Student Association (SA) will be honoring South employees for all of their hard work throughout this school year with Staff Appreciation Week from April 9-13.

According to SA advisor Laura Distelrath, students have been showing their gratitude towards the staff for the past few years.

“ For as long as I have been at South, we’ve done some sort of staff appreciation event, whether it’s been a luncheon or a gift or a week of gratitude,” Distelrath said.

When it comes to planning a large event, communication is essential for it to be successful, according to Distelrath.

“Anytime we are ordering something it takes communication with whoever we are ordering it from, whether its food or an item,” Distelrath said.

Committee chair of Staff Appreciation Week, Shreya Rana ’19, organized the event in hopes of giving teachers the recognition she believes they deserve.

“As a student who is heavily involved in the South community, I interact with the staff a lot,” Rana said. “I feel like sometimes it can be hard to tell them how important they are in the students’ lives.”

According to Simon Chen ’18, who is overseeing Staff Appreciation Week,  giving back to South’s community is an ambition of SA.

“Our goal is to have a fun week for the staff to show them we appreciate what they do and we’re grateful (for them),” Chen said. “People should know during Staff Appreciation (Week) you should let your staff members know you’re thankful for what they do, but also be thankful for them 100 percent of the time.”

According to Rana, April 9 is planned to be a week’s worth of student-organized activities where staff can come together to bond over their efforts.

“We have a staff gift we’re giving out, and our big event is the luncheon on Friday, where all of the staff can come together and enjoy a meal during lunch,” Rana said.

In the past, Staff Appreciation Week has proven to be successful in making South faculty feel proud of their work, according to Chen.

“I remember some of the staff were surprised with the gifts we give them, and it made them happy,” Chen said. ”That’s really why I think it’s important– giving back to the people who help South run smoothly,” Chen said.

From the custodians to administration, Staff Appreciation Week brings staff together in and out of the classroom, according to Chen.

“…Not everyone is always recognized for what they do,” Chen said. “It’s nice to have a week where everyone on the staff is appreciated (not just teachers) but everyone else too.”  

SA recognizes that credit is due to all the South employees that are involved with bettering students every single day.

“We do this in SA because, without the staff, none of our events would be possible,” Rana said. “Our goal as an organization is to appreciate the staff and hope they realize how much we love and appreciate them.”

As Staff Appreciation Week approaches, students are given time to reflect and recognize all the hard-working faculty around them, according to Rana.

“I want everyone to know you don’t need Staff Appreciation Week to appreciate the staff and tell them how much you appreciate everything they do for us,” Rana said. “Please take some time this week to feed into the cause and tell a staff member how much you love them.”