In Honor of Teachers, let's Stand Up

It's Teacher Appreciation Week, and even though I haven't been in a classroom for nearly a decade, just about every day I think of some lesson that I learned in one. 

I remember reading about Atticus Finch, of "To Kill A Mockingbird," and rethinking what it was to live nobly. I remember Mrs. Gargiulo, who cried at the end of "1,000 Paper Cranes" — that moment to this very day helps me identify with those on the other side of a conflict I find myself in. I remember how the great teachers could take something that I thought would be boring or unimportant, and imbue it with magic until I was hooked. 

Teacher Appreciation Week makes me think of my mother, who is one of those great teachers, waking up before 5 to grade papers or staying up past midnight to plan her lessons. But more impressive than all the impossibly long hours is the impossibly long line of students who lives she has touched. (Happy Mothers Day, mom). 

But not all the reminders are sweet. I'm also aware that approximately 700 Massachusetts educators could lose their jobs soon as a result of severe budget cuts in Congress according to the NEA. 

I'm aware that local Head Start early education programs are closing down weeks early because of reduced funds. 

This Teacher Appreciation Week, we should remember the gifts that our teachers have given us. But we should also make sure that our kids and grandkids get the kind of education they deserve, and stand up against education cuts in Congress.