I have been in education for over 25 years. I started as a classroom teacher, then a reading/math interventionist, school support, and back to the classroom. As a school support teacher, I was a cross between a guidance counselor and an administrator. I have degrees in both areas. I would do guidance lessons, meet with small groups and connect with parents.

One of the most important parts of the job was to build relationships. One year, I had a particularly difficult group of 5th grade boys that seemed to always be getting into trouble. Some of the boys I worked with in previous years and some were new to the school that year. They were not only having difficulty at school (not completing assignments, getting into fights, general disrespect), but outside of school as well. They all had one thing in common, they came from single parent households and were living with their moms. Most did not have a father figure in their lives. I had to walk a fine line with these boys...I needed to earn their trust but I had to also work with them on being respectful and follow the school rules. I came up with an idea of having the School Resource Officer come and work with these boys as well. I got permission from all of the parents (they were all grateful) and we met once a week during lunch. The Resource Officer was a gentleman so the hope was that he would be a trusted male authority figure for them. The lunches were full of great discussions and and relationships were being built. 

Then one day, I got notice from my husband that we would be moving for his job for about 2 years and I would be leaving my position before the school year was over. My heart sunk. I really enjoyed this job and I know how important the relationships were and I felt like I was abandoning them. During one of our lunches, I had to tell the boys about my move. It was a hard day and there were tears. However, after telling everyone, one of the boys said, "What are we going to do without Mrs. B?" The officer asked what he meant by his comment and he replied, "She's just fair." That was the biggest compliment I could have ever gotten. It had nothing to do with education per say, but our relationship. The other boys also expressed their thoughts. I hugged all of them and told them how much I would miss them, but knew they would be okay. Luckily, the Resource Officer was able to continue to meet with them weekly and they finished the year strong. I always knew that relationships were important to being a successful educator, but this solidified that for me and I will never forget it.