Most students go to school in the morning leaving their family life behind. Once they enter school it’s a completely different atmosphere full of friends and teachers. However, for some students these two different worlds collide when a parent works at the school.
There are several students at South that have a parent that who works at the school. One of these students is junior Maddie Kane. Maddie’s father, David Kane, teaches in the Social Studies Department at South. Maddie also has a brother who is a freshman.
According to Maddie, she feels there is a higher standard placed on her than other students, even if she doesn’t mind the pressure. However, she is grateful to have someone that can help her out once and a while for studying.
“It’s always good to have a parent that knows what’s going on so you can actually go to them,” Maddie said.
According to David, he really enjoys having his children around. He is able to see who they are friends with and how they interact with other students. It is also nice seeing them periodically throughout the day.
“I think it helps me become a little bit better parent because I know exactly what they’re going through,” David said.
Junior Hannah Nelson and her brother, senior Jake Nelson, also have a parent that is also a South faculty member. Hannah’s mom, Angie Nelson, better known as Mama Nelson, works in the athletic locker room at South and is also leader of Pep Club. According to Hannah, she likes having her mom around especially because there are certain perks like homemade lunches and storing items in her office during the school day.
“Obviously she’s embarrassing at times but I don’t really care because I don’t get embarrassed easily but its pretty cool to have her work here,” Hannah said.
According to Hannah, one of the only times she’s felt embarrassed is when her mom brought her down in front of everyone at the winter sports assembly to cheer. It was very unexpected but she ended up having a fun time, said Hannah.
Angie said she loves having her children at school and being able to see them throughout the day. She especially enjoys how Hannah and some friends eat lunch with her.
“Me and the kids have a great relationship, I think they enjoy having me here, I pretty much stay out of their business, [however] sometimes I like to see them in class,” Angie said.
Junior Chloe Farber’s dad, Steve Farber, teaches in the Math Department at South. It’s a little different for Chloe because according to her, she rarely sees her dad during the school day.
According to Steve, he enjoys the fact that he is there if she needs him but at the same time he does his best to keep his distance.
