...but the parents didn't come

Those of us who are (or were) secondary-level teachers may have had some of those very lonely Parent-Teacher Conference nights.  It seems that in some schools, no matter how much you publicize the event, only a handful of parents show up.  Even I have muttered the words, “All of the conferences I would have liked to have had didn’t show up.”  

Maybe it is the readily-available online grade books that parents can access 24/7 to see their student’s progress….

Or maybe it is avoidance of the (once again) negative conference…..

Perhaps the parent feels that the student is old enough to monitor his own progress….

Nonetheless, it is our responsibility as educators to include the families of our students to maximize their fullest potential.  Try this...on the day after conferences, do the following:

List the names of the students receiving a D or F in your class.

Add to that list the names of students who...

• are getting a B or C and are not working up to potential
• you already have concerns about not passing the semester
• have missing assignments in your class
• have behavioral issues in your class
• doze off in your class

Delete the names of students who...

• had parents attend conferences the previous night
• you have spoken with the parents in the last two weeks about any of the above issues
• had an IEP/504/RtI meeting that you attended and/or gave meaningful input in the last three weeks

What you have left are families that should still be contacted.  You could start with a generic email through your school’s student information system.  Here is a suggestion....

"I am sorry that we were not able to connect at Parent-Teacher Conferences on Monday.  I would still like to have the opportunity to discuss your child's progress with you.  Please email me some times that we could speak on the phone.  I look forward to partnering with you on your child's educational journey."

Perhaps to avoid the back-pedaling, do this exercise a few days PRIOR to conferences.  Reaching out to families shows that you care about their child and his progress.  They say, “Build it and they will come.”  Sometimes, however, you may have to bring “it” to them.

photo credit: www.dreamstime.com

Spokes in the Wheel

It may sound odd to you that I am a principal that does not have the explicit goal of improving test scores.  I would rather say that my goal is to increase student achievement.  EVERY school works to improve student achievement, and, good or bad, standardized test scores are usually the most publicized manner to show this growth.  Imagine that student achievement is a wheel with eight spokes.  Each spoke represents a facet of student success: rigorous curriculum, passionate teachers, student attendance, family support, extracurricular participation, positive relationships, student voice, and community involvement.  All of these must have equal support and strength to keep the wheel in line and balanced.  If one or more of these spokes are weak or missing, increased pressure is placed on the remaining spokes to produce the same amount of success.  As we work to strengthen each spoke, we create a solid platform for our students to succeed--academically, socially, physically, and emotionally.

It is my goal to collaboratively empower these spokes throughout the year at Turkey Run Jr/Sr High School in Marshall, Indiana.  This village will continue to raise every student that walks through our doors, propelling them into a future where their skills and knowledge will place them as competitive equals to graduates from any school in the state.

WHY?

WHY?  For those who have very young children, this question is asked more often than most others.  “Why does the sun move through the sky?”  “Why is the sky blue?”  “Why do leaves turn color in the fall?”  “Why we stay on the ground and not float into space?”  Have you ever tried answering those “why” questions with a one-word answer?  If you did, it probably was followed up by another open-ended question.  Your short answer just was not good enough for that inquisitive toddler. 

When, then, throughout a child’s formative years, do we switch over to only the “what” questions?  “What is 4+5?”  “When was the Declaration of Independence signed?”  “What color is produced when we mix red and blue?”  “What are three causes of the Civil War?”  Perhaps a better question to ask than “What is 3x6?” would be “WHY does 3x6=18?” or “Show me why 3x6 is not the same as 6x3, even though they both equal 18,” or better yet, “Describe all of the multiplication facts that equal 18, and represent them using arrays or another model.”  Now this "new math" has spawned serious discussion in many homes across the country, including the Schulz household.  Personally, I don’t have a problem if my fourth-grader has to occasionally use his fingers to figure out some multiplication facts.  I don’t care if he needs to add five 12s because he does not remember that 5x12=60.  I simply love to see the amazement in his eyes when he “gets it.”  He now understands how to add fractions by first making common denominators.  (Back in the day, I don’t think I learned this until sixth grade.)  Even more amazing, he can tell me WHY he needs to find common denominators instead of just performing a rote algorithm. 

