Professional development for me
comes in different ways. Being
able to attend a national conference isn’t something that I can do budget-wise
every year. In mid-July thousands
of elementary and middle school principals met at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel
for the National Association of Elementary School Principal’s National
Conference (insert your own joke here).
Having the conference thirty miles away was a real blessing.
It was my fourth such conference
and a great chance for me to see outstanding speakers, hear what is going on
with various colleagues around the country, and witness what impact national
policies and legislation is having on elementary principals. As an independent school leader, I was
definitely in the minority by about 99.5% to 00.5%. It was refreshing for me not to have to attend Common Core
themed discussions and presentations which dominated the agenda.
Instead, I heard one of the best
presentations ever by Robert Fulghum who authored the best seller, “All I Ever
Really Needed to Know I Learned in Kindergarten.” He told a beautiful story about his neighborhood elementary
school. During his morning walks,
he always knows what season it is by what is displayed on the windows of the
classrooms. From fall leaves, to
pumpkins, to snowflakes, the seasons are all on display. On one such occasion, he ran into the
principal, a very busy man, and mentioned the beautiful snowflakes. The principal replied, what beautiful
snowflakes? Mr. Fulghum walked him
to the nearest kindergarten snowflakes window display which the principal had
never noticed. They both stood
there and enjoyed the sight. The
message here is for more than just principals: Don’t miss the snowflakes.
Todd Whitaker is a highly sought
after speaker and former principal. He concentrates his
messages on moving ordinary schools to extraordinary ones. Schools which are extraordinary shape a
vision of academic success for each student (sound familiar?). He also stated that schools that are
extraordinary keep the needs of the students first in all they do. It is so refreshing to hear what we do at
our school being espoused on a national stage.
Finally, Former Supreme Court
Justice Sandra Day O’Connor held a session championing iCivics. This is a web based civics program for
middle and high schools. Still
sharp as a tack at 84, she told of not being able to find a job after law
school due to her gender. She
eventually found employment as a deputy county attorney in San Mateo County, California after
she offered to work for no salary and without an office and sharing space with
a secretary. Her message to us was the importance of
civics in the curriculum. It was a
personal delight for me to meet her afterward and have her sign some books. The Secret Service was very careful to
explain how to have the books out, don’t ask for the book to be personalized,
and keep moving. It was a bit like
the soup line in a Seinfeld episode.
When she noticed I had bought a hard back copy, she asked who it was
for. I told her it was for my son
Tucker who teaches history and government in high school. We had a nice talk about Tucker before
the next person came up. When I
looked in his book later, I noticed she personalized it and wrote a sweet
note. I hope the Secret Service
doesn’t read this blog.
Learning never ends, even for
headmasters. This love of lifelong
learning is something we are instilling in each of our students here at Sumner
Academy.
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