What COVID 19 has taught me about our teachers.

Last week in West Valley Yakima, like the rest of the country, students were sent home in response to the COVID 19 Pandemic.  We have 5500 students with 5500 individual needs and our teachers were faced with a difficult dilemma to meet the needs of everyone.  

At the end of week one, I have learned something incredibly important.  I am proud of the people on our team.  One teacher told me, it's not the lessons we teach that will get our families through this but the relationships we build.  Nothing more true has been said. 

We have students with families on the front line, who are most concerned about the health and safety of their family.  We have families whose daily lessons provide them with a semblance of normalcy through a trying time.  We have families out of work and unsure how to pay for meals and utilities.  Dual credit students are working to meet the requirements of the college.  A singular approach will not work for all of their individualized needs. 

What I have been most impressed with is our teachers have taken the time to identify the needs of their students and are working diligently to ensure those needs are met.  Whether it is math instruction, just someone to listen, or someone to say, "it's okay if classwork doesn't get done."  

At the end of "check ins" with staff today, I realized this is the team I want on our side.  I have learned an important lesson about our teachers, it's their compassion and concern for our families that will help us emerge through this trying time.