Letter From Recent Graduate

I received this email last night from recent graduate and was given permission to publish, as long as it was done so anonymously.

I am proud to pass this along to the EGHS community-

Dear Mr. Podraza,

As I am finishing up my first semester in college, one of my final papers for my education class asked me to write about the purpose of public education and to describe what an "ideal" school would look like. After thinking for a couple hours on what I wanted to focus my paper on, I realized that my ideal high school looked a lot like East Greenwich. My thesis incorporated many aspects of our own mission statement and I talked about what separates simply a good academic school from a school that leaves an impact on you. The test scores, the curriculum, and the schedule matter little compared to the people that become invested in the student body. There were teachers, coaches, faculty, and friends that cared more about my improvement than they did about my IQ, more about my character than they did about my batting average, more about my learning from mistakes than they did about punishment. It was far from perfect. There were moments of defeat—as well as triumph, I was challenged more than I expected, and more was expected of me than I initially desired. With that said, I could not have been more prepared for college, and I could not have asked for a better high school experience. I wouldn't change a thing. I was lucky enough to be a student-athlete that was given opportunities that opened doors, teams that changed my life, and an education that made me grow intellectually and personally. My experience was far from perfect and I wasn't the smartest or the most athletic, but I did graduate with a sense of  pride for EG Avengers that will never be forgotten. Most importantly, your school became a home--and a home is where students learn best. I guess what I am trying to say is thank you. After experiencing a semester away from home, I've realized that East Greenwich must be doing something right.