My word is Trust.
I have seen it defined as: “Firm belief in the character, strength, ability and truth of someone; belief that someone is good and honest and will not harm.” Synonyms could include integrity, confidence, belief, conviction, reliance, dependable, honest and empathetic.
Every day, parents trust us with their most precious possessions, their children. In many cases, we have never met them before the first day of school. Still, the parents put their kids on the bus, or get drop them off, and they enter our schools as energy in search of adventure. All of our parents have participated in public education, so all of them certainly have opinions about us, how we should do our jobs, and how we should conduct ourselves as professionals.
Mostly, they trust us to do the right things for their child, not necessarily for all children at the expense of their child. Not the most popular thing, not what is happening at the next district down the road, not the latest fad, or something from the most recent “10 Things Every Educator…” email or blog post that hit our inbox. Just what they believe is in the best interest of their child.
We have the responsibility to earn their trust, every day, and never take it for granted.
When they enter our classrooms or offices, do they see us as professionals whom they can trust? Maybe I’m still a bit old school, but when I am sitting in the waiting room at my doctor’s office, I get to see his/her license and credential. In my office, you will see diplomas and certificate. Hopefully, it conveys a message.
As we all know, trust is difficult to earn, and easy to lose.
What have we done, today, to earn the trust and respect of all those we are here to serve?
Living Outside the Box 
Gary,
Thank you for your post. Trust is so important, because it is the foundation of any lasting relationship. We need trust among our students, parents, and colleagues if we are going to build meaningful relationships. I’m sure 2017 will be a great year for you with a focus on trust!
Jon
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Mr Kidd,
(I know it’s been 30+ years since you were my teacher, but I still just can’t bring myself to call you Gary!) : )
I spend a great deal of time each year, especially during Kindergarten Roundup and at enrollment), trying to reinforce the importance of building trusting relationships with students and parents who are new to our building with my entire staff.
As an educator, I had the luxury of being in the same school building when both of my daughters started Kindergarten. I knew their teachers well as they were my colleagues, and this definitely helped my anxiety as a parent as they both reached the threshold of formal schooling! I cannot imagine how scary this same experience must be for parents who aren’t familiar with a school.
And as the years go by, I also agree wholeheartedly with your statement regarding how difficult trust is to earn and how easily it can be lost. Relationship building and maintaining is so critical at any grade, in any school, all of the time!
Hope you have a wonderful 2017!
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Gary,
This is excellent. Such a thought-provoking post. It encourages me to reach out to those parents more. We all most definitely need this reminder every once in awhile; especially when we get sucked in the ‘chaos’ of our profession that has absolutely nothing to do with the actual act of teaching to our students. As a mother of two young children,who will be starting school sooner than I will be ready, this really hits home.
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