WATERLOO — School staffers were reminded they are influential in shaping the lives of future generations as they gathered to mark the start of a new school year.
The Waterloo Community School District held its annual back-to-school event for staff on Thursday morning. West High School’s auditorium was packed with about 1,700 employees.
“(The event) is a great opportunity to bring all the staff together and really celebrate all the good things going on in our district,” Superintendent Jared Smith said.
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The overarching theme of the presentations and celebration was that employees — and their words and actions — matter.
“Your words are impactful. They have the potential to shape lives,” School Board President Sue Flynn said. “They motivate, they can challenge, they can provoke anger, they can provide the only bright spot in a student’s day. Your words do make a difference. Your words are often life-changing.”
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Gina Weekley — the district’s new director of equity, inclusion and belonging — gave a presentation on how her time as a student in Waterloo schools influenced her as an adult. The new position was created to enhance the district’s initiatives to support and enhance equity and inclusion for students and staff.
Weekley
After high school, Weekley left Iowa for Virginia because she was “afraid” to be herself in her home state. She later returned to Waterloo, even though many traumatic things happened to her while growing up here.
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She said she has a nine out of 10 Adverse Childhood Experience score. An ACE score is a tally of different types of abuse, neglect and other negatively impactful experiences. During her time at McKinstry elementary, which closed in 2009, she experienced the death of multiple family members, a parent dealing with alcoholism and a brother who was shot and ultimately went to prison.
“Society told me that I was built on a path to be less than, but it’s just because of a community just like this that I am (who) I am,” Weekley said.
Later while attending East High School, she said she was sexually assaulted by a caregiver. Weekley said she’s no longer ashamed of sharing her trauma. She is now using her personal experiences to teach others about equity.
“One thing I didn’t realize is that these educators were breaking down generational cycles for me,” she said. “They were teaching me how to cope … and this is why I came back to Waterloo. That is what equity is all about.”
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She later introduced her former first-grade teacher, Linda Watkins, to the crowd. She said Watkins was an example of equity in education.
Weekley said in school she often caused problems for teachers, but many of those educators took steps to help her be a better student. She told the crowd that every teacher should “choose one Gina” to help.
“If we want to change the trajectory of our community, of our school district, of our country, we gotta get it right,” she said. “That tough kid, get to know them, figure out exactly what they need. Because it might just be you.”
She noted equity has become a divisive concept in society but defined it as giving families, students and staff what they need to be successful and thrive. She said everyone in the room signed up to better children’s lives, but unconscious bias can get in the way.
“We all lead and learn and live by what we’ve been taught, what we have internalized,” she said. “If we don’t contest that and start disrupting those vicious cycles for kids like Gina, (they) will continue.”
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After Weekley’s presentation, Smith took the stage to lay out his plan and goals for the 2023-2024 school year. The main point, he said, is students come first. He hopes by the end of the school year, achievement improves by 10%, tracked through the annual Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress; attendance improves by 10%; and culture improves by 10%, which would be tracked through a survey.
Jared Smith
After becoming superintendent last year, Smith put in place a three-year plan. Last year’s plan was to reset the culture. He is trying to repair “broken relationships in the system” by asking all employees what they wanted from the district.
This year’s goal is to refine the system by making sure the district’s programs are effective. Next year, the goal will be to refresh the strategy and come up with a new district strategic plan. That strategic plan would be led by the Central Rivers Area Education Agency.
Superintendent Jared Smith speaks during the Waterloo Community School District’s staff back-to-school event at West High on Thursday.
Gina Weekley, Waterloo Community School District’s new director of equity, inclusion and belonging, speaks during the staff back-to-school event at West High on Thursday.
Highland Elementary faculty cheer as they win the Waterloo Schools Foundation’s trivia contest and are awarded $1,000 for the school during Waterloo Community School District’s staff back-to-school event at West High on Thursday.
Waterloo Community School District’s 1,700 faculty members gather at West High on Thursday for the district’s back-to-school event.
Amy Schmidt, Waterloo Community School District’s new director of secondary education and current director of K-12 career development, speaks during the staff back-to-school event at West High on Thursday.
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DES MOINES — A state-funded private school financial assistance package costing $345 million a year is headed to Gov. Kim Reynolds’ desk, where her signature would seal her top legislative priority into state law.
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More than a hundred individuals roughly split between supporters and opponents signed up to speak for up to two minutes each during the 90-minute hearing.
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