As many area districts celebrate the end of the school year this weekend, a special thank you is owed to paraprofessionals who have assisted teachers in their classrooms during the past two tumultuous school years.

Amid challenging times, Butler County paraprofessionals have again and again risen to the challenges placed in front of them to ensure that area students receive the best education possible.

Students across Butler County shared their gratitude for their paraprofessionals in a recent issue of Soar — the 12-page student-driven publication that you, your children or grandchildren likely enjoy in the Friday edition of the paper. (During the summer, Soar will publish the first Friday of the month.)

Using an eye-gaze device to communicate, Kendall Gray, a kindergarten student at Northwest Elementary School in Butler Area School District shared that her paraprofessional, Marianne Terwilliger, helps her do her work and feeds her lunch and snacks.

Sixth-grader Erica Chadwell of Sugarcreek Elementary School in the Karns City Area School District had similarly kind words to share about a paraprofessional identified as Mrs. Drumm.

“Having the help of paraprofessionals has helped me learn new things and get better grades,” Erica said.

Kendall and Erica’s experiences were shared with others in the May 28 edition of Soar. All the students who were featured had overwhelmingly positive messages to share about their paraprofessionals.

Paraprofessionals are educational workers who are not licensed to teach, but they assist in classrooms by providing instructional support and often work individually with students, too. They help students stay on pace and organized throughout the school year.

But as seen through the eyes of students, paraprofessionals often do much more than their job description would lead you to believe.

In the May 28 issue of Soar, William Bump and Ramona Pauline, both of Buffalo Elementary School in the Freeport Area School District, thanked their paraprofessionals for more than their educational instruction. William said Mrs. Smitsky had taught him to whistle, and Ramona said she enjoyed when Mrs. Wyant sang with her.

These stories demonstrate just how valuable paraprofessionals are. They genuinely connect with the students they serve.

According to ZipRecruiter, paraprofessionals make an average of $26,472 annually in Pennsylvania.

This shows just how passionate these individuals must be for their jobs. It’s undoubtedly a labor of love.

Especially over the past year, we’ve seen just how important our children’s educators are. Teachers and paraprofessionals alike are very worthy of our respect and thanks.

—TAL