The tears flowed down my face. The words refused to come out of my mouth. I knew what I had to do. I never imagined it would be this hard… again. Then I finally said it, “I won’t be returning to Meadow Woods Elementary next year. The shocked faces came rushing up to hug me. Nearly four years later, the exact same sequence played out as it did before.
Before I could even move closer to Meadow Woods Elementary, my new principal mailed me a big box filled with Meadow Woods shirts, folders, pens, and books! Months later, the admin team welcomed us in pirate outfits and balloon decorations on a massive red carpet. My teaching partner was insanely talented. Teachers were constantly smiling and thriving! It was a dream come true!
Six months later in January, our principal, Dr. Vazquez announced she was being assigned to a new school and would be departing in a month. The very principal who finally understood what my philosophies were and was so supportive was leaving after less than a full school year. I was crushed.
The intern principal eventually became our permanent principal. Many things stayed the same, but some teachers departed after the school year. Things still felt Meadow Woods magical, so I stayed.
The next year, Ms. Vargas and Ms. Seijos joined our 4th grade team. They were great additions. The team was much more cohesive than the year before. When situations were challenging for any teammate, we were united; so much so that we won a few schoolwide competitions and hung out after school a few times. Meanwhile for me, just like the year before I was still doing my classroom transformations and dressing up. My reputation had grown immensely. … However, this year did see a massive exodus of teachers. Things were slowly unraveling…
Year three at Meadow Woods would be my favorite year. The class I inherited would quickly grow to become one of my favorite ones I’ve ever taught and it was a bonus to keep them all day. We could be funny for one second, then flip the switch and be serious the next second. They understood me and I understood them. Before the school year, I secretly created a group text between Ms. Vargas, Ms. Seijos, and I. It was known we were a strong trio. This year was extremely fun between the three of us! We competed against one another and often pranked each other’s classes. At the end of the year we even did a huge science celebration with Mentos and Diet Coke, a kickball game, and threw water balloons! Despite the year we had, we saw the disconnect between our principal, admin, and teachers growing apart. Our days of staying were numbered, and we openly acknowledged it.
Year four for me started off the best way possible. I did three room transformations in 4 weeks and in the meantime won the Teacher of the Year! To top it off Ms. Vargas, Ms. Seijos, and I would only be teaching math and science. That meant we’d be teaming up 24/7 and attending the same meetings. This year seemed like a shoe in for the BEST YEAR EVER!
Unfortunately, many things factored why it wasn’t for many teachers. For me, those things are well documented in my blogs during this school year. The most common among the entire school was lack of support and consequences for misbehaviors. As the misbehaviors were spreading, so was the toxicity amongst teachers and admin. Admin were very open about the disconnect and professionalism they had with our principal. The toxicity got to the point where our area superintendent talked to every teacher. It was heartbreaking. The clock was ticking…
Then the first domino fell. Ms. Vargas sent her resume to two places. The news hit Ms. Seijos and I pretty hard. We knew she meant it this time and our strong trio would likely be crumbling to an end. I quickly updated my resume and landed an interview within a week. Ms. Seijos, with some of friendly reminders got hers done. After lots of conversations with Ms. Vargas, Ms. Seijos, and other trusted friends and family, I was the first to accept a job. Ms. Seijos and Ms. Vargas would accept there’s two months later. I’m happy to say they’ll be working together, and we’ll be lifelong friends.
My time at Meadow Woods Elementary was extraordinary because of the students, teachers, and parents! I don’t have any regrets. I was there to serve them. Every day I gave it my best shot! I loved what I did and never apologized for doing what best for students and teachers. I hope I did a good job. In the process I met some teachers that I’m optimistic I’ll call my friends and mentors forever. Shoutout to… the custodians, the cooks, Ms. Seijos, Ms. Vargas, Ms. Bennett, Ms. Weber, Ms. Gonzalez, Ms. Rodriguez, Ms. Fernandez, Ms. Craig, Dr. Vazquez, and Ms. Fox. More importantly, thank you to the 150 students I taught. Thank you for letting me be your teacher and being so accepting of my energy, outfits, and ideas! I wish you nothing but success and happiness!
Goodbye, Meadow Woods Elementary!
