Hello, readers. This is Kylene Dibble, your outgoing Executive Director of Parents for Public Schools of Pitt County. I’d like to take the opportunity to use this column, just for this month, to offer my own special thanks to all school counselors and all school social workers.
I have thoroughly enjoyed the interaction I’ve had with each and every person I’ve met through Parents for Public Schools of Pitt County, and I have an immense amount of respect for every teacher, administrator, and employee in Pitt County Schools, as well as the students, parents, and families the schools serve. I also hold a very special place in my heart for school counselors and social workers. Many of you out there may or may not know that I myself hold a Master’s of Social Work, and I am so grateful for the way that PPS-PC has allowed me to use social work skills in a job I could have never imagined would become such a passion.
As a social worker, I saw the possibilities in the position. There were opportunities to empower parents to be advocates for their children, the ability to advocate on behalf of families and communities for their needs within the school system, and the option to become more familiar with education policy work and better understand how citizens can influence the legislative decisions made in our state. And most importantly, that one little word of our title, the word FOR, allowed me to lean into one of the most talked about social work theories, strengths based work. Parents FOR Public Schools of Pitt County is here for schools, for families, for students. The organization exists to strengthen public schools, and to do so by recognizing the strengths in the schools and using those to address the challenges.
It has been an absolute pleasure to connect with each of you as I’ve held this position. Being included in your family decisions about which school is best or your child has been an absolute honor. Watching many of you feel empowered to engage with schools in ways you had not before has been uplifting on so many occasions. Hearing your voices and having the opportunity to share them with our key leaders has been an absolute privilege. This journey has allowed me to truly embody the core values of social work: human relationships, service, dignity and worth, integrity, social justice, and competence. I am so grateful to have been able to lean into those values with you.
As I move on to the next step of this journey, empowering PPS chapter leaders across the country to strengthen their schools in the ways that best fit their community, I look forward to continuing to do this work with a social work lens and perspective. And as you continue your journey with your children, or as an advocate for children in Pitt County Schools, I am hopeful that you will often reach out to the school counselors and social workers. Know that each and every one of them is there waiting to live out those same values on behalf of your family. They may be able to connect you to a community resource that is perfect for your family, or guide you in securing an accommodation or specific service for your child. They may be the link that bridges the gap between you and your child’s teachers or administrators. They may nurture your child and your family in ways you did not know existed. Every Pitt County School has school counselors and school social workers, and they are all doing this job because they want to be a resource to your family. Please take them up on their offer to extend their resources to you. And if you don’t think you have a reason to connect with them, simply find out who they are, and reach out to thank them for the services they are no doubt providing to your child’s friend or classmate.
Please accept my sincere gratitude for the opportunity to practice social work in this way with you. Thank you to every parent who has interacted with PPS-PC in any way, and every parent who might interact with us in the future. Thank you to each school employee, as I have seen first hand how you pour yourselves into the students and schools every day. And a special thank you to all school counselors and school social workers, who share those same core social work values and live them out with the students, families, and staff you are with every single day in our public schools.
Sincerely,
Kylene Dibble, MSW
