ideas to honor teachers - schoolhouse closing forever

[vtgirl]

our little 2 room schoolhouse is closingand as a member of the pto and the school board i am trying to come up with something we can do to honor the teachers (3) and suppport staff (3+).

the pto has about $3000 left from all our fundraising and we plan to spend every last penny on these kids and staff to commemerate the end of a 209 year era.

we have thought about a school trip somewhere awesome (like the great escape - about 2hrs away, or the boston museum of science, maybe) and a certificate for each child that says something like "jane smith, member of the last 1st grade class in the village school"

but for the teachers and suppport staff we are at a loss. these are our friends. we are all devastated and shocked at the will of the voters to close our school. it's just so sad and we would like to somehow let these people know that they have been invaluable to us and our children and that we truly appreciate their service. so you see, a potted plant or a gift cert. to borders won't cut it.

any thoughts would be appreciated.

[tm2840]

What's happening to the school "building" itself? Or is that irrelevant?

Do you want something that "memorializes" their efforts and service (or that of the school *and its teachers*) over the last 209 years?

Or do you want something specifically for the 6+ current staff members? Is it a, "thank you," a "sentimental memento for them to keep," an "honor them publicly but not permanently," or "honor them permanently (if less publicly)?

Lots of questions, but I'm so sad for your school and think that SOME type of thanks/honor/memorial sounds very appropriate. And I'm not very sentimental!

[madskye]

When my dad closed his office he bought each of the women who worked for him some original artwork of the town. Perhaps you could get someone to do either paintings or really nicely framed photos of the school building or surrounding area?

[vtgirl]

those are good questions, tm2840. the vote happened on tuesday night so we (the pto, that is)have not had a meeting yet this month and i don't know what the others think is going to be appropriate.

as far as the building goes, at the moment there are no plans for it that we are aware of - so, at least for now, it will sit empty, i think.

the staff, except for one teacher, has been at the school for 5-15 years. i would like to give them something or do something for them to both thank them and memorialize their participation in this historical school. our school is the oldest continuously operating 2room school house on the east coast if not the whole country. thats something pretty special and i want them to know we appreciate their efforts in educating and nurturing our kids.


madskye, i like the idea of a photo of the building - that might be a good accompaniment to a larger gift.

there is a documentary filmmaker in our town (he's from hollywood!) and i think i will ask him if he would be interested in filming something along the lines of "the last days of the last 2 room schoolhouse" or something like that. if that happened, each teacher could have a copy of that.

keep the ideas coming! thanks!

[ecoteat]

This makes me so sad. I teach in a tiny school (although not quite that tiny--we have 70 students K-8) and most of our town is pretty fierce about protecting it, despite the state trying to change administration policies and making a big mess. Anyway...

I really like the film idea. When I left my old school (it wasn't closing or anything, but it was still a big deal for me to move away) the things that meant the most to me--and still do--were the pictures and notes from the kids. I still cry when I look through them. When I had my baby, my class and the art teacher got together and made a quilt with drawings that the kids had made (that were scanned and printed on fabric made for printers). The school I went to elementary for was torn down a few years ago and when there were a pile of bricks there I almost took one. I still regret not doing that. SO... I would put together something from the kids (that they collaborate on and/or the film), a physical memento of the building itself, and maybe just a nice thank you gift of some kind.

[fadedgirl]

Why is it closing? Very sad.