Dear D,
I was watching the Green Lantern the other day, mostly because I love Ryan Reynolds, but also because it's a decent movie. I don't know if you've seen it, but it's a superhero movie where a guy is chosen to be a part of this special alien space police force, but he's a guy who avoids responsibility and quits part way through the movie. When he tells his bestie, the lovely Blake Lively (I forget what the character's name is) that he quit because these people are supposed to be fearless and he is afraid, she says to him that it chose him not because he is fearless, but because "you have the ability to overcome fear. It saw that you're courageous." He then goes on to beat the bad guy and save Earth, and the universe, and it ends all happily ever after.
When I was sitting in Courtroom 3A today, watching you, I couldn't help but be afraid. You know that I'm an anxious person to start with, and this whole situation did not settle my usual jumpy nerves. As I sat there feeling fear and anxiety about your future, you sat there with courage. You had the courage to look the judge in the eye and plead guilty to all those things. It takes real courage to be able to plead guilty to crimes such as eluding police, driving a stolen vehicle, and involuntary manslaughter. There was so much for you to fear, so much for you to want to hide from, but you took responsibility for your actions and said with true courage, "guilty, Your Honor."
I drove to the courthouse today thinking that I was going to testify as a character witness for you. I've written Letters of Character for students before, but you were the first student that I have come to court for. As you noticed, this was not the day for me to do that. However, I am glad that I was there to support you, because I want everyone to know that you're a person worth supporting. Even though I didn't get a chance to share with the judge what I think of your character, I am going to share with you what I had prepared to tell him, because every person deserves to know how wonderful they are.
Your Honor,
I have known D for a little over a year now. I taught him for 1 period last year, and also worked with him as a tutor when he played football. I am a teacher at his school and I also work closely with our after-school programs. He was in my English I class for the duration of his freshman year, but I do not have the pleasure of teaching him again this school year.
While D attends a school that has a less than stellar reputation, he has shown that the building will not define him. D has shown resilience, overcoming obstacles such as getting injured in football, adjusting to the transition from middle school, and doing well in school despite his disability. While no freshman has an easy transition into high school, D handled his transition with grace, and of course a few bumps in the road that he was able to smooth out with assistance from teachers and coaches.
An unusual characteristic for many students in our building is empathy. It is not uncommon that I go through my day with no more than 1 or 2 students asking me about my day, how I am feeling, or what my interests are. This was not the case with D. He was sure to ask how I was doing, with genuine interest, and was also sensitive to my emotions. His attention to others never went unnoticed with other students, and they began to become more empathetic in class because of his example.
Hand in hand with his empathy is his patience. A rare virtue shown by most teenage boys that I have come across, D has shown me that he understands the value of patience and that "good things come to those who wait." Of course, that does not mean he was never impatient, but he knew to be patient when it was important.
Lastly, D is incredibly intelligent, and has shown great perseverance, as he is a student with a disability. School is naturally harder for him, but that has never prevented him from performing well in all of his classes. He performed so well during his freshman year that he was selected to be in AP World History this year as a sophomore. This is a student, who unlike many students at our school, is on a college trajectory. I have no doubt that he will not only attend college, but perform well enough in school and in sports to earn a full scholarship.
Your Honor, I know that there are consequences for every action. However, I also know that every consequence serves a purpose and sends a message. There are people in this world who need to learn their consequences in a secluded place in order to protect society. D is not one of them. I have seen several of my students come out of the juvenile justice system, and they come out broken from what they were before. It has turned good kids into ones who feel they have something to prove or defend. A code to upkeep. While I feel strongly that D won't be one of those kids because of his strong character, I cannot help but have little faith in the juvenile system for actually correcting the behavior. For my students who were a true danger to society, I understand completely why they needed to be incarcerated; the public's safety is the priority. D is not a student who is a menace to society, nor is he a danger to anyone. Teenagers make mistakes, some worse than others. D is a teenager who made a devastating mistake, but he is not one who has shown a pattern of repeated mistakes that should cause us to fear for the safety of the public.
D is a good person, and I hope that this letter has shown that. It would be a greater disservice to society to have him incarcerated than to provide him with a consequence outside of a youth detention center.
Sincerely,
[Ms. Walker]
D, you are an amazing person. You are so strong, so courageous, and so humble during this terrifying process. You entered this process as a great person, and I want you to remember that, because you will exit this process as a great person. You do not need to change and be anyone else but yourself after this experience, because that is what this is, an experience. It's not necessarily a good one, and it's definitely a hard lesson learned, but it is one of many experiences you're going to have in your life. What is most important is that you let your experiences improve you as a person, make you better, stronger, smarter, humbler in your walk through life. Do not let this experience harden your soul to what is right and what is good. You are an innately good person, which means that you were born good and you are good without trying. Do not fight this. Accept that you are a genuinely good person and hold onto that with all your might. Good people do stupid things. Good people even do bad things sometimes. But that does not make them a bad person. Just because you did something stupid, and something bad, does not mean that defines you. You get to define who you are, so choose wisely.
Stay strong, kiddo - I'm rooting for you. If you need anything, let me know, and I'll do my very best to make it happen. I love you.
