MESSAGE FROM BOARD PRESIDENT JOHN KENWOOD

on behalf of the Board of Education

Dear District 41 Families,
 

I hope you are having a great start to the school year!

 With the start of a new school year, I had the privilege to address the teachers and staff at the D41 welcome back event. As I welcomed the room of nearly 300 staff members, I was struck by the energy and excitement of the day.  It was a mirror image of what we see in our kids as we drop them off for the first day of school.   The buzz in the room was contagious.

 The theme of my speech, was to thank staff for all the countless moments of learning and nurturing they provide to our kids during the school year.  Our kids spend almost 50% of their days a year in their hands over 9 years.  During that time, our kids will develop 30 to 40 relationships with our staff.  What staff does makes a difference and matters, and we are fortunate to have such a talented group of people in our district.

 All three of my children graduated from D41, so I shared the personal experience of my kids going through the district as a way to thank staff for everything they did to develop both their academic capabilities, and social emotional development. It was with great pride that I shared how far they have come, and how prepared they were for the transition to high school. I encouraged staff to continue making a difference in the lives of all of our children. Immediately after the event, I drove my son Meaulnes to college for the first time. Thanks to the teachers and staff, of Districts 41 and 87, my son had the educational foundation to build on and is now successfully moving on to the next phase in his life.

 In addition to our teachers and staff, our D41 families have a significant impact on the success of each student.  Involved parents at home and in our schools make all the difference in the world.  We are fortunate to have such an involved parent community in District 41.  As we move through this year, I hope to see and meet many of you.  Please feel free to contact me, and all of the members of our Board of Education.  Let us know what is going well and what questions or challenges we can help navigate. We welcome your participation.

 In an earlier email from Superintendent Paul Gordon, he mentioned a new event for the district. Paul will be presenting a State of the District Address on Tuesday, September 30 at 6:30 p.m. at Hadley.  I hope all of our families will attend and hear about what is happening in our district and where we are going in the future. In addition, we will be hosting a number of community events throughout the year. The School Board looks forward to engaging with you.

 Thank you,