10/8 - #ThankaCopToday

This post is dedicated to the brave men and women who answer the call.  When trouble threatens our world, they will always respond.  Thank you to police officers around the world for putting your life in danger to save our lives.

When bad things happen, who do you call?  When a person's life is in danger, who is the first to respond?  When a law is broken, who is there to keep the order? When a domestic dispute erupts, who is there to keep the peace?  The police officer.

In today's world of high profile and instant scrutiny, the police officer has one of the most difficult jobs in the world. Where else can you find a job that every time you respond to a call, your life is put in danger?  Every car that is pulled over could be a life-ending in counter. Every door that is knocked on could be answered with the fire of a gun. How many of us would gladly take that task on and accept the scrutiny when people don't like how we hold them accountable?

#NotMany

If you synthesize the work a police officer does, the job of a police officer is one of the most underpaid, over-demanding, under-appreciated, over-scrutinized jobs in America. From the moment that the blue and red lights come on, the camera is rolling.  Every word and every action during the most difficult and often life-threatening parts of the job are being recorded.  High-pressure, split-second decisions are recorded for the world to see.  How many of us have jobs like that?

"What is a Policeman?" by Paul Harvey

On 10-8, Let's Publicly Show our Respect. 

Every time one police officer makes a mistake, the entire profession is negatively generalized by that one mistake. When a police officer responds, his decision is automatically scrutinized. We have to educate our community that we shouldn't always do that. 

When I was growing up, every police officer was respected with a "Yes sir", and we always followed his direction. That is not always the case today. Many times there are people that police encounter that have absolutely no respect for police officers and blatantly refused to follow any directions. Some go as far as to fight the officer when being corrected.

Let's share our appreciation of law enforcement officers on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

So why does this matter?

The future of our nation is dependent on whether or not it's people will follow and obey laws. We are a nation of laws; therefore, we must have brave men and women to enforce those laws.  No one will be willing to enforce laws on people who blatantly refuse to follow them and even worse fight against them.  

That's why we need you on 10/8.

Throughout the week of October 8, let's unleash social media to show our appreciation of law enforcement officials.  Let's teach our children and our students the important role that police officers play to preserve our free and democratic society.  Teach them not to give in to hasty generalizations about the profession. After all do you like it when your professionalism is judged by the mistakes of one person in your profession? 

After all, we need someone to respond the one time that we call 911 because our lives are in danger.  That person won't be you or me.  It'll be the police officer.

The Coolest Homework Task

I was assigned a cool piece of homework from my good buddy Bill Ferriter (@plugusin) and to be honest it was a timely task, sharing my reflection about me with you.  While I don't consider myself to be very interesting, I do hope that you find my reflections humorous.

Before I get started, I would like to thank Bill for sending me this and for impacting my writing.  Until I met him, I hated to write and didn't think I was very good.  If I hadn't met him (virtually-speaking), I wouldn't be where I am today as a writer.  Thank you, Bill.  You are truly a class act and a teacher whose impact goes far beyond your classroom.

My First Task - 11 Random Facts about Me.

1.  I am blessed to be married to my beautiful wife, Carolyn, who is a police officer.  We were next door neighbors when I was in college and my pick-up line to sweep her off her feet was the following, "What kind of gun do you like to shoot?".  The rest, as they say, is history.

2.  I have 4 children ranging from 19 to 8, and they are my everything.  When I'm not working, I'm with them.  They are a trip and drive me crazy on an hourly basis.

3.  I love to hunt, particularly duck hunt.  While I haven't been as faithful to hunting in the last 3 years, it is a huge release for me.  Yes, I used Duck Commander products long before anyone knew they existed.

4.  Running is my therapy and think-time.  I have a goal to run a half marathon by the end of the year.  I don't think I'll make it by January 1, but I will by March.

5.  Soccer is my favorite sport.  Nothing else comes close.  I played it as a kid, coached it as a dad and love to watch English Premier League football.  Arsenal is probably my favorite of the big teams, but I love to watch the 2nd tier teams pull off upsets.

6.  I love the following movies.

• Smokey and the Bandit (Yes, Bill.  Jackie Gleason made this a classic.)
• Lonesome Dove (It's a Texas thing)
• Braveheart (Ultimate Leadership Movie)
• Ferris Bueller's Day Off (Timeless Classic)
• National Lampoons' Christmas Vacation (Christmas can't exist without it)
• Breakfast Club (Yes, I'm an 80's kid)

7. If I could pack up and go anywhere for a month, it would be Spain, England and Italy.

8. I got my degree in vocal performance and was trained to be an opera singer.

9. My dream job would be a professional hunting guide.

10.  I can't watch Modern Family without hitting the replay button.  Christopher Lloyd is the best writer  since Shakespeare, and can string together a conversation of punch lines. His writing is genius. 

