Friday Feature: The Month of Budgets and Celebrations

May is a particularly busy month in education. Semesters end. Children graduate from preschool, kindergarten, sixth grade, eighth grade and high school, depending on their school's configuration. A stroll down Facebook Lane reveals smiling faces and successes that contradict Education Secretary DeVos' statement that “Washington has been in the driver’s seat for over 50 years with very little to show for its efforts.” 

Although there is always room to grow (and Washington's money deserves only part of the credit for these successes), there is, indeed, much to show. These posts make me smile and hit "like" and "love" in celebration of the hard work of all of these children, their families and their teachers. 

Ah, their teachers. Pushing through exhaustion to celebrate this time of year with enthusiasm that rivals that of their charges. Limping toward a summer "break" that both starts and ends earlier each year so there's enough time in the school day to teach to the test, fully cognizant of the fact that much of it will be spent planning for the next school year, which, in my neck of the woods, starts in mid-August.

But I digress.

I don't want this to be a political post. Rather, I want it to be a "both sides" post. If I weren't an educator, I would be reading only the headlines about the current education budget proposal, but, since I am an educator -- both retired and active, because teachers are just crazy enough to do that -- I want to know more.

And I think you should know more, too. 

During the confirmation process for Betsy DeVos, a well-intentioned friend expressed her confusion over the rabid opposition to a woman who had no background in the schools that currently make up the backbone of our education system. "Is it just about the vouchers?" she asked.

She wasn't being snarky -- she wanted to understand. I think a lot of people do.

So, in honor of this hectic month in education, I want to share a bit about the teachers and a bit about the budget. I hope you'll take a look.

Because it's not about the vouchers. And it's not really about the teachers.

It's about the kids.

Ahhh.....

Pixabay

I am in my happy place.

Yes, I am posting terribly late. Yes, I barely know what day it is. But I am in my happy place.

As I type this, I'm sitting on a screened-in porch at the beach. It's 73 degrees, there's a slight breeze and, aside from a few too many flies, I have nothing to complain about.

It's been a whirlwind couple of weeks. A writing conference. My daughter's prom, end of classes and graduation. Her week at the beach. Her college orientation. Three graduation parties. A little bit of writing, a lot of packing and a house that looks as though someone shook it and turned it upside down.

But I'm not there. I'm here. At the beach. When I go home, there will be sorting and organizing and a return to real life -- perhaps even a schedule of some sort. I will get back into a writing routine, start thinking about fall classes, begin chipping away at the college shopping list. And, because it's summer, I'll also read, nap, relax and do everything on my list at a more relaxed pace.

When I get home.

For now, I am at the beach. On the patio.

In my happy place.

Friday Feature: The Ups and Downs of College Freshmen...and Their Parents

http://www.erhs.la/academics/college/

I'm typing this from a hotel room in Connecticut, having spent the day at a parent orientation. My daughter starts her freshman year of college in two months, and while she's on campus for her orientation, the staff at the college is spending time gently ushering parents into the new phase of life that is to come.

I made it through graduation with barely a tear. ("Pomp and Circumstance" got me, but I'm blaming that on classical conditioning). I grinned and applauded as my daughter received her diploma, largely because she was grinning. And proud.

This morning, I was genuinely amused by the enthusiasm of the orientation leaders, even as they whisked my daughter out of the car and into a dorm. I was more bothered by the lyrics in the music that was blasting than the efficiency with which my daughter disappeared.

qu.edu

But the speeches to the parents this morning? Those got me.

Mostly, it was the fact that they caught me off-guard. I thought of orientation as, you know, getting oriented. Figuring out who's who, what's what and which things are where. I wasn't expecting to be part of an opening ceremony which was billed as "saying goodbye," let alone a direct discussion about the changes we'd be going through as parents.

Yikes.

Once that was over, though, there were some good things to be heard. And so, in the spirit of this new phase of life, I wanted to share some information along the lines of what I heard this morning -- information that focuses on the ups and downs of college freshmen which, as it turns out, often follow a pretty predictable path.

I was warned that these next two months will go quickly. I was given advice about letting go and increasing responsibility. As a former school counselor and a current college instructor, none of this was surprising.

What's surprising is that eighteen years flew by so quickly.

Go Forth

Pixabay

After a busy weekend with one foot in the Pennwriters conference and one foot at home (a brief return for photo opps and prom send-off), I feel a bit jumbled this morning. Last week was the hectic lead-up to prom and this week, starting off with deceptive calm, is graduation week. It feels like the start of summer vacation, but important commitments (a final for my daughter, a podcast for me and the impending emotional ceremony on Thursday) say otherwise. Voices from Pennwriters echo in my head, sharing everything from wisdom to criticism to the joyful friendships born of common ground. I want to write about them, but, so far, lack the focus to do so, consumed as I am by all that lies ahead of me this week.

Lying in bed this morning, trying to sort through it all, I opened my email -- delaying the start of the day a bit further -- and found a surprising inspiration in the Morning Offering I subscribe to:

"Go forth and set the world on fire." (St. Ignatius of Loyola)

While I'm certain that St. Ignatius meant it in a spiritual sense, the quote gave me a sense of clarity (not to mention the impetus to actually get out of bed and go forth).

Each of us sets the world on fire in his or her own way. Some days, it's a tiny spark, other days a raging blaze, and occasionally, it's wet matches, but each of us possesses the ability to go forth and set the world ablaze with whatever passion and talent we possess. And on those "wet matches" days, it's important to keep in mind that blazes of glory might still lie ahead, even if we can't even imagine them, let alone see them. And some days, our small sparks are fire starters for the ones we love.

Whatever it means to the rest of us, St. Ignatius's quote is a pretty good way to kick off graduation week. Wishing you a week full of happy sparks.