capacity for nourishment in different and varied ways. Here is where the remarkable teaching has a profound impact: on the individual student as an individual.

I applaud the accomplishments of our classroom teachers, counselors, aides, staff members, coaches, administrators and everyone else who touches the lives of our youth. The New Year offers an opportunity for a renewed commitment to the profession we choose as our calling, our purpose, our challenge. In spite of the difficult economic times and the formidable challenges that we face, including the often unfair and biased media perceptions concerning public education in America, our schools are vibrant environments where the youth of our community thrive each day thanks to our teachers.

Please take the time this holiday season to reflect on the great work you are doing and to enjoy the blessings of your own families. Peace to each of you as the dawn of 2012 approaches and we bring closure to the year soon to pass. I look forward to working with you again as we continue on our educational journey in Hopatcong Borough.