>>Valley Patriot>>

Lawrence Teachers Care
More Than Parents

On May 1st, students from across the nation were encouraged to take the day off from school to support amnesty for illegal aliens.

In Lawrence, more than 27% of the public school students played hooky that day. Perhaps that is because students were getting mixed signals. While Mayor Sullivan and Superintendent Laboy were publicly saying students should go to school on May 1st, one of their teachers, Pedro Payano, was on Spanish Language Radio and sending emails to the media encouraging kids to take the day off.

Despite one teacher’s bad behavior, however, the school department reported that attendance among teachers and staff on May 1st was higher than usual, meaning fewer teachers and school employees took the day off than on a normal Monday.

What this means is that the dedicated teachers and school employees charged with educating Lawrence’s children cared more about their kid’s future and their chances for success than the parents did.

Often the media is quick to point out when teachers behave badly in the community. As in the case of Pedro Payano, The Valley Patriot has certainly done that. But the media also has an obligation to publicly praise those teachers and school employees who come to work every day, those that do a job that most people wouldn’t do for twice the money, and some who go above and beyond what is expected of them.

It is sad that 27% of the parents in Lawrence care less about their own children than the teachers who are charged with educating them. But it is quite refreshing to see Lawrence teachers stepping up to the plate to fill the gap where parents have long stopped caring … and to make themselves available to all children of all races.

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The May, 2006 Edition of the Valley Patriot
The Valley Patriot is a Monthly Publication.
All Contents (C) 2006, Valley Patriot, Inc.
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