Where the Next Man's Nose Begins

By now I’m sure we have all seen this image. Protesters in Michigan demanding that their state reopen made national headlines along with other such protests. This picture to many represents the anger the protesters are feeling. Maybe you see poor behavior on the part of the protesters. I look at this a little differently. To me it is a study of rights and responsibilities.

One of the great joys of my professional life was teaching civics and government. “Your rights end where the next man’s nose begins” I would always say.  I heard that in college and despite not knowing it's exact origins, I rehashed it anyway.  The point is you have the freedom to do whatever you want as long as you don't hurt others in the process.

It is our right to protest. It was one of the first ideas the framers had when writing the Bill of Rights.  The first amendment encompasses many of the freedoms that we embrace the most.  You have the right to peaceably assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.  I am a strong believer in these rights and I recognize everyone's freedom to exercise them.  Protest whatever you want and despite my opposition, I will acknowledge your right to protest.  Even though the protester below makes my blood boil, I will respect their rights to display this incredibly insensitive poster.  Just like when my blood boils to see an American flag being burned.

It is our responsibility to not harm others while exercising those rights.  This is where the next man's nose begins.  While I'm happy to celebrate the free speech rights of all our people, I'm a little more critical of how people exercise their responsibilities.  The visual of armed protesters is definitely off putting.  Until you do your homework and find out that it is not new.  These pictures were taken about 50 years apart.  Michigan protesters on the left wanting to re-open their state and Black Panthers on the right protesting a gun control bill in the Washington State Legislature.  Both are menacing photos of conveying a message in an extreme way.

  

American citizenship is challenging.  I think it was meant to be by the framers of the Constitution.  They laid out what our given rights were, but not the responsibilities of the citizenry to exercise them.  They left that to us.  Not being aware of our responsibility to each other or disregarding it takes us to a dark place.  Our present day protesters have a legitimate message.  They have the right be heard, but showing up in mass during a pandemic and openly brandishing firearms is not responsible.  Instead of activism, the intimidation and aggressive behaviors used border on terrorism.  I hate to use such a strong word, but we have to face the facts.

As I sit and type this, I am exercising my right to free speech.  In no way shape or form will I defame anyone or commit libel or slander in the process.  That is my responsibility.  I know exactly where the next man's nose begins.  If we all can do this, maybe protest turns into dialog and maybe division can turn into consensus.  We are stronger together than we are apart.  History has been a great teacher in that regard.  Pushing us into extremes will not allow any progress.  Protest all you want, but be responsible in being heard.  You never know who may be hurt in the process.

Teacher Appreciation Ramble

I almost picked up an LSAT application in college.  Late in my teacher education program, I seriously considered becoming an attorney.  I had inspiring instructors to blame for that.  I was a social studies education major and my schedule filled up with courses in law and government.  I enjoyed the logic and back and forth of the legal argument.  I loved going to class to hear about and read about cases where the little guy took their troubles all the way to the Supreme Court to set precedence that defined the rights of an entire country.  How can you not be inspired by that?  I was convinced that to elevate the little guy, I had to become an attorney.

Once I started student teaching I realized that this was not true.  This is not a knock on attorneys.  This is was an adjustment of my professional logic.  Those inspiring college instructors influenced me to inspire my students with the same stories.  I learned really quickly that as my students became as invested and as curious as I was, I was creating informed citizens.  It is much more rewarding thinking that I am preventing the existence of the little guy.  The notion that you can build empowered people with your daily work should inspire anyone to become a teacher.

Fast forward to the present.  I can see this turning into a ramble.  The COVID-19 pandemic has generated a whole new respect for teachers.  I have to admit that I love seeing the admiration for the work of a teacher on social media.  I feel like people have gotten a little taste of what teachers do.  Just a little taste.  These classrooms have two to three students in them.  These teachers can let school out early when the day gets tough.  These teachers don't have to worry about their students' safety and well being over a weekend.  Don't get me wrong, parents at my school have done a great job helping our kids with their work.  It still cannot substitute for a person giving their professional lives to countless kids that don't belong to them.  I hope that this feeling of admiration for teachers during the pandemic is genuine and permanent.

