Dear Members,
I feel as if it was just June and I was wishing everyone a good summer. Now here it is September and I am welcoming everyone back with the hopes that your summer was relaxing and rewarding. I know that many of you were working hard at second jobs, as well as at preparing for the new school year. Many of you took courses and wrote curriculum. I hope you are feeling renewed and excited about the start of another year of teaching. It is wonderful that our district, through the use of grants, was able to provide us with Smart Boards in every room. We are also grateful for the many new supplies we receive. All of these tools enhance our teaching and are a benefit to the children, but I would like to remind you that none of them has value without you, the teacher. A Smart Board means nothing without an effective, experienced teacher to utilize it. New books might as well remain unopened without the guidance of a knowledgeable, caring teacher. In short, a school is not a school without teachers to operate it. It is you who make the difference in the lives of our students, not the technology or books you employ, but you, the teacher, the mentor, the role model.
As Union president, I often feel like the mother hen, watching over my brood, and I must say that I am proud of each of you. You do a phenomenal job. You are the cement that holds our schools together, and the work you do is valuable as well as important. As the year progresses, please remember this. Continue to take care of your students and yourselves. Without you, this district could not function, and certainly, without your professionalism and dedication, it would not function effectively.
I look forward to seeing you all at the up-coming retirement party and at the Bellmore Street Fair. Be well and have a great year.
In Unity,
Gloria Panella