We could endlessly debate the merits vs. the demise of society because of the Common Core or any other set of state standards, but it really is not about that at all.  Let’s not cease to use the same amazement when a student truly “gets it” instead of just “gets the right answer.”  If you are not asking WHY, then why not?

Feeding Frenzy

Sometimes I accidentally forget to fill my bird feeder for a couple days when it becomes empty--usually when I notice that I do not have a flock of finches, cardinals, nuthatches, woodpeckers, bluebirds, and blue jays roosted in my back yard.  It seems that it does not take long for word to spread in the aviary world that fresh seed is out for all to devour.  Soon, the flock returns to my yard, feasting upon the crunchy morsels, and then flying away to obviously spread word that there is “good stuff” in that yard over there.  Hard to believe that such a small act on my part can create such a feeding frenzy. 

Sometimes our schools can be just that—a feeding frenzy.  After a spell of non-communication with families, any little piece of information seems to spread like wildfire.  Obviously, I prefer POSITIVE messages to become viral, rather than the negative.  It is so easy for the public to think that nothing is happening in the schools if they haven’t heard anything in a while.  That is when the occasional negative message circulates globally in an instant, just because that is the ONLY message coming from the school in a while.  We have a plethora of vehicles to create continual excitement about our schools—social media, email, displays, websites, blogs, videos, and even retro newsletters!  Educators need to “toot their own horn,” for excellence occurs every day, and it is difficult for one person to be omniscient of every instance of awesomeness.  It can be as simple as a tweet about students on a field trip, artwork, lab experiments, or social studies presentations.  It could be a mass email congratulating students on the completion of a major test, project, or initiative.  A parent thank-you post on Facebook could be shared just as often as the tirade about displeasure about school being canceled (or not) due to weather conditions.

A regular diet of small awesome messages being circulated around our communities will significantly outweigh the occasional not-so-awesome ones.  We can all create that feeding frenzy—just don’t let your feeder go empty for too long.

Counting Sheep

Count sheep.  Don’t open your eyes.  I said, don’t open your eyes.  Don’t look at the clock.  Count sheep backward.  Don’t look at the clock.  Slow, deep breaths.  What time is it?  It MUST be close to my alarm time.  3:30 AM.  DRAT!  Looked at my clock.  My desk at school is piled with paperwork.  I hope little Johnny behaves better today.  Did little Susie have dinner last night?  I wish I would have handled that student discipline situation differently yesterday.  Hope I didn’t ruin that kid’s life forever.  Need to email my weekly agenda to the staff.  Seven parents to call and the state standardized test schedule to formulate.  I should get started on my taxes.  Did I miss my wife’s birthday?

No matter what your profession, no matter what your job, we all have restless nights.  Sometimes I wish I could just flip that switch and not think about school for once, but that would completely opposite of who I am.  I am wired to help students and staff be the best they can be.  I’m not always successful, and maybe that is why I wake up in the wee hours of the morning with my thoughts directed toward school.  The desire for me to make life better for others is why I am who I am, and why I do what I do—every day.  A great principal friend of mine includes the following sentence in the signature line of every email he sends to his staff: Today, I will do whatever it takes to help you have a great day! 