11.  I wouldn't be where I am without my faith in Jesus.  I lean on him everyday.

My Second Task - Answer Bill's Questions

Bill, these questions are hilarious.  Thanks for asking...

1. Grande Soy Green Tea Frappuccino with Extra Whip or House Blend Black?
1. Definitely House Blend Black (Don't have time for all that foo-foo stuff)  What the heck is the first thing anyway?
2. If you were going to write a book, what would its title be?
1. I just completed my first book for submission and have lots of ideas of titles, but currently the proposed title is "The Axiom of Transformational School Leadership".
3. Rate graphic novels on a scale of 1-10, with 1 representing “useless” and 10 representing “simply amazing.”
1. Don't have time for that.  Sadly, I only read educational and leadership literature.  I am definitely an informational text kinda guy.
4. What member of your digital network has had the greatest impact on your professional growth?
1. Bill Ferriter, Mike Mattos, Dan Rockwell, Steven Weber
5. How do you feel about the holidays?
1. Our nation has materialized the mess out of Christmas.  I just like to focus on the "Reason for the Season".  I enjoy celebrating in the simplest way possible without all of the craziness.  
6. Rate the following movies in order from best to worst:  Christmas Vacation, Miracle on 34th Street, A Christmas Story, How the Grinch Stole Christmas (animated version).
1. Christmas Vacation is the Best.  I really don't really care for the others. #sorry
7. What is the best gift that you’ve ever gotten?
1. My son who was born 6 days after Christmas.  2nd place would be a Big Wheel that I got when I was 6.
8. If you had an extra $100 to give away to charity, who would you give it to?
1. Make a Wish Foundation.  They deserve it more than anyone.
9. What are you the proudest of?
1. My kids.  They are the best creation my wife and I have ever made.  
10. What was the worst trouble that you ever got into as a child?
1. Wow, there are too many situations to list, so I'll start with my earliest memory.  I'll say my worst trouble as a young kid would be when I practicing my kindergarten writing skills with a red crayon all over my grandmother's white wall.  100 coats of paint couldn't cover it up.
11. What was the last blog entry that you left a comment on?  What motivated you to leave a comment on that entry?
1. Today, I left a comment on Sam LeDeaux's post called Are you a Leader or a Manager.  I really connected to his post and wanted to add some more thoughts to it.

My Third Task - Questions for You

1.  What is your favorite Christmas tradition and why?

2.  If you could have anyone over for the holidays, who would it be and why?

3.  Flaming hot hot sauce or mild and bland sauce?

4.  Do you root for the underdog or the team predicted to win?

5.  Which person in your PLN do you find most interesting and why?

6.  Which book has made the most profound impact on your life?

7.  What is your favorite decade of all time and what made it the best for you?

8.  What is the best movie of all time?

9.  Which animal best represents your personality and why?

10. What is your proudest professional accomplishment?

11.  What is your New Year's Resolution for 2014?

My Fourth Task - Nominate 11 Bloggers to Join the Homework Club

Steven Weber

Curt Rees

Justin Tarte

Mark Clements

Matt Renwick

Will Remmert

Mike Mattos

George Couros

Joey Sagel

Mark Luque

Matt Wachel

Add yourself to the list and join the fun

Here is your Task

1. Acknowledge the nominating blogger.
2. Share 11 random facts about yourself.
3. Answer the 11 questions the nominating blogger has created for you.
4. List 11 bloggers.
5. Post 11 questions for the bloggers you nominate to answer, and let all the bloggers know they have been nominated. Don’t nominate a blogger who has nominated you

Giving Thanks for Horrible People

In life we come across some pretty awful people. They have made our lives miserable.  They have tested our intestinal fortitude and even brought us to our knees. Regardless of how bad they have affected us, we shouldn't wish we never discovered them.  We instead need to be thankful that they were placed in our pathway and here is why.

The Wolf

We have all encountered her. She is usually wearing sheep's clothing. She makes us feel comfortable, and then out of nowhere she attacks us. Thank you for showing us how manipulation actually works.

