It's Spring Again! A Time to Grow and a Time to Change

Yes, I know, next week's weather forecast hints at the possibility of snow. However, it is a beautiful Spring day today! With Spring Break upon us, I am declaring that Spring has sprung.

It is an excellent opportunity to recharge, regroup, and finish the year strong. There are months left of learning and great opportunities for our students. Middle school is a time of such great change. Our students that enter as a large group of elementary kids develop and change over the years. They become more individual. More independent. More discerning of likes and dislikes. More conscious of where and how they fit in. More aware of being accepted or disenfranchised. Sometimes with ease; sometimes with a lot of pain. It is a process. Sometimes it takes all three years. Sometimes more. Through it all, the kids usually figure it out with support from family, friends, and teachers.

The next thing you know, it is 8th grade promotion night, and I find myself talking with parents wondering where the time went.

It is the same this year. As I reflect on my 10 years at GKMS, I think of the great kids, parents, and staff I have reached out to and those who have helped me learn and grow. I think of the great progress we have made. I have been truly lucky and consider it a privileged to have been a part of this great school for so long.

As Spring brings about new growth and change, I am fortunate to have a new opportunity. Next year I will be the principal of Kingston Elementary School. While GKMS will continue to move forward with leadership from Mr. McPherson and the great staff, I will have the opportunity to learn from the excellent and hard working staff at KES. Often, I have heard Mrs. Dudley praise the effort and dedication to kids that the KES staff commits to on a daily basis. I look forward to learning from them and playing a role in the process of continued growth and improvement of this already excellent school.