Educators (teachers, principals, deans, counselors, paraprofessionals, custodians, secretaries, librarians, bus drivers, coaches) strive to make every day the best day possible for our students.  More often than not, it includes time and energy the public does not witness.  No one said that teaching was an 8-5 job.  How could it possibly be?  Some days you may see a teacher leave the school building before 4:00, but most likely she will be awake at 3:30 worrying about Johnny and Susie, formulating lesson plans in her head, cutting out bulletin board letters, baking cookies as a reading goal reward, searching Pinterest, Twitter, and other websites looking for new teaching strategies, standing in line at Walmart to purchase school supplies for those who cannot afford them, or wondering how she will inspire her students to do their best on the state tests.  Some say, “No rest for the wicked.”  Maybe we should say, “No rest for those who truly care.”  There are those who just do not understand the complete dedication of a teacher, and that is OK.  WE know that we are doing what we are called to do, and we will not give up on any student.  Ever.

4:45 AM—load of laundry done, living room vacuumed, blogpost written.  Too bad today is a two-hour weather delay for our school.  Looks like I will need to brew a second pot of coffee.

I Don't Care Much for Geese

As I peered out of my kitchen window this weekend, I spotted a flock of geese flying overhead.  I can tolerate most animals (well, maybe not a snake, unless you really want to see me jump on top of a table and shriek in hysterics).  If there is one animal that I really don't care for, however, it is the goose.  I really didn’t have a problem with geese until 2003, the year I started at the last school for which I taught.  No, our archrival did not have a goose as a mascot, nor did a goose ever attack me in my sleep.  

For those who do not know, I was a band director for 18 years before I became a principal.  Part of my job that I absolutely loved was designing and teaching the marching band halftime show for football games.  When I was hired at this northern suburban Milwaukee school district, I was warned about the migrating geese that often times roosted in this area.  Geese?  Near Milwaukee?  You betcha!  Every day as the band took to the practice field, the musicians had the duty of chasing nearly a hundred geese who chose to use our “classroom” as their personal rest area on their trek south for the winter.  At first it was annoying to take time to clear these birds off of our field, but as time went on it became a fun ritual to see who could get the closest to these waterfowl.  It didn’t take me long, however, to discover that there was something even worse than the winged intruders on the marching field.  It was poop—goose poop.  If you have never experienced it, it is gross.  For most of first quarter, the band room smelled of nasty, smelly, goose poop.

No one in any teacher training course I took ever told me that I would encounter anything like aviary fecal matter in the classroom.  There are many things that they don’t teach you in college before you actually become a teacher.  It wouldn’t even matter if they did, for you wouldn’t believe it if your professors actually told you that certain events could occur.  Teacher preparation has come a long way since the late 80s.  Today, first-year teachers know more and are expected to do more to actually graduate and receive their licenses than many of us old timers could ever imagine.  As I reflect back to my first year of teaching in 1992, I wish I could just erase that year from history.  I am, however, blessed to know that I didn’t mess up too many of my students.  Actually, I recently found out that one of my freshmen from that year is now teaching social studies at a nearby middle school.  He told me that he remembers when I took the school’s jazz band to the Purdue Jazz Festival that year, and that particular trip helped inspire him to eventually choose that post-secondary institution.  It is scary that I inspired anyone that year.  I made so many mistakes, but don’t we all?  We must not give up when we make mistakes, but rather own up to them, strive to amend our shortcomings, and be determined to become the best educators we can be. 

I continue to make mistakes; I don’t have all the answers.  Sometimes I have to chase away the geese to get to the heart of the lesson.  Even after the geese are gone and the lesson is taught, there still may be goose poop to clean up.  Educators have one of the toughest but rewarding jobs on the planet.  Our classrooms may smell from time to time, but we know that when we persist, students will gain the knowledge and skills needed to be productive citizens in our global society, and be able to pass on the character traits that we strive to instill in them.

Acoustic Weekend

As I began my new position as principal of Rossville Middle/Senior High School, I made the conscious decision to be a “connected principal.”  Yes, in my past positions, I was able to keep up with email from a smart phone, send texts, and take phone calls.  I did not realize that being truly connected could be so much more rewarding.  This school year brought a big change to my career, as I had the opportunity to move back to Indiana, the state in which I began teaching.  With that, I wanted my new school to be the most visible, positive, and vibrant place anyone would want to send their children.  I made the choice to be connected.  I wanted the public to have a clear view of the fantastic events that happen every day—math lessons, welding demonstrations, lunch, drama, music, athletics, selfies, selfies, selfies, and selfies.  Yes, I consider myself to be a Twitter-holic.  It is rare that a school day goes by without tweeting a picture or some other school information.  I wanted our brick-and-mortar building to turn transparent.

