Hello July!

I just went through the worst June of my career.  It was terrible!  In fact, March, April and May were not great.  I have never been so glad to see July.

I suspect for most of you the spring, the end of school, and the early summer were typical.  Not for me.  I awoke after Graduation knowing that I was acting high school principal, acting curriculum director and everyone else was off on vacation or conference.  We had vacancies out the kazoo and no one around to even form a committee to help select new folks. 

June was painful too.  I was losing close friends and colleagues who for years had been a source of stability and feedback for me personally and professionally.  The Board perceived I was not on the same page as they, and vice versa.  When the work load dramatically escalated I became emotionally less equipped to deal with it.  I hurt.  There were times I was ready to quit, times I was encouraged to quit, and times I thought I’d be fired.  But, here it is July and I am still here.  For some, that is good news, for others you may not think so, but I am still here.  The pain is not all gone, but thank goodness June is.

We accomplished much in June.  On July 2^nd I will recommend a new curriculum director, and brand new human resource/federal programs director, a new principal of the junior high, a new assistant principal of the junior high and a score of new teachers.  June was interview month and we are blessed by the quality of folks who are willing to come here and work with us.  I deeply believe you will like our new folks and look forward to all of us getting to know each other. 

I learned in June that we are blessed by the quality of folks who committed to stay with us.  We have some great teachers and as I have grown to know some of you better I am kicking myself for not having done this sooner.  To each of you who are staying I say thank you.  To those of you who risked engaging in real conversation with me regarding what is right and what is wrong in our system I am forever in your debt.  I held my first “BwB” and I think it went great.  I will have others and be more inclusive, but I really wanted to thank those who were tempted to leave us and decided to stay.  The work of public education is not about title and salary, though I know that helps.  It is about mission and purpose and I am so glad you remain here to help in that cause. 

On the other hand, because June was interview month, it was not planning month as it typically is.  I am way behind on budget development, I am way behind on handbooks, code of conduct, district goals and objectives, compliance reports, federal grant submissions, analysis of STAAR test results, etc., etc.  I will have to cover a lot of ground in July to make up for June, but I will have some great new folks to help me do that.  And, we still have a major construction project underway that requires constant monitoring and plan adjustment.

Summers are my busiest time, and the decisions made between now and your return are critical to our success.  Thanks to each of you who, though off contract, have helped with making so many of those decisions and have given of your own time to go to conferences and workshops to refine the quality of your professional practice.  And for all of you I say drop by and say hi.  I’m here working.

Hello July!  Can’t wait for August! 

(OK, I may be in the minority on that one, but once you are back, busses roll and bells ring it means the major planning is done and we are up and going serving kids.  So rest up!)