Monday mornings in the Principal's office can either be a warm cozy way of easing into the work week or a bucket of cold water in the face. The meeting I'm about to describe took place several years ago and could easily be the basis for the underlying theme of this blog "Things They Never Taught Us in Principal's School".
I remember sitting at my desk, on a crisp November morning, going through some of the accumulated paperwork that was sitting in my signature folder when my intercom buzzed. My secretary Paula was calling to inform me that Fred, one of my senior teachers was waiting to speak to me. Fred was a 30+ year veteran teacher and rumor had it that he was going to retire at the end of the school year. Fred had lost his wife several years earlier and it appeared to all that he was having a difficult time moving forward with his life. I really thought that Fred wanted to tell me that he was retiring and that this would be his final year. I was only partially correct!
Fred entered my office carrying a large pile of papers and pamphlets which he was barely able to manage. I invited him to take a seat and I began our conversation with the usual pleasantries. Fred was an unassuming man who had a small group of friends at school. He pretty much kept to himself and spent most of his free time at his desk in his classroom. I really didn't know much about him outside of school but that was about to change.
Fred began by telling me that he had decided that he was going to retire at the end of the present school year. He said that 34 years was enough and it was time to start his "new life". I had no idea what the term new life meant. Fred let me know that for several years, possibly decades, he was aware that he was at heart, a women trapped in a man's body. With the passing of his wife several years earlier he had begun explore these feelings and finally last year decided that he was going to go ahead with gender reassignment surgery.
All I could think about while Fred was confiding in me was "Wait until the Superintendent hears this!" Fred continued to explain that he had already gone through the psychological counseling that was required and had also begun to take female hormone injections to begin the process of change. His plan was to schedule the surgery following the end of the school year and begin his new life as a women. Fred also shared with me that over the last few months he had started to wear only women's clothing when he was not at work. Fortunately, he lived in another county, several miles from our very conservative and insulated school district.
After several seconds of waiting for the blood to return to my brain a stream of questions began jumping up and down in my head. Doing my best to maintain my composure, I asked Fred if he planned on wearing women's clothing to work? Waiting for Fed's reply the legal phrase disruptive to the educational process kept passing through my conscience along with several possible headlines for our small town newspaper. Fred acknowledged that he would maintain his "male"outward appearance for the remainder of the school year however it was his intention to attend the faculty end term party dressed as a women! If that wasn't enough, the next item was the icing on the cake.
Fred had decided to go ahead and legally change his first name in anticipation of his new life and his retirement. His new name was Sandy and he was going to have to inform our district payroll department of the change. Fred / Sandy quickly removed his / her new drivers license from his wallet to show me the name change, He had also gone ahead and ordered a personalized license plate for his car imprinted with the name Sandy to commemorate the event.
As it turned out, the pile of handouts and pamphlets that Fred brought to my office were articles discussing transgender issues and the surgical process of change. Fred offered to speak to our students on this topic at an upcoming assembly, if I thought it would be appropriate, but I graciously declined the offer. I asked Fred if it would be alright for me to tell our Superintendent what we had discussed and he agreed.
After Fred left my office a lengthy conversation with our Superintendent followed. Among other things that we discussed was the potential impact that this information would have on my school should this information become public. Instead of taking any pre-emptive actions we decided to monitor the situation as discretely as possible. For the next six months I was placed on "Fred watch" paying special attention to any rumors that might filter through the school.
True to his word, Fred maintained a very professional and masculine appearance for the remainder of the school year. A few rumors surfaced along the way but without support they evaporated just as quickly. Word had gone out among our staff that Fred would be unveiling his new look at the faculty party and it was a sold out event. Sandy arrived at the party wearing a flowing blond wig and a floor length evening gown. It was quite a sight.
As is often the case, the anticipation of what could be, is far worse than what actually happens. But it never hurts to be prepared.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Making Parents Feel Welcome In Your School Every Day
Most High Schools invite their parents into the school building 4 - 6 times each year. Once for "Meet the Teacher Night", a few times for Music Recitals and Plays, and at the end of the year for Graduation. The rest of the time, parents only come up to school when their presence is requested by a teacher or counselor or in an emergency.
I have found that providing our Parents Association with their own office has greatly increased our ability to work together and has broken down many barriers that existed in the past. Now before you start sending me a list of reasons why this is not a good idea, let me explain.
Providing an office does not mean allowing parents to have free run of the school building. Nor does it mean that they can stop in an see their children's teachers whenever they feel like it. The office that I have provided is 50 feet from my office in the front of the building. Parents who staff the Parent, Teachers Association office (P.T.A) must sign in when they arrive at school like any other visitor. They also wear Visitor I.D. tags to identify them to the rest of the staff. Their movement is generally confined to their office and the General Office.
We have found that having parents in my school has a calming influence on student behavior especially between instructional periods. I have also made use of my P.T.A. parents whenever a new family arrives at our school. While the new student is going through the intake process my P.T.A. representative provides the new parents with community information and makes them feel comfortable. This is also a great time to get the new parents to join the P.T.A. This arrangement has also been very helpful when I want to get accurate information out to my community members in a hurry.
