08/30/2006
Teachers yesterday, students today
Jennifer A. Salcido , Daily Times

COVENTRY - School starts today for students in Coventry. Their educators, however, had to wrench themselves from summer vacation one day earlier, gathering yesterday, 500-strong, in the Coventry High School Auditorium for orientation.
It may have been early, but you couldn't say that the mood wasn't animated. Everyone, from the ecstatic Superintendent Kenneth R. DiPietro to the morning's special guests, which included Gov. Donald L. Carcieri and new Town Manager Richard Kerbel, seemed happy to be there. Remarks from all ends of the spectrum referred to the not-so-subtle elephant in the room - recent budget cuts. Indeed, this orientation came on the heels of a summer of change and uncertainty for the Coventry School System. However, administrators old and new showed no signs of bad spirits in this welcoming ceremony.
"I hope you have the best year of your career," said Michael Hobin, newly installed principal of the high school.
"You are 500 of the greatest educators in the state," he said, which was met with uproarious applause.
DiPietro, who split his remarks into intervals broken up by the other speakers of the morning, referenced a special performance given by some members of the high school choir with musical accompaniment from, among others, four students from the district's Washington Annex special education program. He noted that the theme for the morning's orientation activities would be "celebrating our unique gifts," and that "just as each unique voice joins in harmony to create a lasting expression of joy, so, too, does each teacher's voice resonate through students to sing a song of a new and better future."
Carcieri joined DiPietro in lauding the efforts of Coventry teachers, noting that the Coventry School District should consider itself an example for other districts statewide. For this, he credited not only the administrators and policy planners, but the "molding" power of individual instructors as well, those who he described as "on the front line."
"Teachers, you're molding these young peoples' lives ... [your district] is doing so well because you've got a great team and faculty. ... You are so successful because of the spirit and camaraderie between the faculty and community. I can feel it," he said.
"It's incumbent upon all of us to do everything we can," concluded the self-proclaimed booster for public schooling.
Kerbel, only four weeks into his job at the helm of a town which has been without a permanent town manager for over a year, took care to welcome some of the newer members of the staff in particular, asking first-year teachers to raise their hands.
"This is a great town," he said. "This is a friendly town. People will stop you and say hi to you. ... As a fellow public servant, I look forward to working with you to strengthen our community."
Speaking on behalf of the Coventry School Committee, Chairman Nancy Sprengelmeyer then took to the podium to deliver an impassioned speech welcoming the administrators, support staff, central office staff and the district's faculty. Citing strains on the district due to budget cuts levied earlier in the summer, causing one of the district's two middle schools to be closed indefinitely, Sprengelmeyer said that district staff and administrators have "worked day and night this entire summer," committing themselves to making sure that the district's children had the best education possible, "no matter what the budget."
"We will have a successful year because we have a gift in this community. And that unique gift is first of all from the top down a vision of success for every student...you never give up, you never give in, and you never stop caring for children 24/7. I want you to know that it has been my privilege to serve you as a school committee member and it is my joy to walk into this high school and know that one of my colleagues is now at its hub," she concluded, tearfully referring to Hobin.
After Assistant Superintendent Dr. Vincent J. Hawkins offered a brief address concerning "teaching and learning," lauding the Coventry school district's nine schools achieving high-performing status, among other things, the ceremony took on an even more heightened sense of levity and pride, with DiPietro fielding shouted responses from staff as to what they were thankful for as they entered the new year.
Beginning with one man's bellowing "I've got a job!" and continuing with a river of marriage announcements, birth announcements, grant and certification notices, a joyous tenor rang out in the assembly hall.
"We've got a real sense of family here," said DiPietro.
The close of the ceremony found itself celebrating the soft-spoken hero in Coventry's Teacher of the Year, Chef Anthony J. Marsella, who was awarded the honor for his work as head of the Knotty Oak Room culinary program.
"I'm somewhat embarrassed," began Marsella upon receiving his certificate of thanks and a small token from Carcieri.
"It's not just me. I'm honored to work with the best people in the world. This just doesn't happen alone, and so I'd like to share my award with all the teachers I've worked with, because everyone deserves this," he said.