Renay was scrolling through social media while traveling this summer when she saw a friend had posted a GoFund Me. On behalf of a local teacher. Renay knows the recipient of this GoFund Me to know the teacher truly needs the help a GoFundMe provides. Even in the best of circumstances, the situation this teacher happens to be in is not the best prognosis. Not only will this teacher’s absence be an interruption for the school, it is a significant interruption in this teacher’s life.
Renay has given to other GoFundMe campaigns both memorial and medical support. That was not the primary argument. The continued challenges of medical needs, expected and unexpected, are a nightmare for every waiting person.
Teachers and school staff rarely have enough emergency funds when one’s medical needs change. And it is not enough to consider the employee. A family member’s health becomes serious, and not only could a campus lose an employee, but the family could also have a serious situation.
We would like to point out that any health-related situation should be more than a GoFundMe as a solution. But then again, we might be just in our own echo chamber. Systems need to change so any family can avoid the loss of pay without worry.
Summertime
ESY, Extended School Year, is a time for many different things to take place for students with disabilities.
But with a few districts shortening the summer days and swapping them for more days off between the main 180 days of school, summer does not reflect what adults remember.
For a student with a significant disability, the lack of routine can be great or disruptive. Without peers being a part of their day, those skills gained can perhaps just exist in one experience and not likely to be generalized. For students who need schools to provide a safe place, this helps make that gulf of summer seem a little more attainable.
For everyone else, the trips, seeing family, and the experiences of life that may happen for some families, those cannot ever be taught within a classroom. Those experiences are as valid and as valuable as learning to read.
What Awaits?
The upcoming school year has a lot of unknown for students with disabilities. Without the funding mandates, local school boards and then there are those districts that are reevaluating their software used with students.
And if you were wondering…
Yes, the GoFundMe Renay followed did get funded. And hopefully that teacher is able to recover.
We are back for the 2026-2027 academic year.
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