LEADING THROUGH LISTENING

With the Kentucky Derby looming just one week away, it seems appropriate to refer to the beginning of our last 7 weeks with a racing reference. Although it doesn't feel like the start of May, here we are. Unfortunately, our golf, baseball, and softball teams have not been able to get their seasons off and running yet due to the weather, which will only add to the hecticness of the month of May for those students. For the rest of the student body, whether they are in kindergarten or twelfth grade, the end of the school year always brings a flurry of activities, stress, and excitement. During any given week you can find an athletic event, awards ceremony, concert, picnic, or class celebration to attend. Above that, students in the secondary level are priming for their final exams, AP exams, and Regents exams while our elementary students finish the final leg of New York State assessments. Staff members are also feverishly working to ensure students are prepared to be successful a...

Every day I am engaged in conversation with a colleague, parent, service provider, vendor, or even a student where when boiled down, the premise of every conversation comes to the need to make a decision. Most conversations are built around information sharing to help someone make a decision about something. However, even conversations that may be one-sided venting sessions are also steeped in the need to make a decision. Being an adult is certainly one of the most challenging tasks in life, but being an adult in the educational industry is perhaps the most challenging profession that one can enter in today's society. Every day is littered with decisions that are made in a split second that will effect a child in some way or another. Whether you are an administrator, teacher, custodian, teacher assistant, secretary, etc.; you are required to make decisions each day. What makes the decision challenging is that the world around you thinks they know what the correct decisions shou...

One of the most common things that people on the inside of the education profession refer to as the greatest factor of change in our society over the decades is the evolution of collaboration with families. Collaboration is a word that has become a mainstream 'buzz' word in both education and industry. The fact is, collaboration has always existed and more importantly; trust existed unconditionally between adults. Somehow, over the decades, this has taken a dramatic turn to the point where the general society has a feeling that if something doesn't go their way, it's wrong. In essence, we have become a society where the word 'no' has become a ticket to throw a temper tantrum, argue, complain, slander, threaten, etc. until someone gets their way. Rather than taking time to listen and discuss what the prevailing points and facts of a situation are, we as a society are quick to engage in confrontation. When I was a student in school, if the teacher or worse yet...

It's hard to believe that we are here, at the beginning of Spring and April. Most people know that the completion of March in a school setting is a major milestone. It signifies the end of the longest month in a school, and the beginning of the home stretch for our students. The next two and a half months bring many events, opportunities, and potential stresses to our students/staff. Particularly in the secondary setting, students are building schedules for next year, others are preparing for AP exams and Regents exams, the SAT and ACT administrations are coming up which could impact a student's future, some are looking for summer jobs, and that doesn't even begin to take into account athletic events, musicals, concerts, proms, balls, awards ceremonies, field days and class trips. As you can see, there is a lot going on. Generally, when people get busy, they also get tired and stressed. This is no different for our students as it is for us as adults. The next two months...