Chamber breakfast honors school employees

Janelle Jessen/Siloam Sunday School attorney David Matthews, a partner at the law firm of Matthews, Campbell, Rhoads and McClure and former state legislator, was the guest speaker at the Siloam Springs School District’s Back to School Breakfast on Wednesday morning.
Janelle Jessen/Siloam Sunday School attorney David Matthews, a partner at the law firm of Matthews, Campbell, Rhoads and McClure and former state legislator, was the guest speaker at the Siloam Springs School District’s Back to School Breakfast on Wednesday morning.

Teachers and school staff members were reminded of their far-reaching influence at the annual Chamber of Commerce Back to School Breakfast on Wednesday morning.

The event was held to honor school employees as they prepare for students to return to the classroom on Monday. It was held in the Siloam Springs High School and included vendor booths, a ceremony honoring new employees, and giveaways from event sponsors.

Keynote speaker David Matthews called educators "by far the most influential people in the community."

Matthews is a school attorney for many of the districts in Northwest Arkansas, including Siloam Springs, and a former state legislator. He has been actively involved in education reform throughout most of his career as both a legislator and a lawyer.

Matthews said his interest in education was inspired by his mother, who was a teacher for 41 years. When his mother retired in 1981, she got a raise because the combination of her social security and teacher retirement benefits was more than she had ever made in her career.

"I thought it ought not to be that way, because teachers are the most important profession we have, because we won't have doctors without teachers, we certainly won't have lawyers without teachers, we won't have any of the professions without teachers," he said. "It's you that determines what the fabric of our society is."

Matthews reminded teachers that their influence goes far beyond what they teach in the classroom and lasts for a lifetime.

"The thing I want you to know and I want you to keep in mind, is while the state will test your students and while there will be anxiety attended to that for you, the real test of your influence will not be how did the kids do on a standardized test," Matthews told school employees. "The reality is the influence you have as teachers and educators is in their everyday lives, the little things that matter and so I encourage you to be observant."

He shared the story of how his high school basketball coach Bob Brown became one of the most influential people in his life besides his parents. Brown, who would later become an insurance agent and school board member in Siloam Springs, made a commitment to the sophomores on his Rogers basketball team, saying "If you stick with me, I will stick with you." Matthews said the important lesson has stuck with him throughout his life.

"It's not just teachers that have the opportunity to influence kids," Matthews said. "Every one of you, whether you are a cafeteria worker, or a bus driver, or the counselor or the school custodian, every one of you have the same opportunity to have your ears open and your eyes open and sense when a child needs help, needs a friend, needs understanding. You be there to fill that gap."

"I promise you 30 or 35 years from now when you're ready to quit, your students will not come up to you at the grocery store or at the ballgame and say 'Golly Moses, I really appreciate you teaching me my multiplication tables, you made a huge difference in my life.'" Matthews said. "But they will say 'Thank you for understanding me, thank you for caring about me, thank you for seeing the potential in me.' You are the life changers, you really are."

General News on 08/13/2017