For many, school is an independent place, a parent-free place. For some though, parents at school is a normal day-to-day thing.
Delaney Demarco ’28, daughter of English teacher Dan Demarco, has an Italian class at South, and she is more than thrilled to be able to see her dad every morning before heading back to Brownell.
“I’m looking forward to being in the same place as him because I can ask him at school If I ever need something instead of waiting until getting home to see him,” Delaney Demarco said.
A lot of people see having mom or dad working at your school as sounding terrible, but for Elle Petz ’26, she sees this as a way to bond with her mom every day. Her mom, Student Activities Director Mellissa Petz, has been at South for 5 years. Elle sees it as an advantage as well, she keeps her books in her mom’s office and is always welcome to stop by for snacks.
“I think this is beneficial to not only me but my mom too because if she needs me or I need her I can just walk to her office,” Elle Petz said.
Ella Taylor ’24 says her dad Andrew Taylor working at South gives her a safe space at school. There are many more positives to being in the same building. Every day, Ella gets a ride from her father which means she then doesn’t have to worry about parking. Along with shaping her relationships with her father as well as her teachers.
“Him working here has helped me understand how to talk to my teachers, how important communication is and it’s nice to see education from a different point of view,” Ella Taylor said.
With being able to properly communicate with teachers, Ella noticed a difference in how her relationships strengthened and how she got a better understanding of why teachers teach the way they do.
“Some advice that everyone should get to experience and learn about is education from a teacher’s perspective- it shows you how important simple student-teacher respect is,” Ella Taylor said.
