Hello! My name is Ms. Sara DeSmet, and I am excited to be joining the Lakeview family this year as the 7th and 8th grade English teacher. I am looking forward to getting to know you and your student better as we navigate the school year together. I grew up in and graduated from Minneota, so I am familiar with Lakeview. Last year, I graduated from Southwest Minnesota State University with a degree in Communication Arts and Literature Secondary Education and worked as a 9th and 10th grade English teacher in the Yellow Medicine East school district.

I firmly believe that whether your student adores English class or absolutely despises it, the content we discuss within this room will empower them to be stronger learners and young adults. It is my goal as an educator to not only help them grow in the content area but also as a young adult who is able to think critically and communicate effectively. I welcome and encourage you to ask questions and communicate with me if you feel your student is struggling or you would like further clarification on my classes. I have included my contact information at the bottom of this letter. 

I am sure many of you are wondering how the school year will look, so I have done my best to lay out a tentative schedule, classroom expectations, and specific policies within my syllabus, which can be found on Schoology as well as my Lakeview webpage. As we all learned from the 2019-2020 school year, all plans are subject to major or minor changes, but no matter what, we are going to make the most of our time together. 

Please do not hesitate to contact me via email or phone call. You can reach me throughout the day at saradesmet@lakeview2167.com or by phone before or after school using (507) 423-5164. I check my email regularly throughout the day and do my best to reply within the day. If you’d prefer to set up a Zoom or in-person meeting, send me an email, and we can schedule a time.