Things are really heating up in the run for President.  The presidential debate will be respectful, insightful and outline a clear direction for all of the voters.  You may be asking yourself right now, “Has Mr. Chomlak gone mad?”. Well, the answer is, not yet! My comments about the debate are not referring to the interesting political race of our southern neighbors, but rather the grade 6 Student Council elections.  Each year, the students in grade 6 engage in the democratic experience of running for a position, campaigning, making promises, and then going to the poles to elect their leaders.  I would bet that after reading the first few lines of my message, you assumed I was referring to the US elections. This assumption leads to my point of this message which is that jumping to conclusions can be quite misleading.  Every day at school there are thousands of interactions between our teachers, education assistants, and students and it is important for all of us to know the facts before jumping to conclusions.  As the Principal, I try to investigate any concerns from parents, students, or teachers and then decide on a course of action based on what I learn.  When there is an issue in the classroom, the teachers listen to all sides of the story before making decisions.  For parents, I encourage you to listen to any of your child’s concerns, acknowledge them, and then investigate them further if you are still concerned. In my experience, there is often much more to a story than one initially believes. Throughout all of this, it is important for us all to remember that the school and home are partners and that our goal is to work together to do what is best for your children.   I wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving and Spooktacular Halloween!

Mr. Chomlak