As we enter the 2020-21 school year, I keep thinking about what our students will say about us 50 years from now. As I enter my third year as Superintendent of PCSSD, I feel strongly that our students will look back and say that we provided an educational experience that conquered fear and isolation. We will accomplish this by reinforcing our social contract with schooling, governance and the economy that affords all citizens the opportunity to live a good life. A good life free of discrimination, free of false promises, and free of paralyzing fear. I know this to be true because I have met so many parents, students, community members, and professionals whose passion and commitment to our communities is authentic and rooted in hard work founded upon a deep pride for family, neighborhood, town, and the beautiful state of Arkansas!

Without question, this year will challenge us! There will be times we take two steps forward, then find ourselves three steps back. We will see what we consider as fact and best practice fall to the wayside as we LEARN of better ways to build a stronger educational community. Yet, through all this uncertainty we will focus on students and the skills they need to truly transform their lives and our communities. To do this, we have added Schoology as a Learning Management System (LMS) where all our curriculum can be found and our Big Rocks initiatives of AVID and PBIS can be supported. Through Schoology, students who have chosen a face-to-face educational experience will be taught with students choosing an A/B experience, at the same time. Schoology will also be utilized for all digital learning students to ensure that when all students physically return to the schools we will not have students learning different sets of curriculum.

Finally, our public schools can rise to these difficult times and overcome the challenges that face our students and their families together! We should have disagreements because that is the essence of healthy learning opportunities in a democratic society. We are always striving to get better here at PCSSD. I walk into this school year confident that 50 years from now our students will be grateful for the commitment we, as stakeholders in their future, had for the life they carved out for themselves.