When we welcome parents into our schools on an ongoing basis, the term "stakeholder" takes on a whole new meaning in the discussion of school improvement. With this arrangement, parents tend to have a more positive attitude toward their school and are more supportive of the entire school community.
I have found that providing our Parents Association with their own office has greatly increased our ability to work together and has broken down many barriers that existed in the past. Now before you start sending me a list of reasons why this is not a good idea, let me explain.
Providing an office does not mean allowing parents to have free run of the school building. Nor does it mean that they can stop in an see their children's teachers whenever they feel like it. The office that I have provided is 50 feet from my office in the front of the building. Parents who staff the Parent, Teachers Association office (P.T.A) must sign in when they arrive at school like any other visitor. They also wear Visitor I.D. tags to identify them to the rest of the staff. Their movement is generally confined to their office and the General Office.
We have found that having parents in my school has a calming influence on student behavior especially between instructional periods. I have also made use of my P.T.A. parents whenever a new family arrives at our school. While the new student is going through the intake process my P.T.A. representative provides the new parents with community information and makes them feel comfortable. This is also a great time to get the new parents to join the P.T.A. This arrangement has also been very helpful when I want to get accurate information out to my community members in a hurry.
When we welcome parents into our schools on an ongoing basis, the term "stakeholder" takes on a whole new meaning in the discussion of school improvement. With this arrangement, parents tend to have a more positive attitude toward their school and are more supportive of the entire school community.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Helping New Teachers Survive
New teachers continue to leave the field of education at an alarming rate and with them go the future of our profession. If we are ever going to change the current course of public education then we are going to have to retain our most qualified novice teachers. As we all can attest to from our own experience, being a new teacher is no day at the park. Yet year after year we continue to throw these young educators into the deep end of the pool without the proper support and wonder why they leave the profession in droves.
As Principal, I have always made it a point to try and provide an extensive safety net for my new teachers beginning prior to the first day of school. As soon as a new hire is approved by the Board of Education I ask the appropriate department supervisor to set up a meeting with the novice teacher. During this meeting the new teacher will receive copies of the curriculum & text. They will also be shown their room or rooms as the case may be. A brief discussion of lesson planning and first day of school activities will take place. Next, the new teacher will meet with the Assistant Principal. This may take place on an individual or small group basis. The Assistant Principal will discuss the mundane but very important attendance and referral procedures. The neophyte will also have an opportunity to review the new teacher handbook.
The handbook was our attempt to provide the teachers new to our school with a reference guide. It contains an explanation of all the day to day procedures that are followed in our school. It also has a directory and map (very important) of who's responsible for a particular activity. The directory also contains copies of all the forms that are used as well as the student discipline code. This meeting concludes with a tour of the entire school campus. We don't want our new hires getting lost on their first day.
Once the school year begins, regular weekly meetings are scheduled with department supervisors. Neophytes are teamed up with senior teachers for mentoring as required by state law. In my meetings with the department supervisors I'm constantly inquiring about the progress of our new teachers and also reminding my supervisors to be supportive. After approximately 4 weeks of school I schedule my first informal meeting with each new teacher. As the Principal I want to begin the process of establishing a dialogue with the new teachers and initiate them into the team building process.
In addition, during the first semester, voluntary New Teacher Workshops are held after school. In the beginning of the year they are held every two weeks and during the second semester they are held monthly. The purpose for these meetings is to give the new teacher an opportunity to meet with one another and to share their experiences during this very stressful time in their new career. By design, I don't attend these meetings in the hope that the new teachers will feel more comfortable expressing their concerns, fears, and early successes. The meetings are run by the Assistant Principal who is very supportive and knowledgeable in our program.
Within the confines of the curriculum and with full knowledge of the exit examinations looming on the horizon, we encourage all our teachers to creative and inventive in their teaching. We do this knowing full well that not every lesson is going to be a smashing success nor that every piece of information will be understood the first time it is presented. It has been our experience that when new teachers are given the support that they need and the freedom to be creative then their ability to survive the rigors of their first year increases markedly.
As Principal, I have always made it a point to try and provide an extensive safety net for my new teachers beginning prior to the first day of school. As soon as a new hire is approved by the Board of Education I ask the appropriate department supervisor to set up a meeting with the novice teacher. During this meeting the new teacher will receive copies of the curriculum & text. They will also be shown their room or rooms as the case may be. A brief discussion of lesson planning and first day of school activities will take place. Next, the new teacher will meet with the Assistant Principal. This may take place on an individual or small group basis. The Assistant Principal will discuss the mundane but very important attendance and referral procedures. The neophyte will also have an opportunity to review the new teacher handbook.
The handbook was our attempt to provide the teachers new to our school with a reference guide. It contains an explanation of all the day to day procedures that are followed in our school. It also has a directory and map (very important) of who's responsible for a particular activity. The directory also contains copies of all the forms that are used as well as the student discipline code. This meeting concludes with a tour of the entire school campus. We don't want our new hires getting lost on their first day.
