Support Skagit educators, kids

It’s time for school to start again, and it will start without most of us. And yet we will all be there in Skagit Valley classrooms. We’re there whether we’re positive and supportive: voting for levies and bonds, volunteering, sending encouragement to students and staff.

We’re also there if we’re negative and unsupportive. Our attitude toward education very much influences what happens in classrooms, and not just financially. Children who hear the adults around them valuing and respecting the schools and staff will have an easier time of succeeding. Communities that have successful schools reap the rewards. There’s a strong link between good schools and a healthy economy.

We need the best people to be educators. And yet, an education job is one of the most difficult and exhausting jobs there is. If there’s a public apathy about education on top of that, wouldn’t most talented people decide to put their efforts where they’d be more appreciated? We’re competing with the marketplace for the folks we hire into our districts. And every year, it’s a struggle to find and hire the staff who’ll make it all work.

So now here we are with our hiring mostly done, our supplies in, our classrooms ready and a fresh start for us all. Please find a way to get involved with your local school this year. Let educators know you appreciate them. And if you have a concern with how things are being run, either locally or at the state level, start asking questions; you’ll be amazed at what you find out.

Yes, I am a retired teacher.

Katy Armagost
Mount Vernon