This week is set aside each year to recognize the many positive contributions teachers make to the welfare of our society and country. Take a minute to think about their importance to our society, but probably more important to each of you is the importance teachers have played in your life and in the lives of your children. Let them know you appreciate their efforts.  As in so many areas we often take for granted the dedication teachers show to their profession on a regular basis.  The letter below will appear in the Park Falls and Glidden newspapers this week. 

"One looks back with appreciation to the brilliant teachers, but with gratitude to those who touched our human feelings. The curriculum is so much necessary raw material, but warmth is the vital element for the growing plant and for the soul of the child."     - Carl Jung

To The Editor:

This week, May 7-11, is teacher appreciation week. Each year the first full week of May is set aside to recognize and show appreciation for the dedication and hard work of the teachers who serve the children and families in this community. As Carl Jung states above, we appreciate the good teachers we, and our children, had, but we are especially grateful to those teachers who are able to convey the curriculum with a warmth and caring that makes that teacher memorable.

I challenge each of you to think, during this week, about one or more teachers that stand out in your memory.  Each of us can think of a teacher that made a real difference and a significant impression on our lives.  In my mind there were two that stand out particularly; a high school history teacher who gave me the first encouragement that education might be in my future and, the real champion, my 5th grade teacher Miss Hume.  Miss Hume had been my mother’s 5th grade teacher as well as mine.  She conveyed the lessons along with what I now recognize were many life lessons. She was able to harness what was a surplus of energy, on my part, into a positive direction with the warmth Dr. Jung refers to so well, so that I really believed my desk was placed next to hers because I was her favorite and she needed my help!  My mother later explained the real reason.

But the point is that almost all of you can point to a teacher that made that kind of difference in your life; that set your path for the future in some way,  and this week is the time to remember them.  But it is also, more importantly, the time to recognize and thank the teachers that each and every day are making the same kind of impact on your children’s lives that teachers made in your life.  The last year as been a challenging year for teachers as the profession and the contribution these dedicated professionals make to the development of future productive citizens has been called into question. In this state, and others, they have been made a part of a political “football” game and been kicked around undeservedly.

Educational research clearly shows that the most important factor in the success of a student in school is the quality of the teachers.  In our district we are fortunate that the vast majority of our teachers fall into the category of highly qualified teachers who do, and will, make a difference in the lives of your children.  This is no mean feat given the challenges teachers face each day. Donald Quinn put it into perspective when he said, “If a doctor, lawyer, or dentist had 30 people in his office at one time, all of whom had different needs, and some of whom didn’t want to be there and were causing trouble, and the doctor, lawyer or dentist, without assistance, had to treat them all with professional excellence for nine months, then he might have some conception of the classroom teacher’s job.” 

As we thank the teachers for the difference they make, I also want to thank the support staff. Through their efforts as cooks, custodians, paraprofessionals, secretaries, or bus drivers, all contribute toward the common goal of educating our children.  The teamwork displayed by all of us, working with you parents in this effort, supports the notion that it takes a village to raise a child.  Dr. Haim Ginott said, “Teachers are expected to reach unattainable goals with inadequate tools. The miracle is that at times they accomplish this impossible task.”

Let a teacher know you appreciate their efforts.

Dave Anderson

District Administrator

On April 12 the Chequamegon High School Band and the Choirs performed in the Wisconsin School Music Association large group festival that was held at the Prentice School District.  The band, both the high school choirs and the middle school choir received first place from a panel of three judges.  Our middle school band attended a different festival, doing very well too.  Once again, this is an example of the kind of high quality experiences we have been able to provide for our students.  I want to thank Mr. Pollock, Mr Donner, Ms. Kirch for their fine efforts to bring out the best in our students. I also want to recognize and thank Diane Johnson for her good work as the elementary music teacher.  The strong foundation she has given these students in elementary school is a primary reason for the strength of the program at the high school level. I would like to go on record thanking her for those efforts since her position is one of the reductions that will take place as a result of the failed referendum. 

So you can see and hear for yourself a sample of the good work our students are doing I have attached videos of one of the band's pieces performed at the contest, a march titled Little English Girl. I do not have a video of the choir's performance that day but I have attached a video of the Madrigal performing the National Anthem at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee prior to a Milwaukee Bucks game in February.  These are the types of experiences that these students will look back on for many years to come. It is my sincere hope that we will be able to continue to provide these kind of life enriching experiences to students in the future.