I hope you take time to reflect on the teachers that have impacted you.  I wrote about my turnaround teacher in a blog post a few years ago.  I think we all have a teacher that we will never forget.  I can't say that about any attorney (sorry guys).  When I tell my students that I wanted to be an attorney at one point, they always ask why I didn't.  The consensus is that being a lawyer is a way cooler job.  They don't get what us teacher types understand and that is okay.  I only hope that my teachers and I help them find their purpose and chase their personal missions.  We have the opportunities and unique skill sets for this that parent-teachers do not have.

I know I'm rambling, but think about the scene in Saving Private Ryan when he reveals to his men that he was a school teacher?  That was a huge turning point in the movie because all of those soldiers can relate to a teacher.  They put two and two together and saw his leadership skills and it all made sense.  Teachers are special people even in the movies.

I could do this all day.  Let's reduce the ramble into a bullet-ed list.

• Teaching is not a job, it is a life.
• Teacher's work is never done, only improved.
• Teachers make more decisions in a day than just about any other profession.
• Teachers have to deal with the constant moving target set by policy makers.
• Teachers get bashed online, but can't bash back.
• Teachers are being asked more and more to be familiar with psychology and prescription meds.
• Teachers are learning survival practices in the event of a shooting.
• Teachers are in very short supply.

Honestly, I could go on and on.  It's easy to ramble on and on about something that means so much.  Teachers, you mean a lot to a lot of people.  Please know your worth and know that you are appreciated.  Danielson may think you are "Proficient" but I think you are all rock stars.  Ramble over.

Mission Never Accomplished

While I am hating all the setbacks that have come with this pandemic, it has provided me time to do all the things that I say I have no time to do.  While cleaning out the garage, we sat and sorted through some boxes and totes that were a mystery when it came to their contents.  We got to take a great trip down memory lane with old pictures that turned into stories to tell the kids.  One box turned up a couple old newspaper articles that were written when I started my tenure at Central Junior High School.

I remember that interview like it was yesterday.  I remember calling each teacher and just talking to them.  I remember the massive ring of keys that were left for me.  I remember pouring over old files in the office learning everything I could about my new school.  Then I realized that that article hit the paper almost ten years ago.  I will be entering my tenth year as the Principal of CJHS on July 1st.

I read the article.  A few lines stuck out for reflection.  Bob Ellis of the Daily American wrote that I exuded confidence and I had a keen attitude for getting the job done.  After a short bio and a couple accomplishments at Elverado I found this quote from me, "Student success comes first.  That not only means that we should be on the cutting edge of how to educate students but we must be willing to raise the bar for them so that they may exceed their own expectations."  I really enjoyed reading this for one really big reason.

I feel like this is something I would have said last week.  I have had a lot of one of a kind experiences at CJHS.  I have the honor of awards and the agony of working though troubled waters.  Over this time I am most proud of the idea that I feel like I am on the same mission from where I started.  Many things have changed around me, but I have stayed on mission.  I looked through he faces of this picture.  After having a couple mental laughs, I realized that these kids got the same me that my students will get in August.

Principals these days do not last this long in their schools.  One report has the average stay of a middle school Principal as 4.48 years.  Another report says that only 11% of principals stay ten years or more at one school.  My current contract will take me through year twelve.  If you find yourself in this rare air, I hope you are still on mission like you were on day one.  Because this mission is never accomplished.  There is no finish line.  The mission is the pursuit of serving students in the best way possible.  The job of the Principal is a tough one and we have to settle for it never being done.

Supporting our COVID-19 Troops

I will admit that when the COVID-19 pandemic was starting, I was a skeptic.  Yes, I was one of those that said things like "It's only the flu" and "people only care because rich folks are getting it."  That was back in January though.  A lot has changed since then and my thinking has changed also.  Sure, my family is undergoing changes and sacrifices like everyone else.  Sure, I am frustrated that the school year is over for my children and my students.  The whole thing is very sad, but we stand determined.

