Spring break always seems to come at the wrong time according to the weather forecast. When it should be a time of warmth and sunny skies, over the last few years our breaks have been cloudy and rainy.
While some are able to head to warmer climates, I believe many of the people who work at Lincoln Public Schools use the week of spring break to deal with delayed projects – in a slightly more relaxed environment. As educators we look at the week as a time to catch our breath, because the last few months of the school year are always the most hectic and intense. From preparing students to take assessments to hiring another 400 teachers and administrators (not to mention wonderful support personnel), the fourth quarter of the 2017-18 school year will fly by. And soon it will be summer.
We have dealt with some challenging issues over the past few weeks – and let me take this opportunity to express our appreciation to the new Parents United group that was formed to support our work in ensuring our schools are safe places. Recent conversations with this group have been productive and yielded some “gaps” that Lincoln Public Schools will work to improve. We have pledged to continue these conversations with our parents and work on developing strategies that will increase an assurance of safety for all our students and staff.
Meanwhile, we will continue our important work to make sure all our students successfully finish this valuable year of their lives.
In addition, the end of the school year is somewhat bittersweet as we begin the process of saying “goodbye” to those who have served students so well for so long. Yet it is reassuring that, while talented people always create a void, we are able to replace them with educators who we know will rapidly grow and develop. That wise and wonderful quality of our employees is really our “secret sauce.”
