This is part two of my series highlighting the wonderful employees of the Bentonville Public Schools.
Think back to the first interaction you had with a person in this school district. More than likely, it was a positive experience that involved one of our hard-working classified employees. If you have any daily contact with our school district, you have been impacted by one of these employees. They are our nurses, secretaries, registrars, receptionists, bookkeepers, bus drivers and aides. They are the unsung heroes who tirelessly work behind the scenes.
The spirit of our classified employees exemplifies our school district’s mission statement: “Excellence with Every Step.” They represent the first step, or first impression, the community has of our school district. As they step out into their jobs every day, these dedicated employees embody putting our best foot forward. They are our first responders — the ones who man the front office, answer the phones, direct traffic, transport our most prized possessions to and from school each day and take care of those prized possessions when they are sick.
These employees function as our children’s daily life preservers and are occasionally life savers. The gifted nurses we are blessed with and our conscientious bus drivers save lives through their actions on a daily basis. I can also state with certainty our aides and front office staff could qualify for this life saver tag as well. They assist our nurses with students who have been sick or injured and provide moral support to students, staff and even parents who are having a challenging day.
Finally, these employees help each teacher, principal and even superintendent stay in step and function more efficiently as they assist us in the jobs we all hold.
Day after day, these unsung heroes make our school district more successful. As a result of their skills, their passion and their work ethic, the Bentonville community is a safer and better place. I hope each person who reads this article will take time to thank our wonderful classified staff members.
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Michael Poore is superintendent of the Bentonville School District.