Activity across the Gateway schools is certainly picking up as we rush towards the beginning of school for students on Monday, August 31. Many of our teachers are coming in to begin preparing their classrooms, updating their technology, and planning for the first days of school. Meanwhile, the maintenance and custodial staff are completing the final details of summer work, the cafeteria staff is preparing to open for business, the technology staff is completing upgrades to the technology infrastructure (much paid for by a competitive grant that the district was awarded by the state), and administrators continue to put the final touches on schedules for all.
I’ve been fortunate over the summer to run into several staff members at school and in the greater community. I am still surprised when people ask if any educator works during the summer as I see staff here working the summer programs, preparing curriculum, and bettering their professional abilities. I’m also aware that many of our staff spent a good part of their summer in professional development and advanced course work to better meet the needs of our students. As you’ve read in other columns, the administrators, central office staff, custodial staff, maintenance staff, technology staff, and many of our secretaries hardly seem to have a break during the summer as they complete the activities of the past year, prepare for the start of school, and finish what seems like innumerable reports for the state and federal governments.
Of course our employees still manage some time off and continue to juggle the myriad responsibilities that everyone has with home and family. Much like the idea that teachers only work for part of the year, there is still the perception that a teacher’s day consists of only a few hours, conveniently forgetting lesson preparations, correcting student work (including homework, quizzes and tests), time spent with students outside of the classroom, and of course professional responsibilities beyond the time spent directly with students. Unlike the traditional 9 to 5 job where the job ends after one leaves work, an educator’s work seems to extend well past the time when the school day officially ends and despite not having students in class during a good part of the summer, the work year doesn’t really end in June, it just shifts gears.
Gateway is very fortunate to have a majority of staff members who are dedicated to their students, their school and the district, which results in some very experienced staff with much knowledge, many skills, and a great institutional memory. These experienced staff members ensure that student needs are met, help integrate new staff into the education profession, and provide a degree of continuity that is sometimes hard to find today. I’ll be very pleased to welcome our wonderful staff back as they ‘return’ this week and am happy to welcome our new staff who are just beginning what we hope will be long careers as part of the Gateway family. Despite the issues facing education in the state and nationally, as well as the financial uncertainly locally, I know that our staff will do whatever is necessary to not just meet the needs of our students, but make them feel safe, welcome, and successful as we move through this academic year.
