Teacher Appreciation Week started on May 6
The week of May 6 is Teacher Appreciation Week. Around the country, students and parents are finding ways to show their gratitude for the educators in their lives. This week is also a great opportunity to reflect on how much we rely on our teachers to guide our children during the most formative years of their lives.
I believe learning is meant to be done within the community. Creating a successful learning environment requires a dedicated team of teachers, administrators, instructional aides, custodians, coaches, and other community partners. But these individuals need to know that they’re heard, that they’re valued, and that we have their backs. That’s why I support unions and collective bargaining in public education. I also support raising salaries to recruit and retain quality staff. Unions create shared governance, which creates better working environments for educators. Better working environments for educators leads to better outcomes for students.
As we work towards shared governance, it's also important to stay focused on improving student outcomes and working with teachers to achieve that goal. Our School Board should track student outcomes more closely to ensure that the proper learning environments are being created, sustained, and improved, and we should treat teachers as the ultimate partner in this endeavor. Areas in need of improvement should prompt collaboration, changes, and questions, like:
How do leaders in Richmond Public Schools support and retain the most talented and experienced teachers?
How is teacher retention affecting student outcomes, especially in schools with significant needs??
Are students learning what we promise families they will learn in school?
What do students need to be successful learners?
Are the building conditions/infrastructure making it harder for teachers to teach and for students to learn?
A School Board focused on supporting teachers to improve student outcomes will help drill down into what specific issues are preventing successful learning from taking place. Instead of arguing about each of these critical issues in isolation or in opposition to each other, the School Board must evaluate how these issues intersect to affect students.. The school climate survey could be a good starting point for this. This will create an accountability trail for the School Board to hold the Superintendent accountable, and for the public to hold the School Board accountable.
This will also allow us to gain a better understanding of what issues our educators on the ground are encountering and how we can provide them with the support and resources they need. With this in mind, I believe the Richmond City School Board should pick two to three specific student outcomes to focus on over the course of the next several years. Some examples of goals would be to improve on time graduations, reduce absenteeism, and increase 3rd grade reading and literacy rates. This will clarify our priorities and hone in on the areas where we can make the most improvement. This focus on student outcomes will also show just how important it is to support and retain our teachers.
I believe Teacher Appreciation Week is the perfect time to recommit ourselves to supporting the educators who work tirelessly day in and day out to put our students on a sustainable path to success, and I look forward to being a champion for all of our teachers, should you vote me in as your next school board member.