To the Editor:

Nov. 15-21 will mark the 88th annual observance of American Education Week. Our AEW tagline, "Great Public Schools: A Basic Right and Our Responsibility," highlights the importance of bringing together educators, parents, students and communities in a unified effort to build great public schools.

Today's teachers do more than teach basic skills. They nurture and inspire children despite obstacles. They help students learn essential life skills not always measured in testing, such as critical thinking, conflict resolution, cooperation and problem-solving, all of which help students throughout life.

Our local teachers' association, Education Minnesota Fairmont, has several activities planned for AEW. We have invited all of our school board members and administrators to come into classrooms to read a book to the students; students from various grades have prepared public service announcements that will be aired throughout the week on our local radio; the staff is having a food drive with the food being donated to the local food shelf; other public service announcements on the radio have been prepared and aired the week of AEW; students are making bookmarks that will be given to the local library for distribution to the patrons; the high school production class is preparing a public service announcement about education to be aired on channel 20; and an updated promotional ad is now playing at Fair Lakes Cinema.

With these activities, we are joining millions of Americans nationwide in NEA's American Education Week celebration by spreading the word about the important role of great public schools in the lives of students.

Thank you for taking time to read this letter. I'm proud to represent the dedicated teachers in the Fairmont Area Schools that work hard every day to help our children and make a difference in the lives of the students they teach.

Bob Millette, president

Education Minnesota Fairmont