What to expect when attending first set of parent teacher conferences

Twice a year, parents and guardians can visit their student’s teachers in person and talk about their academic and behavioral strengths and struggles in class. Tomorrow night will be the first time that they can do this as parent-teacher conferences will be from 4:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. If parents or guardians are unable to make tomorrow’s conferences, they will get a second chance on Oct. 26 at the same time. While it’s the first parent-teacher conference to be held at the school, it will be similar to previous conferences at Gretna High.
Teachers will hold conferences in their classrooms, so administration has recommended that parents and guardians access their student’s schedule through NebSIS prior to arriving so they know what room numbers to go to. To access schedule(s) and grades once they are on the website, they should select their district, then sign in with email, and then put in their personalized password. Maps will be available to locate teachers’ rooms as well.
One slight change from how things were done at Gretna High School in the past, is that physical education and music teachers will hold conferences in the commons. At GHS, they held conferences in either their offices or the hallways, depending on the year.
“It will be new this year, so I don’t know what to expect. We just have to wait and see,” physical education teacher Megan Cain said.
Amanda Seimers has taught Special Education and Resource for 23 years across the district. After two decades of conferences, she was concerned that the administration would decide to host conferences in the gym like many schools in other districts do. She was relieved when it was announced that they wouldn’t be.
“The classrooms provide space and privacy for parents and teachers,” she said.
One thing to note is that not every teacher will be available during conferences due to coaching responsibilities and other obligations. To help visitors identify which staff members will be absent, a list of those teachers will be available at conferences. The list was also emailed to parents and guardians on Oct. 6. To contact a teacher who does not attend conferences, it is recommended that parents or guardians reach out to them via email. Staff email addresses can be found on the school’s website, in the directory.
“We give them [parents and guardians] that information so they can plan ahead,” Ewer said, explaining the reasoning behind the email.
Altogether, parents should expect to have about eight meetings with teachers in their classrooms. In addition to providing more confidentiality, having conferences in classrooms will give parents and guardians a chance to see their child’s learning environment.
“I have found in the past that they [conferences] help open the door for communication,” Ewer said. “The ultimate goal is for students to be successful, and if parents and teachers help, they will see positive results.”