HSI NEWSLETTER SRPING 2021
The Other Side It is hard to believe that it has been a year since the pandemic began but the sun is beginning to shine. With vaccines becoming widely available to everyone, case numbers going down, and schools reopening, we are beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel. This last year has been tragic on so many levels: Pandemic, loss of life, economic
Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.
disadvantages, students not in school, political unrest, and racial disparities. Anyone of these could and have been life changing for many of us. So much of this year has brought so much to the surface that my life, and many of our lives are forever changed going forward. It has become overwhelmingly clear this year that academics alone will not prepare our students to be successful in the future. Knowing how to recognize and manage our feelings are key skills that will prepare us to lead healthy, happy, successful lives, personally and professionally. As I look back over the year, I continue to be amazed with
Aristotle
all that has been accomplished during these paralyzing times in the MPCSD:
Back to School – The entire school district
Pandemic Response – The immediate work of the District
banded together and at a staggering speed
Wide COVID-19 Task Force set in motion the purchase of safety
developed a robust plan of coming back to
equipment, the needed upgrades to ensure safety for students
school as soon as possible. By October 2020, we
and staff, and detailed procedures that followed the guidelines
were one of the first school districts back
of the county health department. The ongoing work of our
teaching our students in person in some form.
nursing and custodial staff has b1een critical to our success.
Thank you to our amazing teaching and support
Fact: The MPCSD COVID numbers were consistently low
staff that took a chance and supported the
throughout the year. We even had a 7-week streak without a
process.
case.
Equity – The district had already been working towards making
Social-Emotional Learning – During the
critical changes to address equity and unconscious bias but due
month of February 2021, 20+ staff from 5
to the uprising of events in the spring of 2020, the District
schools engaged in an online training to learn
leadership knew changes needed to happen sooner and with a
how to bring the RULER Approach to the
louder voice. This began with the Parent Speaker Series that
schools. The focus is not to just bring another
touched on needed uncomfortable conversations; the
program to the school but to build a common
development of an Anti-Racism Committee that is actively
language across all schools that is built into
making changes to the professional development for staff,
what we do every day. Recognizing our
changes for a more inclusive curriculum, and making sure
emotions and knowing how to be our best self
diverse hiring practices are given intentional focus. Two of our
inspires us, gives us hope, builds compassion,
PD days this year already started the work on equity grading
and motivates us in what we do every day.
and Diversity.