The Yeller

He comes in using the power of uncontrolled volume to get what he wants. Yelling and screaming, he intimidates and forces people to cower as he attempts to get his way Thank you for teaching us how to stand firm in the face of unbridled lunacy. 

The Liar

She makes others believe complete falsehoods about you in an effort to turn people against you. Thank you for reminding us the importance of living life in a transparent fashion that is impenetrable by rumors.  

The Fake Face

This one smiles in your face while he tells you what you want to hear.  As soon as he leaves you, your good name and work are talked about negatively to others. Thank you for teaching us that lip service is of no service at all. 

The Negative Naysayer

"Nothing is possible" is the mantra of this person. Always dragging us down, the negative one kills dreams with the very sound of his voice. Thank you for instilling in us the valuable skill of ignoring our skeptics and critics.

Horrible People Help

There's no doubt. Horrible people ruin our days, but they don't have to ruin our lives. They are selfish and insecure people that don't want to see anyone exceed their own current lot in life. Instead of wishing they never entered our lives, we should be thankful for them. If it weren't for them, we would never have grown this far.  

Happy Thanksgiving! 

Pumpkin Palooza Parent Involvement

This past Monday, we had a parent night around literacy called Pumpkin Palooza. The night featured literacy in every facet of our building. Each home room designed a pumpkin around text that they were using in instruction. Most of the literature was fiction, while the 4th grade designed their pumpkins around informational text through their social studies content. The link below highlights the awesome work that our teachers did. 

http://youtu.be/GIpK69j_nFA

Outside each room, samples of quality student work showed parents their child's writing and how kids were connecting with the literature that they were reading. It was a great night to highlight our student's work and connect with our parents. 

In addition, our social studies, science, art and music specials teachers displayed their student work through writing and gave performances to show what they learned in the first 9 weeks of school. 

Literacy is our focus this year and we are making sure that our parent involvement reflects our focus. 

My 9/11 History Lesson

It was a normal day. School was just under way. I was 30 minutes into my choir rehearsal and one of my seniors came in and said, " Hey Mr. Wink! A plane just flew into the World Trade Center." I thought nothing of it, but little did I know the most surreal event in my life was about to begin.

When 1st period was over, I went to the music store on my conference to pick up some supplies, and when I walked in, I saw 20 people standing in front of a TV speechless. They watched in utter disbelief as the details slowly emerged. As we watched the tower burn, another plane came into the frame and  pierced the side of the second tower.

"Oh my Gosh!"  "What the in world?" and other exclamatory statements erupted in the room. It was now clear that we were under attack. Feelings of rage, confusion, and sorrow went round and round in my mind. 

My mind went immediately to my wife and daughter at home and my son in 2nd grade. Do they know what's happening?  Are they safe? I needed to know. 

As I left the music store, I went back to school. Learning ceased, and we started a new lesson of coming to grips that we were now living in a brave, new world. There are no words that describe how you feel when your country is falling apart. Students needed consoling, reassurance and prayers that we were going to be ok. It is very difficult to convince students that your country is ok when you don't  know that for yourself. 

Watching panic and fear spread throughout my East Texas town, I knew that we would never be the same. Even though I was 1000 miles away from Ground Zero, a little part of me died that day.   

What I find interesting is that with each year, a little part of my memory of that fateful day dies. My hope is that this post will serve as an important reminder to others that we are historians and we must share our 9-11 story for 2 purposes. First, we must never forget, and second, our children deserve to hear the 9-11 story through the lens of our eyes.  I hope that you will take time to teach your students this very important lesson today. 

Never Forget 9/11/01

God Bless America!

Reclaiming Independence Day

Independence Day is here, and today I have a question to ask my fellow LeadLearners. Is our culture promoting people to be Independent or in Dependence?  It's a play on words obviously, but this is no laughing matter.

I'm not talking about economics. What I am referring to a basic dependence on others to sustain our own sense of confidence and well-being.  We all enter this world dependent creatures and should be conditioned to one day fly on our own and be independent. 

The problem is that our culture conditions us to believe that we are special and that it is someone else's job to make us happy. Whether it be from a relationship, material possessions, or a position in our career, we are conditioned to expect that it is someone else's job to create the conditions to make us happy. 

This facade of dependent expectations is fatally flawed because no one can read our minds and serve us to our own level of satisfaction. No matter how hard they try, as long as we are dependent on someone else to make our lives better, they can never satisfy us. Genetically we were brought in as dependent infants expected to mature into independent adults. In other words no one can make our lives better than we can. 

