"Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire." WB Yeats
Dear Teachers, As someone who has spent a lifetime in schools — as a teacher, a principal, and a leader — I want to say something to you as you head into the final stretch of this school year: You have earned the break that s coming — the rest, the reset, and the chance to Continue reading "Wrapping it up with purpose."
The bell officially rang for me on July 1, 2024. After four decades in the Fife School District—spanning 16 years in the classroom, 3 years as an assistant principal, 12 years as a principal, and my final nine years as Assistant Superintendent—I’ve spent the last several months in that strange, beautiful space that every retiree eventually Continue reading "The Final Bell: Lessons from 40 Years in…
Jarrett Lerner posted this image and text the other day, Check out this wall at the school I visited yesterday — educators’ promises to their students, handwritten and out in the open for the kids to see every single school day. Love. This. Such a cool idea, I had to share. Got me thinking about Continue reading "Above the door."
A couple years ago I wrote a blogpost wondering if the things I did as a teacher in the 80s and 90s would fly today. The main memory I was thinking about had to do with talking with kids each Monday about how the weekend had gone. This investment in taking the time to get Continue reading "Talk with kids. It s not complicated."
Had a minute today, between meetings, phone calls, and emails, to think about where I wanted to put my brain and thinking. One of the great parts of my job is described by Dave Burgess, I consider it one of the most important parts of my job to constantly expose myself to the high quality Continue reading "Good questions and more good questions."
Last night was the high school s Back to School Night. They do it in a very cool way. It s called Thursday Night Lights. Parents/Families/Caregivers are invited to the school, food is provided, all the teachers are there, and it s the opportunity for casual, fun introductions. I was chatting with one of the high school teachers. Continue reading "Teachers have earned this."
It s the day of the night before the first day of school. All of our schools are filled with educators putting the finishing touches on first day preparations. New students are being enrolled, rosters are being updated, and the buildings are humming with energy and excitement. Sure as the sun will rise, some, maybe most, Continue reading "The Night Before the First Day"
Our wonderful HR department is kicking off the morning by welcoming all the new and new to Fife teachers. Very busy day! Superintendent Kevin Alfano welcomed everybody to get the festivities underway! The new teachers will hear from a whole bunch of people dedicated to supporting them. They ll wrap up the day with our TLI Continue reading "New teachers!"
We re at our 2nd day of our leadership retreat. We re at the point in the afternoon where our building teams are hard at working talking, planning, dreaming, and scheming. It s wonderful to listen in! I m in a reflective mood and guess this will be a bit of a state of mind over the 2023-2024 school Continue reading "Dear Fife,"
Our district recently held its annual Life Skills Kickball game. My friend, Elaine Smith, captured a whole bunch of pictures of kids, grown ups, and joy. Sometimes, in the day to day business of school, one might forget the opportunities to experience joy. Doesn t cost anything or much, and can be a choice. We celebrated Continue reading "And there s joy."