Dear Student: Rethinking Assignment Deadlines

Dear Student,

I realize that your life is complicated.

I know you have family commitments. I know your mom and dad fight or maybe they don't because you don't have one or either. I know you might live with grandma or big brother or foster mom and things can be busy. I know that even if you are fortunate enough to live with your biological parents who are happily married, they might be stressed and yell at you for no reason. They may have high expectations for you and expect everything to be done a certain way and it drives you crazy and you are simply trying to reach their goals for you.

The List

I'm sure we can all look through the rosters from year to year and remember a lot of the students: their faces, their handwriting, where they liked to sit, who they laughed with. But I want to talk about the students that stay with us. The names, that even ten or twenty years later, we know we will never forget.

There are many students on my list that I remember fondly, a few that I even meet for lunch from time to time. There are dozens of students who have now friended me on Facebook and I enjoy seeing the photos they post from college and beyond, some have even posted wedding photos. Though I might not see them frequently, it's nice to know they are out in this wonderful world, chasing their dreams. These aren't the students I want to address today either.

I have another list: the ones I worry about. It's a list that changes as time passes.

These students might not even realize that I am still worried about them, still betting on them, still hoping that life will be kind to them. They probably don't realize how deeply my experience with them still affects me. I would like to hate their stories, as I know them, with you.