Central High School hosted Opening Convocation for Lunenburg County Public Schools (LCPS). Teachers, administrators, community leaders and guests all gathered Thursday to kick off the 2019- 20 school year with a bang. LCPS Director of Curriculum and Instruction Dawn Bacon said, “The county is proud to start off a new year with every teacher spot filled and all schools are fully accredited.” Bacon continued, “Lunenburg County is a close-knit family that consistently puts our children first.”

The LCPS Band, led by Drum Major Kayla Foster, opened the program with several great musical selections.

Evident throughout the morning meeting, “putting children first,” was the speaking point for this school years convocation. The opening prayer by Thomas Collins emphasized prayers for one child at a time. Keynote speaker, John Richardson-Lauve, Director of Mental Health and Lead Trauma and Resilence Educator for ChildSavers in Richmond spoke about trauma informed care and being trauma sensitive. According to Richardson-Lauve ChildSavers is the only nonprofit in Virginia using a coordinated prevention and intervention model to prepare children for school, address mental health and recover from trauma. Richardson-Lauve said barriers to learning can include children’s chronic toxic stress and educators need to strive to respond to the child’s need rather than react using standard school processes.

Richardson-Lauve quoted Martin Luther King, Jr., “It’s all right to tell a man to lift himself by his own bootstraps, but it is cruel jest to say to a bootless man that he ought to lift himself by his own bootstraps.” We need to work toward giving our students “boots,” tools they can use to self-regulate, be resilient and cope in adverse situations. He challenged the staff to encourage students to be the author of their own story, not the hero, villain or victim.

Lifelong resident, and representing the 61st District since 2001, Delegate Tommy Wright attended the convocation. Wright said “I am extremely proud that all schools are fully staffed and fully accredited.”