I finally broke down and began watching the images from the news.  I was struck by two contrasting themes currently taking place in our country.  First, I watched a great piece on Nightline about the front lines of the crisis in the hospitals of New York City.  As I watched the struggle of the medical professionals being profiled and the conditions in which they were working in, it reminded me of seeing footage of war.  In my lifetime, war has never been fought in our country.  We have to watch the conflict play out on the news from countries that most people cannot locate on a map.  My heart was tugged on when I realized that these people are fighting this fight here.  These are our people trying to save our people.  Not a war that many don't understand in a far away place.

The other side of the narrative is the protesting going on in various parts of the country to re-open their states amid this pandemic.  Now, don't get me wrong.  I understand the hurt that people would like to end.  My wife and her sister own a small business and they are seeing the burdens of the shutdown firsthand.  We have a legitimate concern to keep our economy running and I will not try to dispute that.  I see this as just another way we have become polarized as a country.  We are once again forced to take one side or the other.  You are either for re-opening the country or for saving as many lives as possible.



What an unfair position the American people find themselves in.  If we use my clumsy comparison of this pandemic being a war fought on our soil, sacrifices have to be made.  During World War II, the U.S. government began to ration food through a system of ration books.  This was a radical move, but necessary for the war effort.  At no time have we ever questioned the idea of supporting our troops during conflict or war.  But, war has not affected us this way in my lifetime because war has never been this close to home.

If, for the sake of this comparison, our medical professionals and scientists are the troops in the trenches of this war then we have to sacrifice a little longer for them.  They are fighting to save lives and to find a vaccine.  They fight today to protect us from this virus in the future.  I know it's hard make the best out of this difficult situation and even those war ration books were not perfect for the situation.  We have to give them a fighting chance.  Even the president considers us at war with an "invisible enemy" so maybe we need to support our troops a little bit longer.  We will get through this, but we can't do that without a united front to make the needed sacrifices.

Maslow before Bloom’s

The first time I heard this term was on Scott England’s podcast. I was so struck by the concept that I added some slides to my Poverty Practitioner workshop presentation. What a powerful way to think.  We need to meet their greatest personal needs before we meet their educational needs. This is definitely a useful mindset for those hoping to make an impact on their low-income students.

This concept became our reality when the COVID-19 shutdown took place and we found ourselves without our students. It is a proud moment when I see news stories and posts about the work of school staff providing the basics like food and social service support. Sometimes the best way to adopt a new mindset is to be pushed into it by things out of your control. The education community and risen to the occasion and brought life to the concept and in many places has been taken to a new level.  This proves we have always been “essential” employees because we serve our state’s most essential resource.

This also applies to us. We feel the void emotionally when our most vulnerable students’ progress and  health is no longer in our hands.  I have said before that heartbreak is a trait of a great teacher. This has certainly been tested with recent events. It is hard to hear one of your teachers express their worry and concern for kids they know need them. It’s hard for me to get emails from kids asking when we get to come back and if I can help them get medication if they run out. If you are feeling stressed out, you are not alone. This is not time to sit out. Our kids need you to be just as dependable as you have before.

The challenge now is can we continue the idea of Maslow before Bloom’s after this crisis is over?  Have we experienced enough to make this a permanent mindset?  I say don’t stop what we have started. Don’t stop feeding them physically and emotionally. Don’t stop making them feel wanted and included.  These thangs carry far more value than any learning packet. We also know that the brain will respond better when their emotional needs are met and those learning packets won’t be so bad. But hey, look who I’m preaching to. The best people on Earth.

Lastly, I need to give a special thanks to the Illinois PTA. They recently named me the Administrator of the Year and I am very appreciative and humbled by the honor.  Since my very first year as a building principal, I have understood the partnership between myself and the families that I serve. I take that connection very seriously and I have been blessed with great parent group members. A couple years ago we affiliated with the PTA and that relationship has proven to be a huge benefit to our parents and families. On behalf of Central Junior High School, I would like to thank the Illinois PTA for what they do for our schools and families.