Choose good,
Ms. Walker
I was watching the Green Lantern the other day, mostly because I love Ryan Reynolds, but also because it's a decent movie. I don't know if you've seen it, but it's a superhero movie where a guy is chosen to be a part of this special alien space police force, but he's a guy who avoids responsibility and quits part way through the movie. When he tells his bestie, the lovely Blake Lively (I forget what the character's name is) that he quit because these people are supposed to be fearless and he is afraid, she says to him that it chose him not because he is fearless, but because "you have the ability to overcome fear. It saw that you're courageous." He then goes on to beat the bad guy and save Earth, and the universe, and it ends all happily ever after.
When I was sitting in Courtroom 3A today, watching you, I couldn't help but be afraid. You know that I'm an anxious person to start with, and this whole situation did not settle my usual jumpy nerves. As I sat there feeling fear and anxiety about your future, you sat there with courage. You had the courage to look the judge in the eye and plead guilty to all those things. It takes real courage to be able to plead guilty to crimes such as eluding police, driving a stolen vehicle, and involuntary manslaughter. There was so much for you to fear, so much for you to want to hide from, but you took responsibility for your actions and said with true courage, "guilty, Your Honor."
I drove to the courthouse today thinking that I was going to testify as a character witness for you. I've written Letters of Character for students before, but you were the first student that I have come to court for. As you noticed, this was not the day for me to do that. However, I am glad that I was there to support you, because I want everyone to know that you're a person worth supporting. Even though I didn't get a chance to share with the judge what I think of your character, I am going to share with you what I had prepared to tell him, because every person deserves to know how wonderful they are.
Your Honor,
I have known D for a little over a year now. I taught him for 1 period last year, and also worked with him as a tutor when he played football. I am a teacher at his school and I also work closely with our after-school programs. He was in my English I class for the duration of his freshman year, but I do not have the pleasure of teaching him again this school year.
While D attends a school that has a less than stellar reputation, he has shown that the building will not define him. D has shown resilience, overcoming obstacles such as getting injured in football, adjusting to the transition from middle school, and doing well in school despite his disability. While no freshman has an easy transition into high school, D handled his transition with grace, and of course a few bumps in the road that he was able to smooth out with assistance from teachers and coaches.
An unusual characteristic for many students in our building is empathy. It is not uncommon that I go through my day with no more than 1 or 2 students asking me about my day, how I am feeling, or what my interests are. This was not the case with D. He was sure to ask how I was doing, with genuine interest, and was also sensitive to my emotions. His attention to others never went unnoticed with other students, and they began to become more empathetic in class because of his example.
Hand in hand with his empathy is his patience. A rare virtue shown by most teenage boys that I have come across, D has shown me that he understands the value of patience and that "good things come to those who wait." Of course, that does not mean he was never impatient, but he knew to be patient when it was important.
Lastly, D is incredibly intelligent, and has shown great perseverance, as he is a student with a disability. School is naturally harder for him, but that has never prevented him from performing well in all of his classes. He performed so well during his freshman year that he was selected to be in AP World History this year as a sophomore. This is a student, who unlike many students at our school, is on a college trajectory. I have no doubt that he will not only attend college, but perform well enough in school and in sports to earn a full scholarship.
Your Honor, I know that there are consequences for every action. However, I also know that every consequence serves a purpose and sends a message. There are people in this world who need to learn their consequences in a secluded place in order to protect society. D is not one of them. I have seen several of my students come out of the juvenile justice system, and they come out broken from what they were before. It has turned good kids into ones who feel they have something to prove or defend. A code to upkeep. While I feel strongly that D won't be one of those kids because of his strong character, I cannot help but have little faith in the juvenile system for actually correcting the behavior. For my students who were a true danger to society, I understand completely why they needed to be incarcerated; the public's safety is the priority. D is not a student who is a menace to society, nor is he a danger to anyone. Teenagers make mistakes, some worse than others. D is a teenager who made a devastating mistake, but he is not one who has shown a pattern of repeated mistakes that should cause us to fear for the safety of the public.
D is a good person, and I hope that this letter has shown that. It would be a greater disservice to society to have him incarcerated than to provide him with a consequence outside of a youth detention center.
Sincerely,
[Ms. Walker]
D, you are an amazing person. You are so strong, so courageous, and so humble during this terrifying process. You entered this process as a great person, and I want you to remember that, because you will exit this process as a great person. You do not need to change and be anyone else but yourself after this experience, because that is what this is, an experience. It's not necessarily a good one, and it's definitely a hard lesson learned, but it is one of many experiences you're going to have in your life. What is most important is that you let your experiences improve you as a person, make you better, stronger, smarter, humbler in your walk through life. Do not let this experience harden your soul to what is right and what is good. You are an innately good person, which means that you were born good and you are good without trying. Do not fight this. Accept that you are a genuinely good person and hold onto that with all your might. Good people do stupid things. Good people even do bad things sometimes. But that does not make them a bad person. Just because you did something stupid, and something bad, does not mean that defines you. You get to define who you are, so choose wisely.
Stay strong, kiddo - I'm rooting for you. If you need anything, let me know, and I'll do my very best to make it happen. I love you.
Choose good,
Ms. Walker
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