Time to Recognize School Staff – and Volunteers
By Xavier Botana
Another name for May could be “Appreciation Month” because it’s
an opportunity to recognize and thank many of our school employees. During May,
we celebrate National Teacher Day and National Teacher Appreciation Week, as
well as National School Nurses Day, School Nutrition Employee Appreciation Week
and School Lunch Hero Day. Here at the Portland Public Schools, we are deeply
grateful to all these employees for the crucial roles they play in our
students’ success.
This year, May also is an opportunity to express our
appreciation to the hundreds of other people who make a vital difference in the
lives of our students: our school volunteers.
On May 10 at East End Community School, we held a Volunteer
Appreciation event for the approximately 700 parents and other community members
who donate about 90,000 hours per year in services to our schools. Our
heartfelt thanks goes out to these volunteers for all the time, caring and
expertise they give to our students.
Our volunteers come from all backgrounds and – in our very
diverse school system – from various countries. They include parents, some of
whom begin volunteering when their children are in school but end up continuing
to volunteer after their own children move on. Some volunteers aren’t parents
themselves but value education and want to help our community’s children. Our
volunteers range in age from retirees and grandparents sharing a lifetime of
knowledge with our students to young professionals sharing their cutting edge
expertise.
Volunteers do myriad things in our schools. For example, our
classroom volunteers do everything from assisting students with reading and
math to helping teachers organize classrooms and prepare materials. Volunteers
in our Make It Happen! program, a college-readiness and academic success
program for language minority students in grades 9-12, assist students with the
college application process and help them engage in leadership, community
service and professional development opportunities.
Outside the classroom, volunteers do such things as
accompanying students to school in our Walking School Bus program, serving in
PTOs, planning and organizing fundraisers, teaching students new skills before
or after school, serving as an accompanist for student/parent chorus, assisting
with drama clubs or as volunteer coaches, working as Sports Boosters and
manning the ticket office and concessions at sporting events. They also
chaperone events that include field trips, school dances and Project
Graduation.
One of our core strategies is to ensure that every student
has a meaningful connection to a caring adult. That person can be a teacher or
other school employee but also a volunteer. Volunteers create bonds with
students and serve as role models.
We always need more volunteers, so if you’d like to join
this group of amazing individuals, please contact the community coordinator at
your local school.
May 9 was National School Nurse Day, when we recognize our
school nurses for all their contributions to student health and learning. One
particular Portland Public Schools nurse truly stood out in that regard, and
now our new school that will open this fall to replace Hall Elementary School
will be named after her. The Portland Board of Public Education voted
unanimously April 24 to name the new school the Amanda C. Rowe Elementary
School.
Amanda was a beloved and dedicated longtime school nurse who
died in 2013. In almost three decades with the Portland Public Schools, she
tirelessly and courageously served as a health teacher, school nurse, and
district school nurse coordinator. She worked at the local and state levels to
increase students’ health and safety and combat injustice.
You can learn more about Amanda Rowe and the naming process on
our website at:
Last but not least, the City Council votes May 14 on our
proposed $112 million FY19 school budget to send to Portland voters June 12. This year’s budget process has been a very
challenging one, with a $3.4 million decrease in state education aid coupled
with rising fixed costs. The budget we have crafted maintains quality education
in Portland while being cognizant of the tax burden the state aid shortfall shifts
to local homeowners. I hope you’ll make your support of this budget known to
the council and at the polls.
