Greetings, Thompson Community:
Several weeks ago, I had the opportunity to attend and participate in the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Loveland community celebration at Mountain View High School. The evening was highlighted by terrific speakers, student essays and artwork contest champions, music, dance, and song. The event was special and magical, and for this moment in time, our community once again coalesced around the good and the positive while maintaining hope and optimism.
As the month of February welcomes Black History Month, Valentine’s Day, American Heart Month, World Cancer Day, and School Counseling Week, to name just a few, I take great solace in the fact that there is the potential for continued good and positive, and yes, even love within our community. Thompson School District proudly maintains one of the first educational equity policies in the state of Colorado.
At its most primal level, the policy works to ensure that each of our nearly 15,000 students has access and opportunity to enjoy an educational experience that allows them to achieve and flourish at their fullest potential while seeking to disrupt barriers and obstacles that might interfere with this quest. This policy was put into place for each and every one of our students – not some, and not a few, but for each, every, and all of them.
We must recognize that for some students, barriers and obstacles toward this quest of reaching one’s fullest potential might be food insecurity, housing instability, and/or financial struggle. Other students may have a learning challenge, physical disability, or cognitive impairment. Some students may struggle social-emotionally or even with thoughts of depression, sadness, or self-worth.
We have some students who wrestle with substance abuse while others face challenges with peers, classmates, or family members. Finally, some students are confronted with barriers as a result of language, culture, skin color, religious affiliation, sexual orientation, and gender identity.
When our nearly 15,000 students show up each day to learn, grow, experience, and develop, we must meet them where they are and be able to recognize that in order to provide educational experiences, some students carry burdens and challenges that ultimately interfere with their ability to fully engage and be available for learning. As an educational institution and a community, we exist to support students to reach their fullest and greatest potential.
We must, at the same time, create environments and learning conditions that are safe, comfortable, welcoming, and inclusive for each of our students. I see this as the true and ultimate purpose of our Educational Equity Policy and, in many ways, an intersection with the themes within the month of February of love, tolerance, peace, and support.
I have just returned from an educational mission trip in the country of Guatemala. I had the opportunity to join a group of educational leaders and professionals from across the United States and Canada, working together to build a school in a rural town using the sustainable product of recyclable beverage bottles. The experience was eye-opening and provided a unique and authentic learning opportunity for me that helped to reshape my worldview and perspective on many things.
Perhaps the most salient takeaway for me as I apply it to my role as the Superintendent of Schools for Thompson School District is that children in every community have hopes, dreams, and optimism. While we may take for granted material possessions and other comforts, the great equalizers in our communities are schools and education. In this rural town, the building of the new school was a community endeavor. We were joined by students, teachers, and town residents, working side-by-side and hand-in-hand to create the walls and structures of this new school addition.
While language and cultural barriers existed, the group was united around the creation of this school, which will ultimately serve as an institution of learning as well as a place for students to grow and develop into their futures. The joy, excitement, laughter, and sincere appreciation were extraordinarily rewarding and fulfilling for me as I had a hand in helping to create the future for current and future generations of students within this school.
As I circle back to my current role as an educational leader here in Thompson School District, I would like to believe that, metaphorically, I continue to build schools and futures for our current and future students through our Strategic Plan and our Educational Equity Policy. This mission trip reignited my passion and interest in public education and, at the same time, reminded me that schools exist to inspire and develop the hopes, dreams, aspirations, and limitless possibilities for our students.
As the proud Superintendent of the Thompson School District, I believe that our community and families entrust the school district to provide the very best educational experiences and opportunities for our students; I take this responsibility to heart each and every day, just like I know our nearly 2,100 employees do. I am a community member, a parent, and an employee of this school district.
I do embrace the ideals of supporting the whole child as well as working to create learning environments that “Empower students to learn, challenge them to achieve, and inspire them to excel.” These are not just words on a page but our mission and compass within Thompson School District. I wish you all a wonderful February! Thank you for your continued support.
Sincerely,
Dr. Marc Schaffer
Superintendent
Thompson School District