This past week marked the annual Teacher Appreciation Week. The event, which occurs during the first full week of May, is celebrated by schools around the country. Salvatore Olivo, AP Government teacher and chair of the History department at West Potomac, commented upon what Teacher Appreciation Week meant to him.

“It [Teacher Appreciation Week] is a good chance to reflect on the impact that we [teachers] make with students and it is a nice pick-me-up as we get ready for testing. I enjoy the lunch, the gifts and the activities but the personal notes I recieved from students meant the most to me,” said Olivo.

He also said that the entire community takes an active role in making teachers feel appreciated throughout the year.

“I think it is nice but I think there are many students and administrators who make teachers feel appreciated throughout the year. I think our community does a good job to build relationships all year long between students and teachers,” said Olivo.

Mrs. Mathewson, the English Department chair, discussed her take on Teacher Appreciation Week.

“If there wasn’t a formal “Appreciation Week,” we’d just keep our heads down and continue doing what we do because we honestly and legitimately have a passion for our students (that’s first) and content (that’s second),” said Mathewson.

At West Potomac, the SGA was responsible for organizing various events in support of Teacher Appreciation Week. One of those events was called “Teacher Superlatives”. Hayley Reynolds elaborated upon the activity.

“The SGA asks students to fill out superlatives to bridge the gap between teachers and students by appreciating them in a creative way,” said Reynolds.

Ward Anderson, another SGA member, described some other activities the SGA organized.

“In addition to superlatives, every year we make t-shirts for the teachers. This year, we brainstormed new ideas to be different from previous years. Some new things include: teacher tag, a guessing game with baby pictures by department, and puns that go along with mini gifts. In general, the SGA and Leadership classes work hard to make sure that The World’s Greatest High School Teacher’s get the recognition they deserve every year,” said Anderson

Editor’s note: This article has been edited by the Wire staff to further reflect a diversity of opinion about this subject.