Principles of Principals

I got a report of a fight on the playground while I was away at a district meeting.  Standard protocols ensue, call to parents, and a promise to investigate upon my return to my office. Upon my return, I find on of the two 3rd grade boys who went at each other over who was faster in a foot race.  On the surface, a typical scuffle right? While waiting for Dad to arrive, Seth (name changed) tells me about his Dad's return from surgery, how excited he is to go camping so that they can get out of the shelter for a spell, and how he's having trouble with his Mom.  She's been knocking him down "...a lot more than usual."  Now...I have to call the police. I'm informed that Dad is up front, Seth leaves, quickly returning with tears in his eyes and a staff member in tow, paramedics have been called, Dad's having a heart attack in the front office. Contrary to stern advice, Dad refuses transport to the hospital, citing trouble with his wife hitting the kids ...

You probably already know this...let's review for those who do, and expose for those who don't. Surgeons weren't always professionally schooled and papered by Universities.  They were barbers who amputated - and most of their patients died by infection from the amputation.  But not for the reasons you think. If you were to select a barber to amputate, you did so based on the individual wearing the most experienced looking smock.  I mean, who would want to pay for an amputation from a person wearing a white smock = no amputations. The dirtiest, bloodiest, rankest smocks denoted the most prolific barber.  Also, it turns out, the ones with the highest mortality rates. When in the course of research, it was determined that gory smocks and mortality rates correlated, you'd think that barber-surgeons would listen to their colleagues who preached sanitation as a simple life-saving measure. You'd be wrong. For them, was it about saving lives or clinging to the r...

Today, we are honored to host a recognized professional educator, Mr. Bill Denham.  Mr. Denham holds a Bachelor's from Northern Arizona University, and a Master's from Marshall University. He is is Veteran of the Arizona Army National Guard. Bill teaches Spanish at Riverside High School of Kanawha County Schools , he is a father of 4, active in local politics, a published author, devoted partner, an award winning barbecue chef,  and an exceptional friend.  All of the resources we discuss today are found on his site, profedenham.com for free. Dr. J: When it comes to virtual classrooms: as a high school Spanish teacher, what do you want parents to know and do?  Profé Denham : I want parents to know that one of the best things their students can do to learn a second language is to read . I would also add that this is true of all levels of language learners, even the most novice of them. With proper scaffolding, such as providing vocabulary in context or reading materi...

While sharing some insights with a friend, I was prompted to bring attention to how best to navigate the volatility and uncertainty surrounding what we call, Covid-era Education. The uncertainty is often promulgated by the news media, and unfortunately the advice being shared is often hijacked by those who think they know what's best for you and yours. Activists don't really have a place at the table when it comes to deciding what qualifies as medical or educational advice. I implore them to leave it to professionals. So, here are 8.5 tips for navigating today's educational challenges. Read this . On several levels, it speaks to me about self-care , good medical advice, and how to take responsibility for my own health and wellness. Run for school board. I say this a lot, and you can always contact me if you disagree; school boards are the most powerfully elected bodies in our nation.  If you don't want to run for school board service, attend every meeting. S...

Strike. Walk out. In my 22 years in education, I never thought I'd hear those words. I remember marching along McDowell near 35th Avenue, signs in hand, speaking out about the lack of support for teachers. It was 1997. I remember gathering in the cafeteria of Isaac Junior High and hearing our Superintendent tell us that there was no money, that the State's funding model for our zip codes was broken and that there was a law suit pending.  I remember veteran teachers voicing deep frustrations, tears shed, and wondering when I could just go lead wrestling practice....and then go home to my family. Fast forward to this morning, sitting in my rental car, in a Salt Lake City parking lot, on a conference call talking to my leadership team back in Phoenix about closing school for 3 days. Managing food services, where will the kids go, who's going to be open, should we cancel our neighborhood clean up, will this work, what other scenarios should we run? Then I get a text fro...

Big picture to small, here are 5 key questions that can guide nearly every single leadership scenario a school administrator will encounter. Every. Single. One. Seriously? Seriously. What is it that I want my (district, charter, staff, parents, students, child) to be able to know and do? How will I know that my (district, charter, staff, parents, students, child) is able to do it? What's one thing that I can do, or have done, that contributes to the success of the (project, lesson, assessment, evaluation)? When I reflect on that one thing I did, how can I improve? What happens when my (district, charter, staff, parents, students, child) doesn't perform? Let's scaffold shall we? Question one is pretty simple, straight forward. It emphasizes doing.  Taking the proper tools and acting. Question two demands some form of accountability . For the classroom, this might look like an artifact or assessment. At the 30,000 foot view, we could be talking about a...

In case you're not paying... ...attention, the third of four Hunger Games movies came out over the holiday season to great acclaim. As we've turned the corner in the school year, two things are on the minds of school leaders. Assessment Talent acquisition As was reported earlier, over 250 teacher openings have haunted charter and district schools in Maricopa County for the 2014-15 year.  250. That's. A. Lot. of open spots. Teachers have the pick of the litter. Closer to home? More $? Leadership? Those are all factors. How do organizations compete for the best and brightest? 3.5 strategies to keep the odds ever in your favor Assess your organizational strengths by asking your stakeholders what you're good at. Whatever they say, brand it and sell it. Think advantage rather than deficit . We're a small district = we're offering a family atmosphere. We're a large district = no matter your interest in teaching, we've got a place for yo...

