National Teachers Week

At last we offer an editorial about love, hope and promise. And to think our main subject is about one of our biggest and most expensive government programs. How surprising for us to be praising Big Government.
This week is Teacher Appreciation Week and while we pause to salute the nearly 4,000 classroom teachers in Sonoma County, we also wish to add remarks about the success of all the other elements of our 184 schools and the other 4,300 employees who serve as aides, administrators, custodians, bus drivers and support staff. Our public schools, which have endured recent cycles of deep budget cuts, major curriculum overhaul and student population shifts, remain, perhaps, our most productive and successful government product.
The heart of our schools beats inside the chests of our classroom teachers. All teachers, from the newest to the most tenured, begin each day’s task from a place few others of us truly know about. Their daily lesson plan is all about love. Our teachers love each and every one of their students. The best teachers embody a one-to-one unconditional love for each of their many students, from the impressive high achievers to the confounding or contrary ones. At the end of each day, a teacher’s satisfaction is again measured by love — the simple love for learning and how many times they touched the curiosity, thirst or ambition of a single learner or small group of students.
Every student (and ex-student) has a favorite teacher. Every learner and future grownup can quickly list the one teacher that made a great impact on their life or career path — or literally saved their life. This week, our lucky local students are working with their favorite teachers. On average, a student will have 42 teachers during their K-12 learning career from kindergarten to middle school to high school advanced academics and sports coaches.
We need more teachers. In Sonoma County, almost one-third of our 3,824 teachers are over age 55 and eligible to retire. The average teacher age is 47 and the average teaching experience is 14 years. Three-fourths (77 percent) of our teachers are women and just six percent are Latino.
Besides all the love that gets shared on a daily basis, teaching is a good career choice that offers job stability, public employee benefits and career-long training. The median teacher salary in Sonoma County is $66,688.
“Teaching is a calling — a vocation devoted to the betterment of society. My desire to have an impact on the community and influence the next generation is what led me to the profession,” said Steve Herrington, county school superintendent.  “I believe it’s important for all of us to let Sonoma County’s teachers know that they are appreciated and valued. They are an essential part of our children’s lives and their work is key to the future of our communities.”
Herrington and the Sonoma County Office of Education (SCOE) recently launched several programs to attract more teaching candidates to county schools. A job fair in March co-sponsored by the West Sonoma County Union High School District attracted 200 job seekers. SCOE also has instituted a new fast track teacher intern program where classroom aides or others with previous experience or degrees can complete 160 hours of teacher training.
Another SCOE program, in partnership with Community First Credit Union, offers teacher candidates, interns and college students low-interest loans.
This week’s Teacher Appreciation Week should be celebrated as more than just a greeting card holiday. Numerous district, countywide and national “teacher of the year” awards will be announced this month and we congratulate these dedicated professionals. But they will be the first to tell the rest of us, that they are only representatives of their fellow educators, aides and school support staff who share a unique love that once shaped us all.
— Rollie Atkinson