Administrator's Corner
Archived Posts
Welcome to the Administrator's Corner. Shawn Gonyaw, Principal of Marion Cross School, and Greg Bagnato, Student Services Coordinator will post their weekly messages here. The intent is to keep you updated on important topics that are happening at school.
These posts can also be found in the weekly Who's Wise Words newsletter, which we highly encourage you to read. We hope you find all this information helpful, informative and fun. We encourage you to reach out to us with questions and comments.
Regards,
Shawn and Greg
Most Recent Post:
Week of May 17 - 21
Message From The Principal |
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I am hopeful that you have found time to enjoy the sunshine and beautiful weather that has come our way. Recently, I have enjoyed a problem during morning check in, which is the sun shining in my eyes...so much easier to solve than rain, snow, and bitter cold mornings! This week I wanted to highlight the importance of that age old adage, “Treat people the way you would like to be treated.” I was proud of our sixth grade student who had the courage to write a letter to the editor in the Valley News sharing her experience while waiting in line at Dan and Whit's for ice cream. One of the aspects of being principal at MCS that I have appreciated is the warm, welcoming culture of the Norwich community. To me, this community is idealistic in the way people are treated with kindness. The letter saddened me on two accounts. First, I was sad that after the extensive work that Guidance Counselor Katie Cormier, Nurse Pam, Greg Bagnato, and classroom teachers have done with our students centered on being inclusive and not using hateful and hurtful language that this type of situation would occur. Second, it made me sad that other adults in the community could hear these comments and not step up and intervene on behalf of the child. Throughout the week, I read the various notes of support on the Norwich Listserv and the emails of support sent my way. They were heartening, but still left me with the reality that in the moment when one of our children needed an adult, or another student, to be an upstander, the people present fell short. As a child, I grew up in a small Vermont town surrounded by relatives (I had the good fortune to have 36 aunts and uncles) and neighbors who were like family. Often, the greatest lessons learned were not from school or home, but rather in watching how the adults interacted and in the conversations I had with trusted adults in my community. I remember one such time when an older relative overheard a group of my cousins and me gossiping about a student at our school. She took the time to have a conversation about the ripple effect that our negativity could send through our community and how long hateful comments stick with another person. Her taking the time in the moment to kindly share her thoughts and set an expectation of kindness stuck with me for a lifetime. My hope is that the letter published in the Valley News will have that impact and stick with all of us. It certainly takes a strong, kind, caring village to raise children who grow up to make the world a better place. Please keep your ears open when in line at the ice cream shop, out on the playground, and in other public places. Listen to what the children and adults are saying. And please be an upstander; your worlds are powerful and can make a difference. Life lessons can happen anywhere and come from anyone. Finally, a huge shoutout and thank you to Roxy for her willingness to share her experience and her prompt to remind us all to expect more and do better. Enjoy the weekend, *In the event that you were not able to read the letter that Roxy submitted to the Valley News, she has graciously allowed me to republish it in Cross Words.
Targeted by a hateful slur, and no help from grown-ups. I am 12 years old, a sixth grader at Marion Cross Elementary School, and an out lesbian to my family, friends and the students in my grade. Recently I was outside Dan & Whit's with my brother, buying ice cream. In front of us in line were two people from my school. They were having a normal conversation, until one noticed me, turned around to his friends, and loudly announced- - literally announced- "Lesbo!" For those who don't know, "lesbo" is an offensive and derogatory term for lesbians. Then the perpetrators whispered among themselves and mocked my younger brother. I was shocked, angry, sad, confused and shamed. These are the kinds of emotions hate speech evokes. I don't know the person who said this well, so I prayed someone else -- preferably an adult -- would intervene. But no one did. Of the 15 or so grown-ups in the area, I'm guessing seven or more heard this remark. Not one of them told the boys in line to knock it off, that they can't say that insulting stuff to other kids. All those people from my small town just walked on by, ignoring the slur. If you witness something like what I just described, please help. These painful experiences can cause trouble later in life, and (I already know) they build up. Kids should be held accountable for shouting this kind of language at others. I shouldn't have to fight as one person against this societal hate impressed into young minds. I need reinforcement in the moment. The irony of it all is that incident happened right under the nice banner that says "Hate Does Not Grow in the Rocky Soil of Norwich, Vermont." After this experience, I'm not so sure about that. Does it? Roxana Sharlet Message From Student Services It is amazing that we have only three Fridays left in the school year! Students and teachers have worked incredibly hard to get to this spot. In an effort to celebrate a little at the end of each week, we have decided to have special dress up days on the next three Fridays. Here are the details:
Have a great weekend, |
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