I have lost another student.... third one this year ;...(

[liberalitch]

In November Jackie Ward died of a heart condition, two months later her brother Joe died of the same condition.
This weekend a former student (Jermaine Ownes) was taken by violence.... a really stupid thing!

WHY?
... It's not supposed to be like this.
... I'm supposed to see these kids at the flea market 20 years from now with their families in tow.

[AverageJoe]

1. I am so sorry

I'm a teacher, too. I'm lucky. So far, I've only lost one student, a kid who died in a car wreck after our first class meeting.

I can't imagine how it feels to lose three that you knew and cared about.

I know that this probably doesn't help much, but hang in there. I'm thinking of you.

[liberalitch]

3. Thanks, it does help.

I think that the people in charge of our country don't think enough about the human element behind the kids who fill these chairs..... even when one of those chairs is empty

[Padraig18]

2. I'm so sorry.

:hug:

[BrklynLiberal]

4. I can't prove it beyond a doubt, but somehow I feel that W and his

minions are responsible...due to decreasing funding for health care, education, jobs, after school activities, and other programs that would have prolonged these kids' lives.

[liberalitch]

7. The Ward family clearly would have benefited from free...

heart health screening...

In addition..... we all know that the morally bankrupt programs of this administration have eliminated the programs that would have gotten Jermaine in college or vocational ed. instead of out on the street.... for him High school was the end

[Warpy]

5. When I remember my teenage years with a shudder

I have to wonder how any of us made it out alive.

Losing three out of the class in one year is too much, though.

[knitter4democracy]

6. My mom went through a year like that.

She taught high school art for 35 years and lost 40 students overall. One year, we lost two kids within a month of each other (to the day)--one to a stupid hit and run accident and the other to suicide. I've never seen her cry like that since. It's a mostly rural town in mid-Michigan, but we had our share of death. It was really hard.

I'm so very sorry. I was lucky when I taught that no students died, but I lost two good teacher friends in six months of each other to cancer. It's hard to keep going sometimes and sit at the desk and not cry. It's hard to have the students move on and do the next book or the next essay when all you want to do is have them write about their pain or cry.

Blessings to you and your school community.

[liberalitch]

8. Sorry... NCLB dictates leave NO time for grief....

sorry kids... shake it off and get over it!

[knitter4democracy]

9. Sure feels like that.

And I taught before NCLB. :-(