Dear teachers,
My mom and dad are both employees of the North Carolina community college system. Between the two of them, they have about 45 years vested in the community college system. My mother is an English teacher and my dad is an administrator and professor. I admit, when I was younger, I did not think that my parents had glamorous jobs, especially when compared to my friend's parents whom were doctors, lawyers, firefighters or pilots.
As I have grown up, I have grown to respect more and more what you do on a daily basis. It is a difficult job, and it takes more than a paycheck to do the job that you do. It takes a love for the students and the love of the institution, more than a paycheck and the benefits you receive.
Now, with the growing concern over the public education system, I have grown to respect not only what my parents do for a living significantly more, but what teachers do on a daily basis across all grade levels. You all are the ones who are there in the mornings directing traffic, you are the ones who chaperone studnets on field trips, you are the ones who sponsor those clubs we love after school, you are the ones who help with the band or the football team, you are the ones who are there for fundraisers, and many times, you do not get paid extra for that. It took me many years to figure out that many of these responsibilities are on a volunteer basis.
My elementary school and my grade school experience were very different from each other. Primarily, it was about the amount of students that were in each class with me. In elementary school for example, there were about twelve students in my class, compared to the twenty five that were in my middle and high school classes. My teachers in elementary school offered a much more intimate setting, and because of that I was very fond of them. They knew what I liked, they knew my parents, and they knew about my life.
One of my fondest memories was in first grade. My mom and I travelled to Charlotte for her Oath of Allegiance ceremony, the last step before becoming a naturalized citizen. I remember having to miss my morning class for it, but when I was dropped off at school later, my teacher gave me a tight hug and said "congratulations", and she gave me a little American flag to give to my mom. The funny thing is that I do not even remember her name now, but that act has stuck with me for the past decade.
Transitioning to middle and high school, along with 2500 other students was difficult. We were told that teachers would not be as accessible, or as intimate as in elementary school. What I quickly learned was that if my class had ten students, or twenty, or even thirty, my teacher knew all of our names, our interests, and were willing to stay with us after school to help us, you were there at our school concerts, or games. You would answer emails over the weekend, and at nights. Come senior year, you would write our recommendation letters for colleges that we so badly wanted to attend, recommend colleges to us, and sometimes even cut us some slack because we were graduating. Most importantly, you were there for us when we crossed the stage in June.
There are many more memories that I have of teachers being there for me and going above and beyond the call of duty of their job description. From the science fair, chess club, band, geography and spelling bees, AV club, safety patrol, and many more instances, you were there for all of it.
If I had received a poor grade, or if I had been told to rehearse for an extra hour, or if I had been given extra homework, I would have difficulty thinking about them very highly. While you were making me put in the extra effort, you were also making an effort to make me a better student. You were the ones who stayed the extra hour for rehearsals, or stay after school to help those who got a poor grade on an assignment. It is very easy to take for granted what public school teachers do on a daily basis for the school, and the well being of the students. Many times, your work goes unappreciated and unrecognized.
To my past teachers, thank you for all that you do, and thank you for supporting me and my endeavors in school. Just know that while I may have not been the most appreciative in your classes, I am now, and I am able to see the impact that you all have had on my life.
To my parents, thank you for all of the support and time that you spend for your school. While I have not always seen the importance of your work, or the impact that it has on student's, I see it now. You two, like many teachers convey the true meaning of selflessness.
-Sohm
