Welcome to Southside High School! I am unbelievably excited and humbled to have been chosen as a member of the inaugural staff of this beautiful, state-of-the-art institution of learning and discovery. This is a unique opportunity for everyone involved -- including YOU! -- and I hope your family is as thrilled about the upcoming school year as the entire SHS faculty and staff is!

Please know that I have been working hard all summer to ensure that my teaching is as streamlined and modern as is the building into which your child will enter every day. Having stated that, please understand that this will be a year of change and growth for everyone involved. Therefore, please be as patient as possible with all parties involved -- our teachers, our staff members, our administration, and even our students. Being on a campus of this magnitude will be overwhelming. Going completely digital will be new for everyone. Understanding the expectations of all parties involved will take time.

But we are a TEAM - you, me, your child/my student, the entire staff of Southside High, and our LPSS community. We all know that it takes a village to guide young men and women toward having self-efficacy and a real sense of who they are in this world. I will be a part of your village, and I can promise you this: I will teach your child every day as if my own son or daughter is in the room. There is no higher standard to which I can hold myself. Should I ever fall short of this standard or of your own expectations of me as your child's educator, please do not hesitate to contact me. I strongly believe in transparency as a teacher, and I welcome the opportunity to share my teaching philosophies and practices with you. -Mrs. Gary

Parent Homework

I realize this is a novel concept. You have probably never before been asked to do anything like this. But I hope you are going to jump at this opportunity. I would like you to read the text below to understand where this concept came from. (After reading this myself, I was so profoundly moved that I did the exact same thing for my son Liam's preK-4 teacher a few years ago.)

Once you have read the letter, I want you to write me a letter about your child. I want to know him/her on a more connected level so that my interactions with him/her will always be conducted with the love you have for him/her somewhere within my subconscious. I think you will understand the purpose of my request once you read "An Indian Father's Plea" below.

I may not read your letter during the first week of school, and I probably won't respond to it, but I'm sure I will refer to it often. Thank you for your time and cooperation in this matter. I always love getting these letters and observing how they impact my perceptions of my students as the school year goes by.

*Please simply place your letter in a sealed envelope onto which you have written my name and send it to school with your child as soon as you have time to do so. And PLEASE KNOW that I am NOT expecting a three-page submission! (In fact, PLEASE don't give me more than I need. I will state what I tell my students when they ask me "how long does it have to be": It needs to be ENOUGH.) Again, thank you.