ESK Voices: Kate Atchley
ESK’s culture of trust, honest and integrity doesn’t just stop with the faculty, it is built in a partnership between the students, parents and faculty. Each part links together to ensure a solid education for each child. Thus, parents are considered integral to the success of their child. Parents are encouraged to be active participants in the life of the school! ESK values the involvement of its parents and knows the difference that parents truly make in the life of a school and the community that ESK has built over the last 17 years.
In our ESK Voices series, you will get a unique look at the parents that make ESK what it is. Today, we speak with ESK parent Kate, who currently has a daughter, Kate, in fifth grade, and a son, Samuel, who will be in Kindergarten this fall.
See more below from Kate.
Why did your family choose ESK?
We chose ESK because we wanted a small school, we wanted teachers who weren’t encumbered by testing requirements, and where the students could really learn by doing activities and learn through a hands-on method.
What has kept you and your family at ESK?
We’ve stayed at ESK because of the community here. All the teachers know all the children, the older students know all the younger students, we love the activities that go on here, we love the daily chapel, it’s just a warm and caring place for your child to be.
What has been the biggest surprise about ESK during your time here?
I think one the biggest surprise about ESK is the flexibility that the teachers have in the classroom to come up with activities that mean something not only for the class, but for particular children. They can really focus in on a child’s abilities and what makes that child special and then find a way to make that blossom. I don’t think that’s an opportunity that you get at many schools.
Is there a teacher who has been especially amazing during your time here and why?
Every teacher that my child has had during her five years here has been amazing for one thing or another. Sometimes it’s because of the special activities they give Lily that really enhances one of her skills, sometimes it’s the creative in the classroom, or the extra communication they do with the parents to make sure that they’re involved. It’s been wonderful and unique every year, we wouldn’t change anything about it.
What do you think ESK does best?
One of the things that I think ESK does best is to allow each child to blossom and to show their unique skills. ESK finds a way to enhance those and to use those in some way for the school. Another thing I think they do best is allowing teachers to be creative in the classroom and they teach our children how to learn. They’re not just going through the motions and teaching to a test, but engaging the students and getting them excited about learning. Then, when they aren’t in school they understand how to do that on their own.
If you could describe ESK in one word what would it be?
If I could describe ESK in one word I would use the word rich. By that I mean rich in opportunities that are presented to the children, rich in the service they get to do, rich in the activities that they engage in every day, rich in the character building that they do. My mother describes ESK as what school used to be forty years ago when it was a small community school with the caring and concern of the teachers and parents involved, making it a very rewarding place for your child to be.
Do you have a short story which exemplifies why your child has been successful at ESK?
One aspect of ESK that is so unique is the Tribes agreements and the character building that goes on here. My daughter came home not too long ago concerned about a child in her class who was having difficulty making friends. She had tried working with her classmates to include this individual. That wasn’t happening very successfully she didn’t know what to do next, so she came home to brainstorm options and what the next step should be. I don’t think that that is a sure that would happen very frequently in other schools. The fact that a 10 year old child came home so concerned about a classmate, wanting to make sure they were involved and that they had friends makes ESK a very unique place.