These young ladies were hanging out with Amy Wallace in her administrative office at Northstar one day last week. Since they were having so much fun, I asked them for an interview, and they were all in for it.
They told me what makes a good friend and what they like about school at Northstar. They also tell me what they want to be when they grow up, and who their favorite popstar is!
Tamra Stevenson is a warm and welcoming presence in the library at the Middle School. Given the centrality of the library and the field of vision around it, she also sometimes serves as a much-needed traffic cop!
She and Sarah Davis invited me to watch an exercise where the students created poetry from the words on the spine of books. Among their goals were to get the students to put words together in interesting ways, appreciate poetry, and to get them interested in some of the books they used to make poetry.
And it worked! Congratulations to Sarah Davis and Tamra Stevenson. The kids had fun creating poetry and using the power of words. Several students stayed to check out books they had used. Part of the everyday success stories that happen in the Knoxville Public Schools!
Julie Purvis works with students at West Elementary who have difficulty speaking clearly. She tells me that her work is rewarding and that she works with approximately 50 students. In our interview, she shares what her career path has been, and she encourages anyone interested in speech pathology should “just go for it.” Below is our interview.
Julie and I were seated at the same table at a wedding Saturday evening, and during the reception, she told me that the lovely bride had just told her that she chose a career in speech pathology because Julie and her work had impressed her while in school.
We both got a little teary-eyed.
Great things happen in Knoxville schools!
We hope you enjoyed this edition of Panther Tales: Dr. Bob Goes Back to School. You will find it in your inbox early every Monday morning. If you enjoyed it, please share and encourage others to subscribe. Please consider being a paid subscriber. All proceeds go into the student activity fund. There are two subscription options. One is as an individual member, which is an investment of $5.00 a month or $50 per year. If you want to be a founding member, it’s a tax-deductible investment of $250 per year, and should you choose, we will recognize you at the bottom of every post for your donation. Please remember—it’s not a cost. It’s an investment. In our kids and grandkids, in Knoxville, and in our future.
Please share this newsletter with your family and friends!