Dear Members of the WW-P Community:
Our West Windsor and Plainsboro families demand excellence from our education system and our educators demand excellence from our students. But what happens when the demands expected by both parties create unintended outcomes? Recent community concerns have raised questions regarding the stress and pressures that our children are facing. While I am saddened that our community has had to live through this emotionally difficult time, it is perhaps a moment of opportunity for the collective community to ask questions about the pressures, stress, and overall health of our students.
These stresses are widespread in our children, and they must be acknowledged and ameliorated. While stress is a normal component of adolescence, the level of stress and pressure to achieve in our community is not healthy for children and counterproductive to developing a love of learning.
For our district to truly be successful, we must continue to strive for excellence while simultaneously questioning our practices and our path forward. We have a responsibility to the community to ensure the highest quality education possible for all students. We believe that that path forward is through the development of the “Whole Child.”
It is not acceptable for our district to believe that our success will continue simply because we are WW-P. Having a dedicated staff, hardworking students, and caring and committed parents is not enough for success to continue. It is not good enough to accept that our programs have been successful and then assume that success will continue to replicate itself.
We believe we have a responsibility to reflect upon our district practices, challenge the status quo, and never rest on our successes. We believe in a continuous improvement process that looks at our programs and examines how we can improve our practices, our programs, and our craft.
Change is underway, and the plan forward is measured, connected, and all encompassing.
David M. Aderhold, EdD
Superintendent of Schools
