Connections – Thoughts from the SUPERintendent

a word of friendship

As many of you know, the 41st president of the United States recently passed away. And no matter which side of the political spectrum you find yourself, his funeral was touching. His son the 43rd president provided his eulogy. When watching a portion of this eulogy with my son Luca the next day, I was taken back by both the intimacy and power of the words shared by George W (43rd) about his dad George H (41st). I also found connections to the work we are aiming to do here at St. Anthony New Brighton Schools.

“We cannot hope only to leave our children a bigger car, a bigger bank account. We must hope to give them a sense of what it means to be a loyal friend, a loving parent, a citizen who leaves his home, his neighborhood and town better than he found it.”

These words taken from President George H. Bush’s inaugural address, these words are reflected in our buildings. Recently, staff created a random sample of (anonymous) parents and requested their time in taking a survey. I also asked key leaders in our school to take this survey, along with the entire staff at St. Anthony New Brighton Schools. This survey consisted of just a few questions and question three asked participants to describe what success would look like for a graduating senior from St. Anthony Village High School (SAVHS). This question generated the most similar responses. Many parents, staff, and leaders outlined a SAVHS graduate as not only knowledgeable, but also one who is kind and ready to become a citizen of the world. I just know, if any school, any community, any group of people can embody those ideas set forth for our country by our 41st president, it is St. Anthony New Brighton Schools.

I know this is possible, because the first question from this same survey asked participants to identify what about St. Anthony New Brighton schools makes them the most proud? One of the most stated responses was: the staff.

We have a staff who is not only willing to develop rigorous lessons with relevant content, but also go out of their way to build caring relationships with students. In addition, this staff is willing to put others’ needs ahead of their own. What I see in the hallways of Wilshire Park, St. Anthony Middle School, St. Anthony Village High School, and the Community Center are adults who are willing to, in the words President George Bush, “stop and ask if a sick child had gotten better, and stayed a moment there to trade a word of friendship”. There can be no better role modeling than adults in the lives of children showing kindness, friendship, and love to each other. I think this is why many are most proud of our staff.

In just a few days we will be on break. Many students, families, and staff will be celebrating holidays, and everyone will be bringing in a new year. Although we will miss each other, I doubt many staff will be sad about having a few days off to celebrate and rejuvenate. I also know many families will use this time to connect with friends and family. I know that is my plan! I appreciate all of you. Thank you to St. Anthony New Brighton staff for taking such good care of each other and the students. Thank you to our parents/guardians, for trusting us to educate and care for your child(ren). We are honored – it is a gift.

ALL Will Learn and Contribute

The following letter was read to our students today at SAMS.

Dear Students,

As we go into our three-day MLK weekend, Dr. Corneille and I have a quick message for you. We hope you join us in celebrating the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We hope you take time to celebrate and reflect on the extraordinary life of service he led, and we hope it inspires you- as it has us.

As teachers, our lives have been enriched by the lives of hundreds, even thousands, of students. All of them, and all of you, deserve to live the dream Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke about in his influential speech. We like to say around here that ALL will learn and contribute. And when we say “all”, we mean ALL. Every one of you- regardless of your race, culture, background, religion, ability, gender, sexuality- deserves a bright and promising future, and as the leaders of your school, we are committed to giving you the education you need to get you on your way.

Together, with your teachers, we are deeply committed to building a school where all students feel as if they really do belong, they can contribute, and they will learn. This commitment requires of us a laser-like focus on racial justice. We owe it to all of you to not just celebrate the strength the diversity of our school offers our community, but we must also disrupt outdated thinking. Some examples of this outdated thinking are talking about race is controversial or white people can opt out of the work to dismantle racism because it does not affect them. Talking about race and racism is important, and dismantling racism benefits all of us in significant ways.

Together, with your teachers, we have been working all year to better understand the role race and racism plays in our school. We welcome you to ask us about what we are learning, what keeps us curious, and what questions we are asking.

Together, with your teachers, we pledge to stay inspired by the life of a great American hero like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We vow to stay inspired by all the promise you show us, too.

We will wrap up with a powerful quote of Dr. King’s- “Everybody can be great … because anybody can serve…You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.”

Enjoy the MLK weekend, SAMS students.

Ms. Kujawski and Dr. Corneille

Using Relationships to Build a Caring Environment.

This past week a few of us attended the TIES conference in Downtown Minneapolis. Although TIES is known for technology, the conference allowed many of us to see the power of relationships. And how relationships can be created, formed, and kept active with the use of technology. Plus, George Couros, gave an awesome keynote!

Relationships and human connections are seen as non-existent now-days with the increased use of technology. We have all heard “no one ever talks to each other anymore” or “kids only text now”. We believe we can leverage technology to be even more deliberate and thoughtful as we work to build a caring environment at SAMS. Please understand, technology is not the goal, rather building relationships is the goal – we just use technology to enhance this!

For example, we use Twitter to showcase the many awesome things at SAMS. Starting this week, look for #todayatSAMS on Twitter to see this daily feed. We love it when we come across moments here that are funny or inspirational or really cool. When we see our work- authentic learning in a caring environment- in action, we want the world to know. We can use Twitter to share the experience. And it makes us smile knowing we are spreading the SAMS joy with the rest of the world.

A lot of people have told us they just can’t do Twitter. It’s one more thing, they don’t know how it works, who will they follow..but it’s an easy way to connect. Here’s a couple of ways to learn more about Twitter.

There’s a formal way…this website on Twitter.

And here are 2nd graders teaching us about Twitter.

And the 2nd graders teaching an advanced course on Twitter 🙂

Have a great break and please take the time to connect with us on Twitter.

Here are few names to start following:

@SAMS282 – Renee Corneille

@abskujawski – Amy Kujawski

@alammers06 – Ms. Shaffer

@Joe_Krasselt – Mr. Krasselt

@mamussell – Ms. Mussell

@JohnnyNM23 – Mr. Mitsch

@sara_karch – Ms. Karch

@scruffles6 – Ms. Donohue

@Heidi_Haagenson – Ms. Haagenson

@MrPotts282 – Mr. Potts

@PottsAmber – Ms. Potts

@mindylee1107 – Ms. Gerard

@Nathn – Mr. Meyer

@tadams612 – Ms. Adams

@LErpeldingSAMS – Ms. Erpelding