An Open Letter to Students, Teachers, and Administrators

Beloved teachers, administrators, and students,

Well, it’s official. What we all suspected, predicted and dreaded is now state policy: nobody’s going back to their classrooms in the 2019-2020 school year. Lessons will only take place online and learning will only happen long distance. Senior pictures, prom, and graduation are all on hold indefinitely or cancelled outright. In a sense, it’s over.

For those of us on the outside looking in—those who love our public schools but don’t spend every day walking their hallways—we can only imagine your disappointment, frustration, and grief. However necessary for safety’s sake, this is hard news to swallow.

But in your sadness, I hope you’ll take some solace from what all of us outside the school system have seen from you these last few weeks. Because what we have seen from you has inspired us all.

We’ve seen administrators learning new technology on the fly and leading with both humility and grace. We’ve seen principals leading like servants, dropping treats on teachers’ doorsteps and calling students personally to make sure they’re safe. We’ve seen your love for your schools, and we have been moved.

We’ve watched teachers, perennially underappreciated, continue to rise to the latest challenge thrown their way. Whether for dozens of students at a time or a small handful, we’ve seen you instructing your students online with a level of patience that puts the rest of us Zoom novices to shame. We’ve seen you innovate your teaching styles in what felt like a heartbeat, not because you wanted to but because your students needed you to. We’ve seen how much you care about the kids in your charge, and we have been moved.

And we’ve watched students, from kindergartners up through graduating seniors, shrug their shoulders at a pandemic that has adults pulling their hair out; it hasn’t stopped them from learning. We’ve watched you “go to school” online, watched you keep up with your friends on Snapchat and Twitch, watched you roll with every punch thrown your way. We’ve seen how you’ve balanced honesty—about your disappointment and anxiety, your fears and concerns—with hope for what comes next. We’ve seen how much we have to learn from you, and we have been moved.

For those of us outside the school system, it can be easy—too easy—to forget how instrumental our schools are to so many. But I hope you’ll believe me when I tell you that none of us are forgetting you right now. You have shown us too much for that, moved us too much, and yes, taught us too much.

So in this season when everything has been turned on its head, when it feels like none of the old rules apply and normal is a distant memory, let me add to your vertigo by saying something you don’t hear enough from folks outside the school system: thank you. We love you, we appreciate you, and we have been moved by you. Thank you for continuing to learn, and thank you for continuing to teach.