Serve and Protect

We all know that police officers and fire fighters put their lives on the line every day to serve and protect but did you ever think that your neighborhood schools might be full of individuals that would gladly sacrifice themselves in order to protect your children? 

When I was growing up we would have never considered teaching a dangerous profession but in today’s world that is what we have seen it become.  We have seen teachers shield children from the bullets of a mad man and we have witnessed teachers using their bodies to shield children from the ravages of a tornado.  Does your job entail sacrificing yourself to save others?  Mine doesn’t.

What saddens me is that the very people who are willing to risk everything to protect your children are not given the respect their education and dedication deserve.  They are often looked upon as glorified babysitters rather than the educators that they are.  They are held accountable for someone else’s bad parenting; they are blamed when a child doesn’t learn because he is disruptive and refuses to work.  They are held accountable for test scores over which they have no control.  They are continually expected to do more with fewer resources.  We pass laws governing classroom size but never enforce.  It is easier to pay a fine than to adhere to what is right.

Like police officers they are constantly told how to do their job.  And, like police officers, they are almost always under paid for the job they do.   

Yet, in spite of the low pay and the unreasonable expectations they are willing to work to open the eyes of young people to all the possibilities our world has to offer and they prove their dedication by sacrificing their own lives to protect the children in their care.