One aspect of the schooling

process that differs from most other professions is that we as teachers

and students get to "start over" each year, so to speak.

The beginning of every new school year presents us all with opportunities

to break bad habits, replace them with productive ones, and make other

positive changes in our behavior and attitudes that will benefit us for

a lifetime.

Just as many teachers return from having participated in summer training

activities that have sharpened their skills, most students are anxious

to begin a new period of learning and production with a clean slate.

Similar to New Year's Day, which is traditionally a time for people to

make resolutions and changes in behavior, a new school year affords us

all students, teachers, and parents the opportunity to resolve to make

learning the priority it should be.

Teachers are quite accustomed to these new beginnings. New job assignments,

locations, different graduation requirements, changes in standardized

tests, and new students are simply a fact of life for teachers.

This situation presents teachers with innumerable opportunities to continue

to answer our calling of influencing lives by providing guidance, shaping

attitudes and honing knowledge and skills with students.

We can learn from past mistakes and failures, try the latest methods and

approaches, and do what we do teach.

Students can also take advantage of the beginning of school to learn from

past mistakes and grow with past victories. They can resolve to listen

more actively, study more intently, participate more effectively and plan

more appropriately. The "starting over" that occurs each new

year is a great opportunity to begin new pages, chapters, and even volumes

in this important endeavor we call education.

We, as teachers, countless times have witnessed on the first day the arrival

of students coming back to school with attitudes totally improved from

the previous year. Their new clothes and supplies are symbols of their

fresh dedication to personal growth and progress. It is the effective

and sensitive teacher indeed who recognizes and supports this new at titude,

refusing to let reputation and past failures prejudice his or her mind.

Parents can perhaps be the most important part of this new beginning each

year. As our most influential partners and supporters, parents have the

opportunity to positively affect their students by setting goals and priorities

and by becoming actively involved in the education of their young people.

The best way to accomplish this task is by supporting your schools.

The annual Gallup poll regarding support for public education reveals

each year that those parents who are closely involved in their children's

school are much more supportive of those schools. The most important byproduct

of parents' close relationship with schools, however, is what their children

gain from the interchange: respect for school and authority, love for

learning, a good work ethic and healthy self esteem.

The beginning of each new school year is indeed an exciting time. The

new year signals the inevitable arrival of cooler temperatures, fall sports

and an increased awareness of the cyclic nature of events. Let's take

advantage of the new beginning we are afforded each year to set new goals,

celebrate new accomplishments, and continue the progress that makes our

community special.

Let's dedicate ourselves again to keeping Coweta County a place where

good schools are a great investment.