Because I am not able to say goodbye to my seniors in person, I've decided to write a virtual letter to all my seniors to encourage them to not let our current situation deter them from being who they are and continuing to pursue their careers. Despite how hard of a teacher I am, I push my students to work harder and encourage them to do better. I care about their education and I care about them as a person.
Dear Students:
I understand how difficult this must be for you with not having a traditional senior year. You were cheated from prom, senior "ditch day", senior dinner dance, and most of all the senior graduation. There are no words to help you understand what we are currently going through as this is something new to all of us (or most of us). Please know that I wish I knew how you felt. I wish I could say this was all a bad dream and that all your senior festivities will happen as planned. But most of all, I wish I could tell you goodbye.
Remote learning does not replace face to face teaching, and it does not replace that one on one connection we had all year / semester long. The end of the year is important for me as I get to say goodbye to my seniors and see how far they have come in one year with me. I usually hold my senior olympics, analyze music videos with them, but most of all I end the year walking with them side by side during graduation. But this year is different. This year, I had to say goodbye remotely to only a handful of students as many did not log on for the final zoom meeting. If you are not an educator or in education, you won't understand how difficult or different it is not being able to see students in person and say goodbye and good luck. This is the time of year that I am able to remind students that they ARE important, they CAN make a difference, and they DO matter. But this year I am not able to do this in person.
Seniors: I wish you the best of luck for your future. Continue to strive to be your best. I will miss you all (pictures are from 2019 graduates).
Goodbye and good luck,
Mrs. Koppers