Ready, Set, Go

I was awakened this morning by an alarm clock I thought I turned off last night. The morning I vowed, "I am going to sleep in," I am still up at 5:00a.m. After lying there for 30 minutes I realized I was not going back to sleep, so what better do I have to do than check and delete emails (not sure if anyone else has trouble keeping their mailbox clear but mine gets full often...topic for another post); nevertheless I go to my computer and get about the business of re-reading emails to decide what needs to go.

I come across an email sent by one of my former teachers who is now an administrator (I taught her well) with a link to an article titled A Lousiana School Leader Answers the Call of Duty. I knew it had to be read worthy if she sent it to me, so at 5:45 a.m. I am reading the article.

See this week has been filled with reminders of how great the task of turning our school around really is. My school has dipped into intervene status with the DOE. Therefore "THE STATE" has carte blanche to come into our building whenever they want. Trust me, they are exercising that right! Last week, the first week of school, they were there for 2 hours reviewing with me what "the monitoring" would be for the year. This week, they spent 2 days in the building as a large group and another one came back yesterday. One day, one group visited all content area classrooms while the "Director" grilled me about many things I was told not to worry about until later. I always scream in my head when I hear that. Well, glad my overachiever, Type-A personality NEVER falls for that one, so I had answers, copius answers, to every question....even those things I was told not to worry about...lucky me.

The second day they spent the day writing their reports while another group visited classrooms. Meanwhile, me and members of my leadership team were at a "training" with a "school improvement group" who has had success working with schools in our area and is now going to "fix" us. They reminded us, however, that if we had certain cultural issues in our school we were DOOMED TO FAILURE. Visit, another visit, school improvement plan, 2 training sessions, 4 other meetings....and yesterday was only day 10 of what will prove to be a very short school year.

This morning, however, as I read the article, I cried. Cried, not because I am sad or depressed, but because it confirmed for me that I, we, are definitely on the right track. While I wish there was a way to measure the impact we are having on children outside of "THE TEST" there is not. Cried because of the number of new graduates from last year, my first year at the school, who ran to me, hugged me, said thank you and reassured me they were doing well and taking care of themselves. Cried because, even while a disgruntled former employee, removed by a state mandate, attempted to glean attention by heckling and talking loudly, teachers and administrators, even from other schools made contact, late into the night, to voice support for the very difficult choices that must be made for growth. Choices that are not always understood but made plain only by actions...time reveals true charcater. Cried because regardless how impossible it really seems we are working to do whatever it takes to benefit our students.

I think my soul needed release this morning. I was so overwhelmed with emotion last night while watching my school, the school I lead, play on the field of my alma mater. MY ALMA MATER--a school where my home engrained charcater was cultivated......a school where I learned to study and be the best I could be.....a school where my teachers would not even THINK about letting me give less than best effort......a school that also faces the stringent penalty of closure because of being in intervene status. Two schools dualing, but not just with each other on the football field.

If anyone has done it then you know it can be done....however, if it has never been done, then we must end that comment with a resounding, "YET." None of our high schools have done what we must do this school year, yet!!!

As I prepare for a workday that I did not plan to start until 11:00 a.m. today...and yes the date does show that it's Saturday, I feel a lightness. I feel refreshed. I feel ready!