I suppose quite a few people aren't even aware that Melissa has been working on her master's degree for the last year and a half through Emmaus University just down the road.
Last Wednesday she presented her capstone project in front of her class. It was her last big assignment and her topic was "effective teacher evaluation".
During Friday's morning chapel service, we recognized both Melissa and Kacie, Cowman's incredible first grade teacher and assistant principal to the elementary, who has completed the same program.
Friday evening brought the "hooding ceremony" for all those graduating this year from an Emmaus program - over 60 in all. (The yellow stole over Melissa's shoulders represents graduating with academic honors. She's a smart one!)
Saturday morning we headed to a large local church for the actual graduation ceremony. The graduates had to be there at 8:00 for photos and lining up, and the ceremony started at 9:00 with a loud and joyous procession led by a marching band.
The whole family is very proud of Melissa's accomplishment. We, more than anyone else, recognize how much time and effort went into this moment. Praise the Lord, Who lifted her up and kept her moving forward.
Kacie and Melissa with Dr. Lucner Pierre:
The big moment we all were waiting for:
FOUR hours of ceremonious ceremony later, we had all lost a few pounds in the heat of the sanctuary, and we went home tired but satisfied.
This may leave you wondering about Melissa's motives behind all this effort. This was not a pride thing. She was not looking to fill an over abundance of free time. It was definitely driven by academic curiosity, but that was not the sole consideration. When Melissa started as principal over Cowman School nearly two years ago, she felt overwhelmed by the size of the task and under-prepared in some key areas of administration, even though she has some natural gifts in organization. She knew she would need some further training. (We're big on the importance of training and education!) Also, our hope is that we will soon be officially embarking on the accreditation process for Cowman School as we continue to strive for excellence, and that will definitely involve having fully licensed people in place from top to bottom.
Please keep our family in prayer during our final four weeks of class of what has been an incredibly tough school year. There's hardly time for Melissa to breath a sigh of relief before getting back to work with year-end concerns ... and prepping for next fall!
