IWA Faculty/Staff Story Contest
Winning Submission
Mrs. Suarez's genuine and caring behavior exemplifies not only a great Catholic but also makes her an indispensable part of your staff.
As a mother who wants the best education for her children, I was under a tremendous amount of stress because my 7th grader was having great difficulty making an adjustment to a new school. From kinder to 5th grade, the maximum amount of students in each grade level was about 20 students. At our previous school, in 6th grade there were seven students. At IWA the adjustments were six new teachers, nine periods, keeping up with all homework assignments, all new faces, fitting in, a BIG ONE for 7th graders, and perhaps even more stressful, a hovering mother. Yes, I admit it. I found myself under more stress than she was. After three weeks of seeing her so unhappy, I made an appointment with a principal at another school with the intention of pulling her out of IWA. I was pulled in one direction thinking of her education and another direction thinking of her well being.
I called Mrs. Suarez, IWA Middle Level assistant to the principal, and explained the situation. I was amazed she knew just how I felt and what my daughter was going through. First of all, she said my daughter's feelings were very real and we needed to acknowledge them. Secondly, she suggested we review our choices. Yes, we could send her to another school, but that was not going to be the solution. On the contrary, Mrs. Suarez helped me realize that allowing my daughter to work through a stressful situation would benefit her more in the long run. In addition, she went the extra mile to help us with the situation. She got all her teachers and a couple of students involved.
We see how busy Mrs. Suarez is when we pass by the office, but she took the time. IWA does not just offer great education through their awesome teachers, but more importantly, a caring staff. I am not sure I would get the same genuine and caring response anywhere else.
For us it's been baby steps, but there has been some progress to the adjustment. The strength and endurance that my daughter is developing with this challenge will help her with other difficulties later in life. To others, this situation may not seem like a big deal, but to her and our family it was. I am sure we are not the first or last to find ourselves in this situation, but with the support provided by Mrs. Suarez and her initiative to team up with parents and teachers; we have all already succeeded in our common goal—education.
—Mrs. A. Ruiz