Therefore, we must rise up on this Independence Day and make a stand against the glamorized and misguided life of dependence. No product, person or position in life can make us better than who we are already. We must stop searching for a better life.  The search for joy outside ourselves takes us further away from a free and independent life. To move towards independence, we must depend from within and above to gain true freedom from the tyranny of short-term, worldly happiness. 

Liberty is freedom from control. I challenge you to free yourself from the chains of dependence. No longer look to someone to provide you the benefits of life that you can provide for yourself. The next iPhone will not make you happier. The next U is the only thing that will make you happier. 

"Give me liberty or give me death" were the inspiring words of Patrick Henry. I hope this Independence Day you will join me in changing our world from one that is in dependence to one that is independent, and that together we can change the world by starting with ourselves.

Happy Independence Day!

Before Abandoning a Resource

I had the most enjoyable time watching my 3rd grade ELA team this year reflect on a new resource that they implemented this year. When they implemented the resource, they made norms to implement it with fidelity. Now that a year has passed, they took time to review everything about the resource and its impact on instruction. The conversation was fantastic.

How many times do we buy a new resource, try it out, and then wonder 3 years later where it went. All too often resources are discarded simply because teachers didn't have enough time and support to implement the resource with fidelity. Questions about the resource turned into frustration and finally bias about the resource all together. A recipe for abandonment.

To prevent turning a resource into one more dust-collector, teacher teams must spend time reviewing its effectiveness in helping students learn standards and determine teachers' next steps to increase its instructional efficacy. Here are some key points to consider when having a resource reflection meeting.

Likes
Teachers should take time to review what they really liked about the resource and how it impacted instruction. Which parts of the resource helped teachers do a better job delivering instruction? Which activities and supports helped students learn the content at a deeper and more meaningful level?

Dislikes
Review parts of the resource that teachers struggled with. Were there activities that teachers had difficulty presenting to students? Where did ambiguity surface when the resource was used? What parts of the resource created frustration for students? How did the resource affect the pacing of instruction?

Uncertainty
What questions did teachers wrestle with throughout the year? Even though they tried to answer these questions, they continued to struggle no matter what problem-solving strategies they tried. Teams must make a list of questions that must be answered about the resource before next year begins.

Non-Negotiables for Next Year
Once teams isolate the strengths, weaknesses and questions, teams must create norms to use the resource more effectively for the next year. Identify what parts they will commit to implement better next year.

Resource Recommitment

Let's face it. Resources are rather expensive. They are complex to understand; thus easy to abandon if we don't like the way it works for us. Teams must take time to review resources, their benefits and drawbacks. By making a list of pros and cons about the resource, teams can effectively determine how to more effectively utilize a resource instead of relegating it to the fraternity of dust-collectors.

Finding True Peace

With Easter upon us, it is necessary for me to reflect on what Easter is truly about. As I reflect on scripture, I am reminded of John 14:27 that says: “Peace is what I leave with you. It is my own peace that I give you. I do not give it as the world does. Do not be worried and upset; do not be afraid.

In this day and culture of fast paced fury, we inadvertently blind ourselves from finding peace. Whether it be stress from a struggling student that we can’t seem to reach, challenges within our teams, difficult people that we work with or stress from our own personal burdens, we must remind ourselves that all of these things are man-made and will not last forever; thus we should not allow stress to deter us from find His Peace.

I send you this not to convince you of anything. I want you to know that I believe that all of these things will come to pass, but the one thing that will not pass is His undying love for me and you.

I hope that over this weekend, all educators get some much needed rest and solitude to put all things in perspective. After all, it'll all be there waiting for us on Monday.

Happy Easter

Are You an Education Editor or Critic?

I was listening to the song, "Story of your Life" by Five for Fighting, on my way to work today. As I pondered the lyrics of the song, I started to wonder what role editors and critics play in the lives of those who are writing the stories of the lives. We have those who criticize our stories (CRITICS) and those who help shape our lives (EDITORS).

In education, we have millions of students who are writing the stories of their lives, and we must decide if we will be their editors or their critics. Before we make a decision, we need to decide which role we play in the lives of children.

What are editors, critics and the similarities and differences between the two?

Editors are people who edit material for publication. They take rough drafts and turn them into final products. In education, editors take students as they are, see opportunities for improvement and take specific steps to help students realize their potential. They help students identify the errors that they continue to make and work with the student to turn mistakes into opportunities for growth.

