Work Hard, Be Kind

Dear Escalante Community,

This week I had the opportunity to speak with all of our students during grade-level community meetings. My general message to students is fairly simple: work hard and be kind. My hope for them, and my own children for that matter, is that they learn to persevere when tasks are difficult, and that they treat others with respect and friendliness.

It is my firm belief that these two character skills can take a person very far. In fact, research indicates that the amount of grit a person has is a better indicator of post secondary success than raw intelligence tests. Simply put, work ethic trumps ability.

I also spoke to students very candidly about some traps I see kids fall into that undermine the hard working, kind community we strive to create. The first trap is very unique to our kid’s generation: social media. 95% of all students have already witnessed an act of cyber-bullying, and many students have already been victimized. The key to ending social media abuse is in empowering the bystander. Here are the steps on how parents and students should respond when they are victimized or witnessed cyberbullying:

S: Stop. Don’t Respond.

C: Copy. Make copies of all messages and pictures, and save cell phone texts and messages.

B: Block or filter communications.

T: Tell a trusted adult, either at home or at school.

Please review these guidelines with your child. Another great talking point with your child is to encourage them to never post anything they wouldn’t want their grandmother, or their principal to read. Many students have a very false sense of privacy and do not realize how quickly an inappropriate text or post can be publically forwarded and shared.
We also talked openly about illegal substances, particularly marijuana. Possession and/or distribution of illegal substances is by far the leading cause of expulsion in Colorado. I made it abundantly clear that illegal substances have no place in school and that school law dictates very harsh penalties for students who violate these laws. The link below provides parents with some advice about how to talk to your child about illegal substances:

http://kidshealth.org/en/parents/talk-about-drugs.html

On a final note, if you have concerns about bullying or feel that your child is unsafe at school, please let us know right away and encourage your children to report to an adult at school. Parents and students can contact any teacher, counselor or administrator with concerns, and I assure you that we will follow up as soon as possible.

Thank you for helping us build a strong culture at Escalante Middle School.

Sincerely,
Jeremy Voss
EMS, Principal

Published September 29, 2017 Print