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News Releases |
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Superintendent’s Opening Day Remarks to Staff Good morning, and a very warm welcome to all faculty and staff members. And a special welcome to those of you who are starting your first academic year with us. You are joining a faculty that is second to none in the United States. Today, as we open the Shaker Heights schools’ eighty-ninth year and prepare to welcome our students tomorrow, I want to talk a little bit about the importance of first impressions. In the adult world, we prepare to make a good first impression – whether it is in a job interview, on a first date, meeting a new neighbor, or at a social gathering. We know that a good first impression can lead to a job offer, or a second date, or an invitation to meet for coffee. And we know that a bad first impression can effectively shut down any future relationship. I mention this because first impressions are no less important to children. One of our top priorities this year will be improving the practice of teaching – and, indeed, improving our practices in all areas of our operations. More than twenty of our colleagues have spent many hours over the summer consulting the research and designing professional development opportunities that will have meaning and value for your everyday lives in the classroom. To kick off this effort, the group thought about how we can use the opening of school to good advantage. One of the key research findings, both nationally and in Shaker Heights, is that students – and particularly struggling students – perform best when they believe their teachers care about them. This is as true of adolescents as it is of young children. Now, I believe that every teacher, aide, administrator, bus driver, cook, and custodian on our staff cares about the children we serve. But sometimes we assume that our students know how much we care about them. We should not take it for granted. So we spent some time talking with students to find out what kinds of questions and concerns they have as the school year begins. And we talked with some of our colleagues about strategies they use to help students feel comfortable and cared for. The result is a short video that we are about to show. You will see a lot of familiar faces – both students and colleagues. I want to acknowledge the efforts of our colleagues who worked on the video, both on-camera and behind the scenes. I have said many times, and continue to believe, that our faculty is our school district’s greatest asset. We are fortunate to have men and women of enormous knowledge, enthusiasm, and talent on the teaching staff – from the first-year teachers whom we welcome today to the veterans with more than 30 years in the profession. But even the best teachers and the best school districts must continue to grow and improve in order to serve students effectively. And all of us – myself included – will be focusing on improving our practice in various professional development activities throughout the course of the year. I hope this video will stimulate your thinking about how you can begin tomorrow morning to establish the trust that leads to better achievement. You and your colleagues will take some time later today back in your buildings to reflect on how you might make an extra effort tomorrow to welcome your students and put them at ease. And I hope that each of you as an individual will use this as a catalyst for thinking about how you can let your students know you care… and how successful they will be this school year.
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