Page 76 of The End of Summer

I smile, but I can very clearly read between the lines. That’s a threat, a guarantee, and a challenge all rolled into one.

Gretchen rolls her eyes.I’m sorry, she mouths at me silently.

I inhale, contemplating how to respond. “Mr. Andrews, with all due respect, I’ve learned a lot about relationships from watching my parents go through their divorce. So I can’t stand here and give you my word that everything between Gretchen and I will be perfect. I can only promise that I’ll show up, even when it’s hard, or inconvenient, or uncomfortable. In my experience, relationships succeed or fail based on whether or not both parties make the choice to actively put the other person first, every day, no matter what.” I rub my hand along the back of my neck. “For as long as Gretchen will have me, I give you my word, I’ll show up for her.”

He stands there, frozen. A lump forms in my throat as I try to read his expression. But then, a slow smile plays on his lips. He reaches out and shakes my hand. “Good in my book, kid,” he says, patting me on the back with his free hand. “Good in my book.”

CHAPTER TWENTY

GRETCHEN

Jane Bishop is my advisor at Framingham State University. She was also my teacher for a Science of Reading class I took last year, which was the single experience that solidified my belief that my calling in life is to become a teacher. She’s a certified dyslexia therapist and her lectures are famously informative, largely because she explores brain neuroplasticity and how best to create a strong academic foundation for children by using techniques that build both skills as well as confidence. She’s busy, though, because she trains entire school districts on how to work with learning disabled children in addition to being a faculty member at Framingham. So, when she hosts her advisory meetings online, they’re usually during a lunch break in her schedule, or they’re squeezed in during an independent exercise she’s running with a larger group of teachers. Advisory meetings are 30 minutes tops. She’s brilliant, so I’m thrilled to be working with her, but still. 30 minutes at a clip is all that any of us get.

30 minutes to plan my entire upcoming semester.

“How’s everything, Gretchen?” she asks. “It’s so good to see you. How’s your summer been?”

“Good. Fine, thanks. You?”

“You know, same old. Doesn’t feel like summer, to be honest. I’m running a project with the city of Burlington. We’re collecting data on an aggregate of 877 students there. It’s a beast, but it’s trailblazing work. We’re developing a whitepaper to deliver to the state education department in Vermont with clear data on the benefits and value to a science-based reading approach to language acquisition for kindergarteners – so I’ve been synthesizing data for the past six weeks. Super fascinating stuff.”

This is why I chose her as my advisor. Jane Bishop is working to change the landscape of public education and early literacy in several states, which – as a potential future kindergarten teacher – truly amazes me.

“Wow,” I say. “That’s very cool.”

“At some point, we’re going to use Massachusetts as a model. Maybe by the time you’re a teacher, I can enroll your class in one of my future studies.”

These words are like music to my soul: the idea of being a teacher worthy of participating in a Jane Bishop study.

“I’d love that,” I respond.

“Okay. So.” She swipes something on her phone and sets it down on the desk in front of her. “This semester you need to take a Digital Pedagogy class and get your observations done. Then in the spring you’ll do student teaching and be all set.”

I nod. “I can’t believe that’s all I have left. So exciting.”

“I made some calls to make sure you’d have your observations and your student teaching placement in the same school, and because I have a former student who’s an administrator at Eastport, I was able to get you in there.”

My heart races. “Seriously?” I exclaim, trying not to sound like a kid. I take a breath, catching myself. “Thank you. That’s wonderful. I went to that school as a child.”Wonderfulis an understatement. It’s a dream come true. “My dad’s going to flip.”

“Why’s that?”

“He’s just super committed to the notion of giving back to the community.”

“I love that.” She claps her hands. “Ah. So happy it worked out, then.”

“Really, thank you.”

“My pleasure, Gretchen. All that’s left is for you to complete the basic pre-req stuff. I’ll let them know at Eastport that you’re good to go for a September start for your observations. They’ll issue you a drug test at the end of summer. They’ll also send you directions on how to get fingerprinted. This allows the state to run a thorough background check. Results will go back to the school, and you should be able to get started right after Labor Day.”

“Perfect, “I say.

“Now, observations will be Monday through Thursday,” Jane explains. “Digital Pedagogy is Wednesday night from 7-9 and also Friday from 10 to noon. So, it’s a pretty full schedule.”

“Wait,” I say. “Quick question. I was planning to start looking for sub jobs for the fall. I thought observations were only 2-3 times a week.”

“No, it’s four days. And, I mean, you could go for sub jobs but honestly I wouldn’t recommend it, for a number of reasons. First of all, you want the continuity for observing. Sub positions are completely reactive, and could last longer than a one-off day here or there.”

“I just thought it would be a good resumé builder,” I say.

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