A letter to the parent I used to be, and to every parent who is wondering right now. Dear younger me, I know you're tired. You've been to the parent-teacher conferences where they tell you your child is "on level." You've smiled and nodded while a quiet voice inside you whispered, but something isn't right. You've Googled things at midnight and then closed the tab, half-convinced you were overreacting. You weren't. It would take until high school for someone to finally put a

We highlight our students' high potential, their creativity, their empathy, their determination. These are all qualities that the colleges want on their campuses. We tell the story of our students' academic journey — one of challenges and adversity, but also of successes and life lessons. We want to tell the colleges this is a kid who is going to be persistent, going to be successful.

It's that time of year and there are a hundred things to do. But I'd like to ask you to put this one near the top of your list: take a moment to check in with your child and their teachers. Over the past year, you've all learned a lot about what works. Now is the perfect time to capture that knowledge before summer slips by, so you can carry it into the new school year. Where Do We Begin? Let's start by talking about what helped your child in the classroom this year. Wouldn't