While a connected principal can be a great asset to his students, parents, staff, and community, it also comes with a challenge to his personal life.  Believe it or not, educators have lives outside of school.  I can remember when I was in third grade (back in the stone ages), I saw my teacher in the grocery store.  It was as though her goddess-like status came crashing down around me.  Teachers are people, too.  Educators also have families—the loving group that supports you day in and day out, through great days and grim, understanding that education is more than an eight-to-five gig. 

I realized something over the past week.  I have been “plugged in” just a little too much lately.  Even when I am home with my family, even when my phone is “put away,” my mind is still vibrating with digital sparks.  I realized that I have been not paying attention to the people that mean the most in my life--my loving, supportive wife and my fantastic children.  This past weekend I made it a point that my phone stayed locked in my car, no computers were used, and no outside connections were made.  It felt good to just sit and talk, grab a Starbucks with my daughter, have a campfire with my son, and reconnect with my wife.  It is rare that I don’t think about school—that is just who I am.  This weekend I made it very quiet in that arena. 

I made the decision to put aside the electronic keyboards, drum machines, and microphones in my garage band life and have an acoustic weekend.  Going off the grid for a couple days may seem unbearable (just ask your teenager to give up their phone for a few hours).  Being disconnected for a weekend (or even a day) brings such clarity to your senses, allowing you to focus on what is most important to you.  Next weekend, take some time to strum a few chords on the old six-string and hum a few bars of your favorite tune (hopefully not your school fight song)—you will never imagine how loud the silence will be, and how much you will actually hear.  Just listen.

source: freehighresolutionimages.org

Leadership From Within: A Spark of Genius

Some people say that leadership is an inherent quality.  Maybe for a few, but the majority of leaders learn how to lead.  Through successes and struggles, leaders cultivate other leaders who, in turn, will inspire other leaders.  The following four characteristics of cultivating leadership are a springboard to empowering others to lead, thus creating a culture of mutual ownership and change in a school.

1.       Surround yourself with genius; you do not have all of the answers.

o   There is absolutely no humanly way possible that any one administrator can know everything about everything.  I was a band director for eighteen years, so I know very little about physics, Spanish, accounting, and welding, but I can write a pretty good marching band show….  Everyone in your organization, whether they share it or not, has a spark of genius.  Allowing those sparks to fuel flames of excitement, professional growth, inspiration, problem solving, and leadership in others creates more motivation than bringing in strangers to attempt the same.

2.       Give others credit for successes; take the blame when things go wrong.

o   The school staff is a team, and teams can both succeed and fail.  While the school leader is ultimately responsible for any success or failure within the building, it is important to give credit where credit is due.  It is not to say that the leader has nothing to do with whatever initiative or issue on the table, but rather that the school leader must empower the staff to fully develop, revise, and implement any programmatic or systematic change for positive influence on students.  They are the ones that are making it happen, so they are the ones who deserve the credit.  On the opposite end of this spectrum, there are times of struggle and even failure.  That is normal.  The leader must take responsibility for the struggle, not assign blame, but then work again with staff to help its success in the future.

3.       Model expectations.

o   If a school leader expects certain actions, he must also model the same action.  This can be said with anything from dress, student interaction, attendance, technology, adherence to deadlines, or response to criticism.  The do as I say and not as I do mentality does not work with students, and it definitely does not work with adults.

