Olivia Baker Imagine having your parent around school each day– your classmates talking about the grades they have given them, their skills as a teacher. Knowing your parent and your status as a high schooler, this presence may be awkward. For some of our peers, this is a reality. Contrary to popular belief, these students don’t seem to mind their parent’s presence as much as we think they would. “It’s actually pretty cool,” senior Grace Coberly, Mr. Coberly’s daughter, mentions. It’s seemingly more advantageous than detrimental — Jack Tempone, the sophomore son of the notorious Mr. Tempone, states that having his father at school “is a blessing.” Charlotte Cronister, daughter of Mr. Cronister and Ms. Sampey, believes that having her parents at school “makes the environment a little more like home.” Upon reading the previous paragraph, some of you readers might have just realized that these specific students are related to some of your teachers. Indeed, these students have their own anecdotes regarding how the majority of their peers found out about their relations. For Kelsey Watkins, daughter of Señora Taylor in the Lower School, her peers found out about her mom by fault of her own. “In JK, we had Spanish class and I accidentally called her mom instead of Señora Watkins and the whole class looked at me and gasped “that’s your mom?”. Jack’s situation differed from from the latter. Ironically, students knew he and Mr. Tempone were related even before Jack even started attending Latin in fifth grade. “My dad was the middle school softball coach for a couple years, then became the JV middle school baseball coach, and was always the varsity middle school basketball coach. My classmates eventually caught on, but today I still get called “mini Tempone” on multiple occasions” he describes. Having your parent within hands reach could never not be helpful— one can “literally just walk into their office” as Charlotte puts it. For Jack, it’s when he “forgets his wallet, or needs to buy lunch, [his father] is always there.” Kelsey’s mom’s convenience comes in the form of her relationships with teachers, as she already has a foot in the door when her teachers know her mom well. Interestingly enough, Grace finds her father’s existence at Latin most beneficial when she needs forms signed, stating “I can pick up a college form, fill it out, get it signed, and have it back in by the end of the day. I can add/drop in a matter of hours.” With so many conveniences, there are inevitable inconveniences. Jack is bombarded with second-hand compliments about his father, some of which “get old pretty fast.” Not to mention that occasionally, he feels as though “some of [his] classmates know too much about [him].” Grace’s predominant challenge was when she was often inquired about knowing somewhat confidential information that, in reality, only her father knew. “It was hardest for me to deal with last year, when he acted as the interim Upper School Director… I didn’t know about Gilden or any other private school matter. So my classmates started asking me questions: ‘When does the quarter end?’ ‘Is this a no-homework weekend?’ ‘Can you make it a snow day?’ I did my best to answer these questions, but they got overwhelming, especially when I had no way of answering. Of course I can’t make it a snow day, and neither can Chasey Dunn—that decision is made by the head of facilities, not by either of our dads. I had a lot of fun threatening people with expulsion, though.” Albeit it’s quite a burden at certain points, each of the questioned students appreciate their parent’s presence at school. As Jack sums it up, “[his father] can be a pain in the butt, but I love him.” Grace sweetly mentions that “I wouldn’t want it any other way.”]]>