Joelle and her family are integral to the Waverly School District community. Joelle’s mom has worked in the main office for over thirty years, keeping the administration running and the paychecks arriving on time. A 2013 graduate of Waverly, Joelle now calls many of her former teachers colleagues. She has successfully made this transition, even with the teacher who gave her the one and only detention of her school years! 

 

It is obvious that Joelle and her work are woven into the fabric of the school. During our conversation, she is interrupted a few times by teachers with questions. She seamlessly attends to them and dives right back into our chat. We imagine that the teachers and administration like Joelle and appreciate her work. She started this program for preschool families, and its success led to an invitation from district Superintendent, Dr. Guerrero, to expand to all schools. Engaging the broader community helps parents and students to feel more connected to their school and each other. Instead of just battling over whether homework is done, parent and child can read the free book they got from a Parents’ Night and discuss it over dinner. Parents get to meet various teachers and staff and likely have opportunities to chat in a more informal setting than a parent-teacher conference. 

 

The Parents’ Night activities also reinforce and build on learning and skills that students need. Digging into the Halloween-themed “squishy tomato eyeballs” and “spaghetti guts” promoted sensory and motor skills. Making Christmas ornaments and decorating their own holiday cookies allowed students to be creative and artsy. 

 

Joelle is always thinking of new and interesting activities and partnerships. In November, she had a local animal rescue teach participants about local ecosystems with live animals. As we were talking, the Waverly Holiday Tournament (a local tradition) came up and she immediately thought of partnering with them for a future event. Linking families up with community organizations is another way to expand the range of connections and interactions throughout Waverly. 

 

Reflecting on her own student days, she recalls a time when she could be carefree and have fun with friends while also learning. Clearly, she is passionate about recreating this experience for today’s students and parents. And we expect that she is building something that will bring joy and insight to families for years to come—-even when her now eight-month-old daughter, Avery, is walking these halls. To Joelle, “family is everything,” and her Waverly family is several hundred people strong!