To my child’s teacher:
I absolutely respect you honoring your unions request to not attend your schools open house, a night for teachers, parents and students to gather together, I just wish it didn’t come at the cost of an experience I know so many elementary schoolers look forward to, especially given that we have all endured many years when families were not even welcome into schools due to health regulations.
I will never forget the first night we attended a school open house as a family, post Covid, our students first open house after years of restriction, and the pride of our young student saying “this is my desk!” It is a highlight of the year for many of us and it comes at a time early in the calendar where we are reminding students of the criticality of being in school whenever possible.
It is my hope moving forward as a community that we all appropriately value the critical work that teachers, health care workers, public sector employees, non profit workers and many others contribute that is less compensated and less recognized than is due. No one should ever be asked to work off the clock. However many unions, labor organizations, and society in general, have historically implicitly and explicitly devalued the work of their own members by agreeing to contracts that don’t reflect a full scope of work required. That is partly a result of the undervaluing of the threads that stitch our community together and importantly, a willingness on the part of those of us who do the work to accept lesser compensation in exchange for the feeling of “making a difference” and a failure of those that represent us to stand up.
That is a trade off no one should be asked to take on and no governing body should condone.
I hope in the future your union can successfully argue for the rights and compensation that reflect your value in the community without disrupting students day to day experiences at an age where many are too young to comprehend historical context.
I hope the arbitration process results in an outcome best for our students and our teachers. I hope the Administration has identified a clear path forward with the data and research in support.
I will attend open house with or without teachers present, but with the wish that this should be a night of engagement and not grievance.
I’m here to celebrate Public Schools.
