High School Principal Hand Writes Thank You Notes To Each Of His School's 443 Graduates
He spent a good bit of time and money to let his students know just how much he cares.
Elnur | Shutterstock Graduating from high school is a huge milestone in teens' lives. It is, in many ways, their first step into adulthood and whatever the future holds for them.
Principals preside over their school’s graduation ceremonies and know how important those moments are to the kids who have spent the past four years of their lives with them. One principal in Texas decided to give his students a surprise they would never forget.
A high school principal hand-wrote thank-you notes for each of his school's 443 graduating seniors.
Jason Mutterer is the principal at Summit High School in Arlington, Texas. Mutterer has been at Summit High School since it was established over 20 years ago, according to NBC DFW’s Wayne Carter. He started at the school as a basketball coach and prefers to be known by Coach Mutt to this day.
Recently, when Mutterer was mowing his lawn, he remembered a letter his high school government teacher wrote to him, which is still in his possession. The memory gave him an idea for something meaningful he could do for his own students. The principal decided to write each one of his 443 graduating seniors a thank-you note for all they had done at Summit High School, and included a $1 bill in each.
Graduate Eduardo Estrada told Carter about Mutterer’s words to students at their graduation ceremony. "He, at one point, goes to tears a little bit," he recalled. “I knew that was going to happen, then he started talking about personal letters and 443 of them, and I was like, 'Dang.' I’m like, ‘There’s no way he just wrote 443 letters to every student in here.'"
Despite the seeming impossibility of the task, that’s exactly what Mutterer did.
Mutterer told Carter that he had not personally taught any of the 443 graduates, but he still knew them well enough to write notes tailored specifically to each student. The graduates praised Mutterer’s involvement in and knowledge of their lives.
Estrada said, "He knows everybody by name, he knows something’s going on in everybody’s lives." Senior Andrea Lozada added, "Most principals don’t go out of their way to go to students’ events, basketball games, [but] he is always there.”
As for the $1 each student received, some are considering paying it forward. Lozada said, "I don’t know if I want to keep it or give it to someone who wants to do something great with it." That’s exactly what Mutterer had in mind. "A dollar seems insignificant, but if 443 kids are doing random acts of kindness every day, it has a huge impact on our society," he explained.
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A good principal can have a similar impact to a good teacher.
The power of a good teacher is well-known, but many people don’t think about what a good principal can do. After all, students often have little association with their principals, unless they are trouble makers, and are just one of hundreds, if not thousands, of the students they oversee.
However, from Mutterer’s example, we see just how much good a principal can do in a student’s life. This has been well documented by researchers, too. The Wallace Foundation concluded that "effective" principals work well with teachers, are good managers, and create a productive environment. Interestingly, schools that have effective principals also have students who excel in reading and math more than those that don’t.
Beyond academics, it can also be a big deal for students to have another adult in their lives who cares about them and believes in them. For many, they may not receive that support at home, so getting it at school means everything.
Mary-Faith Martinez is a writer with a bachelor’s degree in English and Journalism who covers news, psychology, lifestyle, and human interest topics.