Keeping Up With Kevin

On Monday morning I was told that Kevin Conaughty had passed away.  Kevin was our maintenance director for Frankfort #168.  If I had a project, he worked with me to get it done.  If something broke down, he made sure it was repaired.  If I had questions about food service, he knew the answer.  He was excellent at his job.  That description does not tell his story.  Anyone that knew him or had the privilege to work with him knew he was more than a Mr. Fix-it.  If you knew him, you could only hope to keep up with him.

If you wanted to know what Kevin was actually up to, you could attend any school board meeting and listen to his report.  He had a long list of things that were fixed, a long list of things that were broke and a long list of plans to take care of all of it.  We would often smile the longer he went on.  We always knew he was the hardest working man in the district because his report was usually longer than any one else's.

"Good morning Charles.  How's you day going?"  He said this to me with a smile everyday he saw me as he was leaving the kitchen in my building.  Sometimes he called me "Sir Charles" and I kinda liked it.  I always gave him a generic answer like, "It's still early Kevin" or "Not too shabby" even if my day was already going to the dogs.  He was such a soldier for his work and the district that I never wanted him to really know that I was having a bad day or early struggles.  I knew what his work load was and he never showed me anything other than optimism so that is what I gave back to him.

Kevin was not all business all the time.  There was always moments to share stories and tell jokes to share a laugh.  What separates Kevin from many is that the laughs were had after the work was done.  He was never one to be off task or be unproductive with goofing off and silliness.  It's easy for me to do that sometimes and he was always a shining example of getting a job done.  We can have fun later.

He may be gone, but I will not stop trying to keep up with him.  Kevin was in constant pursuit of doing the job right for the kids and staff of our district.  He is a prime example of how there is no finish line when it comes to the special work of schools.  He was truly one of the best of us and the best we can do for him is to follow his example and chase what is best for kids.  I may never catch him, but I will try to keep up.

Rest in peace my friend.

You are What You Celebrate - Second Edition

If you are an educator of any kind, you have to be very proud of the effort you have made for your kids in recent weeks.  A while back I wrote about our BETA Club and how proud we were of them.  I celebrated the way we were celebrating the right things together.  I wrote, "You are what you celebrate. If you celebrate mediocrity, that's what you will get.  If you celebrate reaching a low level goal repeatedly, there will be no motivation to go further."  My basic message was that if we celebrate the great things we have in our buildings, we will always seek out greatness.

There has been no shortage of this during the COVID-19 shutdown.  All across our state, teachers and admins are stepping up to show how special their students are to them.  I was slow to this work mostly because like many, I was paralyzed by the situation and spent to much time over analyzing how to help.  Here is what I think I have and all of us have come to understand. Schools are like good churches. A good church is not confined to its own walls. The church is everywhere it needs to be.  Schools are no different. When school buildings have no students in them, the school goes to them and they serve them in any way they know how.

Need to see this in action?  Search #ilschoolsstepup on Twitter.  You will see countless tales of how school families are always in tact even if the school is empty.  Watch a student get a happy birthday celebration at his house by his classmates.  How about a kindergartner doing a science experiment from her kitchen table.  What about donating PPE items to local health professionals?  I think we are all finding creative ways to deliver meals to students and those meals mean more than just a full belly.  Just ask the kitchen staff in my district when they got thank you notes from students returned to them.

In short, teachers miss their students.  Sharing this activity is not showing off.  It is an act of perpetuating excellence. These stories must be told to remind us of how special our work is.  We are what we celebrate. Don't stop showing people how much we care, how much we do for them and how ready we are for them to come back.  These are the bricks that build a great school climate and school family. Keep celebrating through these tough and uncertain times and tell your stories of excellence. They will not be forgotten.

Our staff made a quick video for our parents and kids with more on the way.