Irises in the style of Vincent van Gogh created by fifth grade students grace the office. They show the quality that can be achieved by children when quality is the goal. Too often our society settles for just getting the job done. I am reminded of a story about the “five dollar job.” A young man was mowing lawns to earn money. He was mowing one lady’s lawn and she promised five dollars when he met her standards. She kept demanding more and more of him, until he performed, and she recognized, the “five dollar job.” It was more than just running the mower over the lawn and moving on. It was nurturing the lawn, tidying up the messy edges, and cleaning up the mess. The young man had accomplished what he thought was impossible – he had done something worthy of praise – he had done the “five dollar job.”  

            I am so proud of the dedication and skill of St. Paul’s teachers. Each day they seek the best in the children they teach. They nurture. They encourage. They guide. They discipline. They reinforce skills and build new ones. They set goals for depth and quality. They do more than just check the boxes on the curriculum guides. They give their hearts and souls to the children they teach, even as more and more is demanded of them because of the nature of our society. Each day they perform “five dollar jobs.”

We value the consistent use of basic manners – please, thank you, and respect for adults. We are aware that family stress often carries over to school. We try to build a sense of community by emphasizing cooperation, responsiiblity and kindness in our daily endeavors. Some children are heavily scheduled with lessons and activities, leaving little time for preparation for school and resting. Video games and television are filling more and more of our students’ time at home. We seek a healthy balance, with time for relaxation and rest.

Unfortunately, children are bombarded with advertisements, television programs, video games, and written materials that are inappropriately violent and sexually explicit for their age. They are exposed to lots of information, no matter how careful we are as parents, without a framework to put it into perspective. It seems that a common form of humor is “dissing” someone, or just being rude. Genuine apologies are more and more frequently replaced by a glib: “Am I bad?” Personal responsibility too often takes a back seat to trying to find someone else to blame. Many public role models for our children are blatantly extreme, shocking, and irresponsible. School officials are asking for a police presence in some of our local public middle schools and high schools because of violence and drugs on campus. 

We seek to provide a safe haven for our precious children. St. Paul’s was founded by members of the parish who had common standards and goals for their children. As society changes, its standards change. We strive to stay true to the values set forth in our mission statement (About St. Paul’s). High on the list are respect (for God, adults, self and others), honesty, kindness, trustworthiness, friendliness, personal responsibility, and worship of God.  

We have a few simple rules designed to assist in developing the standards in which we believe. Expectations for student conduct, including our dress code, are a part of the overall philosophy of St. Paul’s. We are not here to adopt every fad of fashion, or merely to provide entertainment. We are here to nurture, affirm, guide, educate, and worship God. We welcome families of all faiths and believe that the body of Christ is for all people.

We strive each day to perform the “five dollar job” for every child in our care. This week a third grade child (who could only read “it,” “the,” and “and” at the beginning of the year) read a story to me – carefully decoding words that were unfamiliar – a tribute to his extraordinary efforts and those of his teachers. Irises in the style of Vincent van Gogh, a story read aloud, and a broken heart on a child’s report about Lincoln - just three indications among many that we are performing "five dollar jobs." 

                                                            God’s peace,

                                                            Victoria A. Cloninger