[0:20] November is here ushering in a seasonof reflection and gratitude. [0:24] Hello, everybody.I'm Superintendent Eric Melbye. [0:26] It may be getting chilly outside. [0:29] The leaves are dropping,but inside our schools, [0:31] there's heartwarming momentshappening every single day. [0:33] We are so thankful to have suchan amazing team of support staff [0:36] helping our schools run smoothlyand preparing our students to succeed. [0:40] From the school bus to the front office,cafeteria, hallways and more. [0:44] There's a smiling face and a friendlygreeting around every corner. [0:47] Megan Paul is one of nearly 400paraprofessionals [0:50] who make a difference in our schoolsevery day. [0:56] Our paras play many roles. They help keep our schools safe, [0:59] support learning in the classrooms,and do so much more behind the scenes [1:02] to help students succeed. [1:03] Megan serves studentsin one of our special education programs. [1:06] With my own backgroundin special education, [1:08] this is an areathat's especially meaningful to me. [1:11] It's where I first saw the profound impacteducators can have on a child's life. [1:15] I stepped into Megan's roleat Ridgeview Elementary, helping students [1:18] with reading and writing activities. [1:19] It was an inspiring experience. [1:22] ‘K’ is a tricky one,but I like how you're working hard at it. [1:25] It was so great to see our staffinteracting with the students [1:27] in the classroom,helping them with their lessons, [1:30] seeing how they use all the toolsavailable to them, whether it's technology [1:34] or manipulatives, hands-on, stickers,things like that. [1:37] Our students clearly love the interactionand you can see the progress [1:41] they're making. [1:41] Our paraprofessionalsare here to assist our students, [1:44] teachers, and school communities,and they do it with pride and passion. [1:47] What I love most about my jobas a paraprofessional [1:51] is I get to see the magic happenevery day. [1:54] For example, maybe math or something. [1:56] When something has been trickyand they suddenly get it. [2:00] It's just, you know how it is. [2:02] It's the most amazing thing. [2:05] And we get the best of both worlds [2:08] being a para, [2:08] we get to work with the studentsand the teachers. [2:13] I think paraprofessionals are so importantbecause they're able to help [2:17] with that instruction, they're helping with behaviors. [2:20] They're helping mebe able to run my own classroom. [2:23] And I mean, honestly,I couldn't do my job without them. [2:27] I just feel so lucky working here. [2:30] It's a great school. [2:31] It's a great classroom. [2:33] She's a great teacher,and I’ve learned so much. [2:35] And I plan to continue to keep learning. [2:38] Alright. [2:38] Woo hoo! [2:39] I'm so proud of the nurturingenvironments [2:41] all of our staff provide students to meettheir needs and help them learn and grow. [2:45] Well, that's it for this supportive Melbye Monthly. [2:48] We'll see you next month.