4.       Encourage teachers to FAIL and model FAILURE yourself.

o   Failure is not a bad thing (most of the time).  In our district, we use the acronym FAIL to mean First Attempt In Learning.  Through struggles, we strive to improve.  Through improvement, we gain confidence.  Through confidence, we share.  Through sharing, we lead.  We do not expect perfection from our students the first time a topic or skill is introduced; if they did not struggle, how would they grow?  Yes, failure is a tad bitter sometimes, but we all grow from these experiences.  Without my own personal struggles throughout my career, I would not have become the person I am today.  I still have more struggles ahead, and I look forward to continual growth in my leadership and personal life.

Just as students do not care how much you know until they know how much you care, so are the awesome members of your school staff.  Take time find those sparks of genius within those awesome teachers and other staff members at your school.  Give those sparks a chance to start a fire.

The Right Place at the Right Time

Wouldn't it be great if we would be the one-millionth customer at a grocery store and win a $500 shopping spree?  I guess you would need to be at the right place at the right time, right?  Probably.  What about being at a particular location, interacting with a certain person, and somehow influencing his immediate or distant future?

I believe that we are placed in situations that sometimes seem difficult, possibly mundane, or seemingly pointless, yet there is a purpose for us being there.  Being an educator (teacher, administrator, support staff, or other school personnel) is one of the most rewarding professions on the planet, yet at times it is easy to give in, give up, or just float along.  I remember asking myself on several difficult occasions throughout my career, “Why am I here?”  We are here, of course, for all of our wonderful students we teach every day.  Without fail, we provide lessons, guidance, mentoring, and modeling for those shining (and even the not-so-shining) faces.  Even when circumstances seem bleak or overwhelming, there is a purpose for our educational existence. 

Very early in my teaching career, I had the wonderful opportunity to be the band director for a small school district in northern Indiana.  I was responsible for grades 5-12 instrumental music, so I knew practically every student in the entire district, as most were in my class at one point or another.  I had one student who was a bit more difficult than others, and sometimes he made the class (and me) so tense, it would have been easy to simply kick him out of the program.  I persisted, and so did his peers, in making him a contributing member of the class.  He left our school after eighth grade to go to a different high school and I lost track of him.  In 2009, about nine years after he graduated, I received several Facebook friend requests from him, but I declined his invitation several times.  Because of his persistence, I finally accepted his request.  I then received the following personal message from him:

It took me a good long while to realize how important you were in molding me into the man I have become. I was just so hard-headed back then, when all you were trying to do was help no matter how much resistance I put up. I still remember the time you had me and Craig perform the National Anthem for the football game, which was something I would have never done without your championing. It is one of the proudest moments of my life. Thank you for being there for me when it would've been easier not to.

It was one of those moments that made me realize exactly why I love my profession as much as I do.  I responded to him immediately (after wiping the tears from my eyes):

You know, people don't go into teaching for the high salaries or the stellar social status. Teaching is difficult at times, but it is very rewarding to hear that former students have turned out to be wonderful, productive adults. I don't hold any grudges with any students (how can I do that--they are only adolescents and teenagers--they have enough issues that they try to work through every day). Each and every student has affected me in some way to improve not only my teaching, but also who I am as a person. I am proud of all of my students, even those that didn't always accept my teaching methods at the time.

I believe that I was put in this particular school at this particular time for this particular student (and many others).  You never know who you will affect in exactly what way.  The person that will cure cancer may be sitting in your English class right now.  Continue to inspire, lead, mold, and mentor every student in every class.  Educators are always “at the right place at the right time.”

1000 Words

They say a picture is worth a thousand words.  After scrolling through seemingly thousands of pictures tweeted and shared by school principals across America for #APrincipalsDay on January 7 (and beyond), a few came immediately to mind: happy, dedicated, energetic, immersed, student-oriented, fun.  I certainly did not see any frowny-faces (even those who were shoveling snow or fixing copy machines).  We principals truly love what we do. 

