Mary’s Minute
“What you do
speaks so loud that I can’t hear what you say.”
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
I have smiled this week thinking about the kind students we have
at Perry Central. The most significant
incident that made me reflect on this was a visit from the Indianan Department
of Education. Our afterschool programs
were both observed as part of a state evaluation process. In addition to the paperwork review, the
state official spent about an hour walking around Lights On and CIA, observing
and talking with students. Her number
one take away is that our students are good to each other. She said that she did not observe a single
incident of children being unkind, and sadly she said that when she does these
visits she always does. She observed our
students being inclusive and kind to each other. We know that students are not always kind,
but it is good to see from an outside perspective that they usually are.
In addition, I had a couple of routine interactions with
students that made me smile this week.
One was watching a young man stop outside the exterior door on his way
to the ag building to participate in the pledge and moment of silence. When I complimented him, he beamed and
thanked me. Right after that a girl held
the door open for me and wished me a good day.
I know they are little things, but little things matter and create a
culture of caring – and a world of caring.
We certainly want to do things that overtly and systemically
support a caring culture; the kindness club is a great example of this. Obviously, our students’ parents and our
caring community are enormous contributors.
But I am incredibly proud of all of you for being role models for our
students of how to treat people with kindness and respect. Your actions speak louder than anything we
can say. You treat each other and our
students with kindness each day, and it is reflected in their actions. Thank you!
Have a great
week!
Mary
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