Subject:
Dr. Jenkins
Date: Wednesday, January 14, 2004 8:34 PM
From: Kanoe Fish <kanoefish@hotmail.com>
To: <kendo@kazkin.com>
Dear
Mr. Endo (Kaz),
Though I am not yet an alumna at St. John's, I will
be graduating in the next five months, and I, along
as the rest of the Class of 2004 have been deeply
affected by the actions taken towards Dr. Jenkins.
Like he was for you in your high school years at
SJS, Dr. Jenkins has not only been a wonderful administrator
and educator for my class, but someone that we have
all felt comfortable turning to, whether it be for
academic advice or for personal problems. I assume
that the notice made on Friendster.com in the SJS
community was made by you, since emails were to
be sent to your address. I thought that you may
be interested in knowing how these events are effecting
current students.
There are a lot of rumors circulating the upper
school about the details of Dr. Jenkins "retirement",
and the feelings of every student I have spoken
with have been of extreme disappointment and hurt.
Our class has had a wonderful bond with Dr. Jenkins
throughout our time in the upper school. Dr. Jenkins
saw us through our turbulent middle school years,
and helped our class in dealing with various social
situations that took place. With his help, the seniors
now stand unified as a class, and as the eldest
members of the St. John's student community.
It is united that we are also doing what we can
as students to express to the administration and
the Board of Trustees how concerned and upset we
are by the way that this situation is being handled.
Our class will be submitting a letter tomorrow to
the President of the Board of Trustees and the Headmaster,
regarding these recent events, and the injustice
we feel has taken place. Many of the students in
this year's graduating class feel betrayed, and
suspect that there is dishonesty in the communications
between the administration and the students regarding
this situation. It is also difficult for us to see
a man who has given so much to our school, and has
played such a large role in our development as people,
disappear from our lives without even a chance to
honor and thank him for his support and dedication.
We felt a letter would be most appropriate way to
represent these feelings, and hopefully the best
method for SOMEONE to realize just how much this
is affecting the students of St. John's.
At St. John's students are taught morality, honesty,
and respect for one another. However, the way in
which the administration has chosen to handle this
situation reflects none of these values that we
have been taught are so important. In the second
semester of my senior year, in which with so many
other changes are taking place in my life, it is
completely heartbreaking to suddenly feel as if
I can't trust in the school which I have loved and
had faith in for 13 years, to do the right thing.
I have spent my entire life at St. John's, as did
my brother Brett, and I can honestly say this is
the first time I have questioned what the school
stands for, and whether or not I support it.
In your role as President of the Alumni Association,
you deserve the utmost thanks for voicing your thoughts
that not only represent the alumni, but also current
students at St. John's. Though we are not quite
done with our time at SJS, it is nice to know that
even beyond graduation, previous students still
care enough to take a stand for those that are still
in school, and for someone like Dr. Jenkins who
we appreciate, support, and value so dearly. I know
that the damage that has been done cannot be fixed,
but I hope that in some way, students of the past
and present at St.John's will be able to unite for
someone who has played such a large role in our
lives. If there is anything that I can do as a student
to help in your efforts, please notify me.
Sincerely,
Kanoe Fish
Member of the Senior Class of 2004
President of the Spirit Club