As a youngster of 9 or 10, I decided that I wanted to join my Dad, and his running partner Steve, on their jogs.  I fancied myself capable, and they were kind enough to indulge me. My Dad, for his bit, had completed the erstwhile running bible by Jim Fixx , and had added the complete Rocky (cue the music) workout wardrobe to his exercise paraphernalia.  Dad was all grey sweats, oatmeal & raw eggs. Committed to personal fitness. I was hooked. Our first jaunt took us outside the Aspen Glen trailer park, down a fairly steep, paved grade, and on to the gravel shoulder of Highway 82 towards Aspen  (more on this in an upcoming post).  I pedaled my stubby legs as hard as they would go in an effort to keep up. Easily distracted by passing traffic, actually afraid I was going to die of a burst lung or at the bumper of an oncoming Chevy Vega , I fell forward - hands out - into the cinders.  The meat grinder of runners and cyclists alike. Barking your han...

I thought I knew how to shoot a rifle.  I mean, I grew up hunting.  I received my first BB gun, a Red Rider , at the age of 5.  I was taught then and there how to shoulder the weapon, raise the site, look through one (dominant eye) and place the front site on the target, squeezing the trigger...and click, the BB ricocheted into my teacher's eye...hence the reminder to wear eye protection. I graduated to a .22 single shot, spring loaded, rifle, then to a .30-06 for deer hunting, always creating a field of vision that focused one eye on the target.  I was a moderate marksman...nothing to brag about, but I could target and shoot. I entered Army Basic Training at Fort Leonard Wood, summer of 1999. Hollywood has yet to capture what goes on there, suffice it to say, I was WAY out of my comfort zone .  Anyway... Basic Rifle Marksmanship takes up the bulk of instruction during training.  The Army is good at a lot of things, but perhaps their hallmark is task ...

At present, I'm out of work.  Long story,  and we don't have time for it here.  I've been thinking, a lot, about the things I miss about working in schools, and sort of " if I had it to do again " approach.  I believe I will get another shot - I'm very good at what I do, and I believe in second chances.   Take note... Kindness - being a school leaders is more stressful than you think.  I've been in and out of the mix enough to know the difference between job stress and principal stress.  Be kind to yourself.  Deliberately schedule time out.  Eat the foods that heal your soul and your body.  Breathe. Breakthrough - on the advice of someone I admire, I attended The Breakthrough Coaching lead by Malachi Pancoast.  Changed my whole way of looking at resource management, secretaries, and clarified my role as a principal.  Do yourself, and your colleagues a solid favor, go.  Establish a life & a career . Situa...

Yesterday we had a fight in the cafeteria.  7th graders.  I use the word typical in the sense that these things can happen in a school setting.  At my school, in all honesty, we've had 3 fights in three years, so this was an atypical occasion. Atypical has so many layers.  A boy was verbally harassing a girl.  She'd had enough, so she took matters into her own fists.  They're both African Refugees, familiar with the consequences of hatred, violence, fear, and malice. Our entire First Grade saw the fight.  "Why does this have to happen Dr. Sharp?"  "Why wouldn't that boy leave her alone?"  "What is going to happen to them?" were just some of the questions. Typical disciplinary action calls for immediate suspension, depending on district policy and number of previous offenses. This was not a typical situation. Today Seraphine visited each 1st Grade classroom and taught a 10 minute lesson on two of our school's CHOICES (Choosin...

Recently my friend brought something to my attention that stopped me in my educational tracks - and heightened my overall awareness to new levels.  I've always fancied myself a conscientious educator, but let me ask you a question, how well are we serving the needs of children who's parents are on deployment? After over two decades of service, I felt a dear friend of mine is qualified to answer so I asked her to be a guest on my blog and share her thoughts.  I'm thankful she agreed. "The military children of today are dealing with so many uncertainties....beginning with unscheduled deployments. Generally a sailor will begin a "work-up" cycle before deploying...meaning training out to sea for short periods of ...during this time...the children learn to adjust without the parent.  The remaining parent also learns to balance household/parenting/work without the help of the other parent. It becomes a crazy balancing act....and my husband and I jok...

I submit the following in hopes that my colleagues will respond in kind and seek to save our schools in similar fashion. How to Save the Traditional University, From the Inside Out By Clayton Christensen and Henry Eyring A survey of media reports on higher education might easily lead those of us working in the field to wonder: When did students and their parents start seeing college as a gantlet rather than as an exciting pathway to opportunity? When did policy makers stop seeing higher education as a valuable public investment? When did tenure become a guarantee only of a declining real wage? When did I start playing for a losing team? We believe that the answer to these questions is "never," or at least "not yet." Traditional colleges and universities continue to play an invaluable role in our society, all the more so as the world changes. Three of their functions are, for now, irreplaceable. One is the discovery of knowledge. Though the proportion of ba...

In a school of homeless, refugee and at-risk children - it's a big deal when the nurse calls in to tell you she's stuck on the freeway and is going to have her car towed.  Fortunately, we can call in a temp agency and they fill those shoes quite aptly. I always like to make the guest staff/crew/teachers feel welcome.  Its no fun being a sub .  So I welcome them and check in. So I'm chatting with our guest nurse and I get a feel that she's had a rough past year with her high school aged daughter.  Turns out the daughter's been bullied so severely that the high school staff had to escort her to her mother's car day after day!  Nothing improved so Mom chose to transfer her to another school without her district's assistance. I'm crushed by this.  And, you should know that it's unethical for the district to ignore this child's cries for help. Recently I wrote an article for Dr. Hunnicutt, Legal Counsel for Arizona School Administrators high...