May 2019 | Chapter President Writes Letter to Area Families
Margaret wrote end-of-year thoughts in a letter especially for St. Croix Valley area GT families before school wraps up and people scatter to child care, the lake, camp, vacation, or other Summer activities. 2018-2019 has been a critical year for local advocacy, surfacing both challenges and opportunities.
We’ll excerpt parts of her letter below and encourage you to check page one for an upcoming June conversation with Woodbury and Stillwater area legislators about GT education in Minnesota. Related arrangements are still in motion — please email us if you would like to receive details as they become available. See our Summer 2019 flyer for quick bullet points from her letter.
Tip: Open Bookmarks in Your .pdf Reader for Links
The letter to area families contains several links to online resources and information. To access them, be sure to activate the Bookmarks feature on your .pdf reader.
See picture for an example screen shot from Adobe Acrobat Reader.
A Few Short Excerpts…
As this school year reaches its close, I am asking the same question that was on my mind as the year began: What’s needed to get people working together to move the needle forward for St. Croix Valley area GT learners?
Why am I asking this question? 2018-2019 has been a critical year for local advocacy, surfacing both challenges and opportunities…
Ask your student[s]: What went well for you this school year and what would you change? Guiding GT kids can be a complex journey, with few avenues to find others who can relate, share ideas, offer lessons learned, and guide you to relevant options. Meeting people on similar paths can make all the difference…
= Priority: More Voices =
Involving more voices is critical to strengthening student access to GT services in the St. Croix Valley. Conversations about how to support Minnesota’s GT students – including kids right here in our own communities – have greater power with diverse voices participating, including all stakeholders: students, families, educators, and local leaders…
So how do we improve on the status quo for kids? Start by joining MCGT and getting to know other families. Consider being part of our Chapter Leader Team. Sharing your story with legislators, school boards, and administrators also is key… We know of local efforts to gather with Stillwater and Woodbury area Minnesota legislators at a JUNE MEETING to discuss State education statutes and school funding for GT learners. Be part of that conversation – contact us to learn about developments still in progress…
= Seeing the Many Faces of GT Learners =
When educators and parents recognize the many faces of GT learners, we have a better chance of reaching kids with the right learning and social emotional supports. Minnesota’s GT learners come from families of all economic and cultural backgrounds…
= Summer Fun and Back-to-School =
Summer brings endless opportunities to dive deeply into kids’ interests and creativity… We will host two AUGUST events as the new school year approaches, MON 8/12 for elementary and WED 8/14 for middle/high school, to explore how to approach meeting student needs in 2019-2020; details will be at our website and in a Summer newsletter.
– Margaret T., Chapter President
