“Let your light shine,” said South San Francisco Unified School District (SSFUSD) Superintendent Dr. Shawnterra Moore during her annual welcome back address to the district’s teachers and employees on August 8.
Despite the persistence of COVID-19, which first caused SSFUSD to transition to distance learning on March 16, 2020, and the increasing likelihood that the virus has now become endemic, Dr. Moore sounded a hopeful tone, as she welcomed employees back for the start of the 2022-23 school year.
“The pandemic caused challenges none of us could have ever dreamed of, and yet you withstood. You figured out how to tap into your inner light to withstand the challenges,” she said.
Urging her audience to revisit the sense of purpose that caused them to become educators, Dr. Moore shared her prescription for helping others by spreading hope and joy.
“When you use your gifts, you become a light for others, who can see and feed off your joy and become inspired by you,” she said. “Our work is not only about tapping into your light to share your passion but then to help our students further cultivate their passions and their purpose, while they explore the light within themselves.”