Early in my teaching career, administration was usually referred to as the “dark side.”  Teachers who made the jump to administration somehow donned the cloak of evil, forgot everything there was about being in the classroom, and made it their mission to create antagonism.  Even when I made the decision to step out of the classroom after 18 years and enter administration, some of my teacher colleagues used the same phrase for me (in jest).  No offense was taken; I even joked about it myself.  I remember early in my teaching career, I told one of my awesome principals that there would be no way that I would ever sit on the other side of that desk and do what he did--ever.  But, through the encouragement of a few more administrators AND my lovely wife, I took the leap.

You know what?  There really is not another side to the desk.  To be honest, I’m not at my desk long enough during the day to know which side is mine.  Most of us administrators are not the “old school” principals you may remember from ages past.  It really isn’t us vs. them.  We are all still teachers—all in this together (I feel a song coming on, but I will refrain).  We get to work with the most talented, caring, and empowering individuals known to mankind—teachers.  We also have the benefit of being able to influence our youth in a very positive way.  That is why we do what we do.  It is not to get out of teaching, but rather to come along side and support everything about education: tying shoes, reading a book, counting, cursive, long division, nutrition, debate, critical thinking, digital citizenship, technology infusion, state standards, and educator effectiveness.

Seeing those smiling principals, teachers, staff members, and students on the Twitter feed reaffirmed that this is the calling for me.  I do not have to go to work every day; I get to come to school.  Take time to smile every day, say cheese(head), and tweet a selfie.  A picture is worth a thousand words, or maybe just a few.

Stir-crazy

Today was the second consecutive day out of school for weather.  Yesterday was Winter Storm Gorgon that dumped six inches of fluffy snow on us, causing a bit of a conundrum for our county.  Today was the arctic blast that sent wind chills to the -20s.  While there is always something to do on my desk, I went a bit stir crazy today, so I decided to have a little fun in my empty school.  I truly miss all of the students and staff when they are not here.  Yes, I got plenty of paperwork done and emails answered, but that is not the same as working directly with our wonderful kids and awesome teachers.

Hope you enjoy my video....

http://youtu.be/_fOiD2bapo8

Addendum (1-9-2015)
Washington Post article:
http://goo.gl/eAZO7T

Snowed in (or not)

Winter Storm Gorgon is approaching, and I am anxiously awaiting for the predicted six inches of snow that will supposedly cripple central Indiana.  Back in the old country (Wisconsin), six inches of snow is merely an inconvenience--maybe a 2-hour delay if it occurred around 5 in the morning, but never a cancellation.  My wife's family is closely tied to another school district in central Indiana.  For the past 18 years I have made fun of them when their district cancels school for days on end for less than a foot of snow.

Perspective.  It is all a matter of perspective.

Doesn't that account for nearly everything when it comes to teaching and learning?  What seems completely obvious to one, may be utterly confusing to another.  Response to Intervention, academic standards, educator effectiveness, technology infusion, anti-bullying, and mod scheduling each bring different levels of comfort or stress to students, teachers, administrators, and parents.  The biggest obstacle to educational progress is the size of the snowdrifts of misunderstanding.  Maintaining communication among all stakeholders in the educational process is vital; teachers, parents, administration, and students may all have different and valid perspectives on current practices and future goals of a school district.  Successful schools allow for voices to be heard, perspectives to be understood, and the well-being of the students to be visible at all times.

It is my honor and privilege to be a part of the Rossville family.  As I continue my inaugural year as Principal of Rossville Middle-High School, I look forward to grow in the manner I serve the staff, students, and families of this awesome community.

Through the composition of this blog post, Gorgon continues to push her snake-haired head into the area, and I wonder if she will prevent us from holding classes in the morning.  If we do, great learning will continue within these walls.  If we do have a snow day, I will go sledding on the hill next to the playground and frolic on the soccer field.  I hope others will join me.  That is learning, too, donchaknow!

Perspective.  It is all a matter of perspective.

I brought my snow pants and boots from Wisconsin, and I am anxiously waiting to use them here in the Hoosier State.  Meet me at the sledding hill.