The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Horizon teachers, students show appreciation in parade
Vehicles drove over a brightly colored drop off station at Horizon Charter School, 4911 Grove Ave. in Lorain, as children called out to their teachers May 7 in a drive-by parade for Teacher Appreciation Week.
Across the county, parades have taken place at schools, daycare and education centers to give students and teachers a chance to see each other.
Felicia Peyton, who is the Horizon Education Center leader and floater, has been with the center for seven years.
During her time spent with the children, Peyton said she developed close bonds with her students.
“You get to watch them grow and it’s rewarding to know as they get older, they still remember me when I see them out at grocery stores,” she said.
“It’s just like wow, you remember me and what we did together when you were little.”
Peyton said getting the chance to see her students is what she needed during this time of uncertainty.
“These kids run up to us and ask us how we’re doing,” she said.
“We see them every day and this becomes their second home.”
Although educators miss their students, Rachel Davis, center director for the
Southside Horizon Education Center location, said she believes there is a silver lining within the pandemic.
“I think it’s a good thing for children to be able to spend more time with their parents right now,” Davis said.
“Parents definitely have more of an appreciation for teachers, but they also get to see what teaching is like.”
It took less than a week to plan the parade for teachers and their 160 students, she said.
“The staff immediately said yes and they all showed up early to decorate the facility,” Davis said.
Chalk drawings and messages, signs, fence art and bright colors were spread throughout the center’s entrance. Tiffany Ortiz, who is the Beta classroom sack lead for Horizon, said it’s difficult not being able to interact with the children she’s used to seeing daily.
“It’s rough not being in a classroom with all of those different personalities,” Ortiz said.
“You get to teach these kids every day and suddenly it’s gone.”
She said she gains a lot from being able to teach and was thankful for the opportunity to see her students.
“I was so happy to see them, I really was,” Ortiz said. “I learn so much from them, they teach me new things, too, and I miss that.”