LEADING THROUGH LISTENING

  This weekend we take pause and remember all of the brave women and men who gave the ultimate sacrifice to serve our country and defend our freedoms. Memorial Day is one of our nation's most important military holidays as it aims to recognize all of the individuals who have lost their lives in the line of duty. It's hard to think of the day as an actual holiday because of the meaning behind the day. We are not celebrating the military, but celebrating the lives of our lost soldiers and the bravery that they embodied as they defending our nation. Similar to last year, COVID continues to put a damper on the recognition ceremonies for these heroes. Our country's general way of showing recognition for the lost on Memorial Day is a parade. With many parades throughout our country still on hold, it is our duty to take time tomorrow to remember those lost in the line of duty and to share stories about Memorial Day with our youth. While most people use this weekend to hit the camp...

At this point, it is hard to find words to even talk about the last 16 months. Having five minutes to think back and reflect on everything that has happened and to think about everything that our food services workers have done, the transitions and adaptations our teachers have had to make, the abundance of contact tracing and phone calls administrators have had to make, and everything that students have had to navigate to get to this point truly makes you wonder how we are able to see the end in sight. With Memorial Day being late this year, the end of the school year is going to come quick. When we get to this point of the year, it generally makes me think of the song The Final Countdown by Europe. The end of the year is usually fast-paced with a ton of required tasks that all have deadlines that are non-negotiable. Beyond all of the checkboxes that have to be completed, there are proms, balls, celebrations, events, and other activities that mark the milestone of reaching the end of ...

I often wonder why it is that people are afraid of failure? Beyond that, educators, in general, seem to be so afraid of failure. Almost every educator recognizes when something doesn't make sense and needs to be changed, but are reluctant to try something different because what if it doesn't work? That would make us failures!! In conjunction with that, every educated and worldly adult knows that we have learned life's lessons through failure. By making mistakes and not giving up. So I ask the question, should failure be final? Well, I would argue that clearly in life it is not. We are able to make mistakes and are provided opportunities to correct our mistakes, learn from them, and move on with life. Oftentimes, the feeling of success that accompanies our learning experiences and/or corrected mistakes is a rejuvenation of life in general. In education, failure has long meant that we are not good enough. Given that most people who work in the field of education, were not stu...

Today is the day that we celebrate all of the moms that are out there within our school district community. There is no secret about it, moms have long been a major fixture of public school systems everywhere. Beyond the fact that most often a mother is a child's first teacher, they have been intricately involved in the function of schools since day one. Whatever the need, whenever it occurs, a mother is generally available to help make sure that the ball isn't dropped. As we grow through life and become adults, appreciation for the work of our mother grows even stronger. It's easy to see a mom as more of a taskmaster and an Uber driver in our childhood. Carting us around and making sure that we progressed through life in a matter that provides the greatest opportunity for long-standing success. Regardless of the times, regardless of the situation, a mother is the ultimate support person as we walk throughout life. During the last year, the pandemic has only accentuated the...

Perhaps this year, more than any other, a "thank you" is in great order for the teachers of Rome and throughout the country. Teacher appreciation week doesn't seem fitting for everything that a teacher has had to endure throughout the last 14 months, yet this is what we have to recognize the effort, work, and time that teachers have put into the craft throughout the year. Already one of the most challenging professions because every adult human being has some form of experience with education, being in school, or even possibly teaching; it is the epitome of a profession where everyone else thinks they know better than the individual doing the work. While in some cases, those people can be correct (after all, no one is perfect), in many cases there is much more to the art of teaching than the simple "A,B,C's and 1, 2, 3's." Over the last year, teachers have had to learn an entirely new method of providing content to their students all while also trying to...