Once the school year begins, regular weekly meetings are scheduled with department supervisors. Neophytes are teamed up with senior teachers for mentoring as required by state law. In my meetings with the department supervisors I'm constantly inquiring about the progress of our new teachers and also reminding my supervisors to be supportive. After approximately 4 weeks of school I schedule my first informal meeting with each new teacher. As the Principal I want to begin the process of establishing a dialogue with the new teachers and initiate them into the team building process.
In addition, during the first semester, voluntary New Teacher Workshops are held after school. In the beginning of the year they are held every two weeks and during the second semester they are held monthly. The purpose for these meetings is to give the new teacher an opportunity to meet with one another and to share their experiences during this very stressful time in their new career. By design, I don't attend these meetings in the hope that the new teachers will feel more comfortable expressing their concerns, fears, and early successes. The meetings are run by the Assistant Principal who is very supportive and knowledgeable in our program.
Within the confines of the curriculum and with full knowledge of the exit examinations looming on the horizon, we encourage all our teachers to creative and inventive in their teaching. We do this knowing full well that not every lesson is going to be a smashing success nor that every piece of information will be understood the first time it is presented. It has been our experience that when new teachers are given the support that they need and the freedom to be creative then their ability to survive the rigors of their first year increases markedly.
Sunday, March 23, 2008
NCLB - One of the Greatest Travesties of Public Education Ever!
As a Principal you pretty much get used to new & improved regulations crossing your desk from time to time. In fact, I've been at this long enough to see things come around twice. For example, the soon to be new high school mathematics sequence in my home state of New York. But "No Child Left Behind" is something completely different.
This unfunded fiasco does nothing to enhance the educational experience. It doesn't enrich the curriculum or provide for additional study of the arts. Instead, it focuses in on a very finite bottom line, as if schools were giant corporations turning out an assembly line product. Well in case you forgot, students are not widgets.
If you happen to have a large population of students who have not achieved in the traditional "academic" subjects, then you can all but forget about offering them anything of a cultural or technical nature because there just isn't enough time.
When the Federal Government compares our achievement levels against other countries they almost always fail to mention the following;
1. Most other countries in these comparisons have a school year that is longer than 180 days and a school day that is longer than 7 hours.
2. In many countries students must pass rigorous examinations to continue in an academic school setting past the 8th grade.
3. The school curriculum is set at the national level and not at the state or local level as it is here.
4. In other countries, instruction is only provided in one nationally recognized language.
5. Lastly, in other countries, educators are well respected and properly compensated members of their respective societies. Therefore, it is much easier to attract and retain qualified people interested in the field of education.
Nothing bothers me more than to have to tell a student who shows an interest in music, or art, or technology that we had to cancel those classes to provide another remedial English or Math or
Social Studies section.
If you want schools to do more than provide a longer school day and a longer school year and we can get it done. Otherwise, allow NCLB to expire and let the educators go back to teaching a well rounded curriculum and not just to some ridiculous test.
This unfunded fiasco does nothing to enhance the educational experience. It doesn't enrich the curriculum or provide for additional study of the arts. Instead, it focuses in on a very finite bottom line, as if schools were giant corporations turning out an assembly line product. Well in case you forgot, students are not widgets.
If you happen to have a large population of students who have not achieved in the traditional "academic" subjects, then you can all but forget about offering them anything of a cultural or technical nature because there just isn't enough time.
When the Federal Government compares our achievement levels against other countries they almost always fail to mention the following;
1. Most other countries in these comparisons have a school year that is longer than 180 days and a school day that is longer than 7 hours.
2. In many countries students must pass rigorous examinations to continue in an academic school setting past the 8th grade.
3. The school curriculum is set at the national level and not at the state or local level as it is here.
4. In other countries, instruction is only provided in one nationally recognized language.
5. Lastly, in other countries, educators are well respected and properly compensated members of their respective societies. Therefore, it is much easier to attract and retain qualified people interested in the field of education.
Nothing bothers me more than to have to tell a student who shows an interest in music, or art, or technology that we had to cancel those classes to provide another remedial English or Math or
Social Studies section.
If you want schools to do more than provide a longer school day and a longer school year and we can get it done. Otherwise, allow NCLB to expire and let the educators go back to teaching a well rounded curriculum and not just to some ridiculous test.
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Things They Never Taught Me In Principal School
Greetings and thanks for stopping by. Over the coming days, months, and years I hope to be able to share with you some of my experiences, victories, and frustrations as a school principal. My entries will probably range from single questions to lengthy postings. Please feel free to add your comments and questions.
...One of the questions I've always told my students to ask their teachers was "Why do I have to learn this? " I think any educator worth their salt ought to be able to answer this question without hesitation. Similarly, any school administrator should be able to explain their actions to their faculty, students and parents. Sometimes that's not so easy. Sometimes your directions were not your decision nor your idea.
...One of the questions I've always told my students to ask their teachers was "Why do I have to learn this? " I think any educator worth their salt ought to be able to answer this question without hesitation. Similarly, any school administrator should be able to explain their actions to their faculty, students and parents. Sometimes that's not so easy. Sometimes your directions were not your decision nor your idea.
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