September 7, 2007

Dear Parents,

Welcome back to another year at Edison School! I have thoroughly enjoyed seeing and interacting with your children during this first week. It is amazing how much kids grow over the summer! Our staff is ready and excited for another great year. We are lucky to work in such an amazing community.

Last May I had the opportunity to meet with our Parent Group regarding a citizenship program we were considering implementing here at Edison School. I received much positive feedback at that time. After thoughtful research and consideration our staff decided the program would allow a great school to become even greater. I wrote a letter to all of our families last June explaining that we would be starting the Make Your Day Citizenship program this school year. I also referenced a website (www.makeyourdayparents.com) parents could access for more information regarding the program and invited you in to discuss any questions you had with me at that time.

The Make Your Day program is built around the following rule and expectations: No one has the right to interfere with the learning, safety, or well-being of others. Do what is expected and do the best you can. The basic tenets of the program’s philosophy are built on human dignity, respect, and responsibility.  Next week you will be receiving our updated parent handbook. In the handbook the program is described in greater detail.

Six years ago I was the principal of a school in our district that decided to implement this program.  As with any new program, there were lots of questions and concerns in the first few months of implementation. However, once parents began to understand the program they were strongly supportive. In fact, we had a long waiting list of families that wanted to attend our school because of the program! At this time four out of five of the K-8 schools in our district use Make Your Day. As a parent of three children in our district and as an educator, I wholeheartedly support a program that gets our students to focus on personal responsibility and respect for others.

Our staff received two days of extensive training right before school started regarding the philosophy and logistics of Make Your Day. If you have any questions regarding our implementation, please don’t hesitate to ask. As with any issue, I am always more than happy to meet with anyone to listen to and address any concerns. I will be having informal meetings over the next several months for parents to come in and talk about our program. Please call the school to schedule a time.

Thanks for all you do to help us make this such a great place for kids. I am confident we are off to another phenomenal year here at Edison School.

Sincerely,