LEADING THROUGH LISTENING

One of the most common things I am hearing from people in discussion lately is, "I can't wait for schools to get back in session." At this point, as we enter week three of the closure, school staff are missing the children, parents are running out of ideas/resources for learning, and students are getting frustrated with the loss of school normalcy. One of the most important things that families, teachers, and children need to know about learning at home right now, is that students should not be recreating their regular school day schedule. Yes, a school day may last 6-7 hours in totality, but within that time, students are not faced with 6-7 hours of continuous work. There are teacher led conversations that occur, independent reading, student research of various topics, and much more that occurs that is not explicit work. The reality is that students should be doing roughly 90 minutes of work a day at the elementary level and roughly 120 minutes of work (20-25 minute...

During this time, it is more important than ever to show appreciation for others in our community. While it has already been known (and said) that Rome, NY is one of the most giving, caring, and supportive communities of education and each other that there is, it goes without saying that this past week has had many demonstrations of how amazing Rome truly is. People throughout our community have been coming together to support each other and learn how to live in this new environment. While no one can tell how long this situation is going to persist, what we can control is that when it has passed, we maintain our community of caring and supporting each other. Ironically, the level of complaints about many things has disappeared. It's not to say that problems and issues don't exist, however, this unfortunate medical crisis has put things into perspective for many. There is no need for adults, teenagers, or children to put others down. The level of outrage and frustration ove...

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) has communities and schools throughout or state, country, and the world on edge and responding in ways that none of us could have ever imagined. While there continues to be no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in our community, exposure and contact is all but inevitable, if not already here. As a precautionary measure to limit exposure and contact, the Rome City School District has decided to close student operations (no school for students) effective immediately. Students will return to school on Tuesday, April 14, 2020 baring any new developments or situations. While we all work through this, it is important to try and keep our minds free of false information and gossip. False information and gossip lead to fear, which leads to panic. While this crisis is scary, specifically for the elderly and those with compromised immune systems, it is manageable. I remind people every day that there is not a professional alive that we can turn to and ask, "what did ...

Do you remember playing the telephone game as a child? Sitting in a circle and sharing a "fact" with the person next to you and seeing how much that "fact changed by the time it got to the end of the circle. I can't recall a single instance where the information at the start of the circle was exactly the same at the end. This is because the our individual human brains interpret things differently from person to person. The outbreak of the coronavirus has brought this concept right to the forefront for our society. The Governor has recently done a serious of press conferences where he has highlighted the issues that arise from people sharing incomplete and/or inaccurate information. He has done a nice job explaining both facts and fear. Unfortunately, in today's society, most people feel that they are experts on all things that they can get their hands on. If we stick to coronavirus, how many people do you know that actually have direct access to the facts a...

The world is currently experiencing one of the largest health concerns that we have seen in recent, otherwise known as the Coronavirus (COVID-19). Hopefully by now, you have at least heard of the Coronavirus and have been able to see some of the news worldwide regarding the concerns. It first broke out in China and has since been reported in multiple other countries around the world. While COVID-19 cases have not been detected in New York State, we continue to prepare should there arise situations of cases or community spread.  The New York State Deportment of Health (NYSDOH) and Center for Disease Control (CDC) are recommending that everyone (including local health departments, health care providers, schools and businesses) prepare for the possibility of community spread.  COVID-19 is a respiratory illness, spread person-to-person similar to influenza.  Currently there is no specific treatment or vaccination to prevent COVID-19.  Non-pharmaceutical interve...