Good morning, County. Happy Tuesday.
I hope that many of you were able to find some time to relax, (as best as is currently possible) over the weekend, and perhaps enjoy some of the sunshine.
We are currently moving into the next week of the learning plan, and I am aware that there have been some struggles, for sure. At this time, there are still a great many unanswered questions about “reasonable” expectations for teachers, and some fairly burning questions about assessment.
I am doing my very best to provide as much guidance as I can as concerns come in, but much like all of you, this is fairly uncharted territory. Due to the rather fragmented nature of how this is moving forward, I need to deal with the issues as they arise, on a school by school basis. If you have a concern, please send it to me, along with your name and your school and I will do my best to get your question answered.
In the meantime, I saw this advice in a tweet from former NSTU President turned CTF President Shelley Morse this weekend, and I thought it a rather fitting.
Remember, do the best you can with what you have. You will be no good to your family, your colleagues or your students if you burn yourself out trying to meet expectations that are unrealistic for you at this time.
Now, I do want to end with some feel good news. Last week, your Local executive unanimously passed a motion to make donations to local charities to the tune of $2500.00 which will be split between two groups. We are looking at supporting one youth shelter and one women’s shelter, both located in metro. The NSTU central office will top those donations up with an additional $500.00. That will allow us to grant $1500.00 to each group.
Considering that our operating costs are going to be significantly reduced during our current shut down, we will be looking to find more ways to help out in the coming weeks.
That’s it for today, County. Reach out with your questions and stay safe.