Critics are people who judge, evaluate, or analyze works. They also tend to readily make trivial, or harsh judgments. In short they are faultfinders. In the school, critics blame students for not having the ability, work ethic, background or experiences to be academically successful. They see students' mistakes and shortcomings as reasons that the student are not growing.  In short they only see limitations.

Editor & Critic Similarities

These two people are similar in that they both discover areas of weakness or errors. They are both detail oriented and can see things that authors can't possibly see. Educators must be able to identify weaknesses and errors in students' learning. They must be knowledgeable in the content that they are expected to evaluate. What they do with their findings is what separates them apart.

Differences

The major difference between the editor and the critic is their commitment to the author.

Editors make stories better. Because they have an emotional investment in the author, they possess a deep commitment to see the author's story become a classic. Education editors also have a deep investment in the student. They are committed to seeing all students succeed, and all of their efforts reflect that moral obligation.

Critics can criticize a piece of work and walk away. It's easy to be a critic because he has no emotional investment in the author. In education, critics are more self-serving than editors. They are more concerned with the level of performance students are expected to meet rather than helping students grow to that same expected level of performance. Critics are more focused on their own reputation as an educator than the student's potential to learn, and as a result, student success is optional in a critic's classroom.

So which are you?

Like I said earlier, it is easier to be a critic than an editor. It is easy to find fault and then walk away. It is much more difficult to see the diamond in the rough and do whatever it takes to bring out the diamond's luster.

Millions of kids are in classrooms. Each day, they write another page in the story of their life.  Some pages are epic and some pages hardly have a word on them.  So we have a choice. Will we support each author by helping them edit each page that they write, or will we waste their time, and ultimately ours as well,  critiquing every single word that they write?

If you think about it, education already has enough critics from the news media to the legislatures and every place in between.  Schools don't need another critic, especially coming from within schools.  We need more editors to turn stories into novels.  So we have a choice.  We can either criticize and walk away or we can engage in the tedious task of guidance and influence.  The choice is ours. 

I prefer to be an editor. It is harder but worth it.

Why Can't We Have a Great Day?

This morning I told my daughter to have a great day. After I made this statement, I wondered how many times I have told people to have a great day. Typically when people are in a bad mood or unhappy we tell them this all-too-familiar statement as if it will actually make their day better.

To have means to be in possession of something. It means that a great day already exists and that this person is already entitled to a fantastic day without any effort whatsoever. In my opinion this statement is very self-serving. Are we so special that we are entitled to possess or own an epic day? Are we worthy of deserving an excellent day with putting forth any effort?

Let's Change this Phrase
Seeing as how we do not deserve anything special, let's begin to say "Make a Great Day". We should realize that in order to have a tremendous day, it is our responsibility to make the day stupendous, not someone else's. It starts not with someone serving us but us serving others.

The Challenge
When we see someone in a bad mood, let's not tell them to have a great day. Let's send the message that a marvelous day is not something to be had, but something to be manufactured. The best way to send this message is to model it with our conscious choices and efforts to make the day truly superb.

BTW - I hope you MAKE today a great one.

The Intersection of Memory Ln. & Busy St.

Life's what you make it.

You get out of life what you put in it.

We've heard this mantra from every kind of motivational quote that focuses our minds on constant improvement. This is the path we call Busy Street. It is the path of progress and growth.  Much like a freeway, you must move fast, narrow your focus and keep your eye on the road and your hands on the wheel. 

Life's not the breaths you take, but the moments that take your breath away.

Live, Laugh, Love.

When we hear these quotes, our minds quickly gravitate to our family, and we instantly cherish the time and special memories that we have had with the people that mean the most to us. We call this place Memory Lane.  This path is one of emotion and feelings.  Much like a less frequently traveled country road, you can drive slow, enjoy the view, roll down the windows, soak up the sun and feel the wind in your hair.

This post is dedicated to my son, who is a senior this year.  As a senior parent, I find myself reflecting daily on the time that has passed so quickly.  With every last event in his high school career, I feel him naturally growing out of our house.  His last football game, his last pep rally, his last band performance at the football game, his last 'this' and his last 'that'.  Being at these "last" events, I take mental snapshots of everything I can on my path down Memory Lane.  Emotions and feelings of sadness, elation and guilt abound.

Yes, I said guilt.  Did I spend too much time on Busy Street trying to provide the best for him and my family?  Did I sacrifice too much time being busy instead of making memories?  Did I fail to sit quietly and observe when I was preoccupied with tasks?

So which way do I go now?

Here are some tips for myself that I think would benefit all leaders that are stuck on Busy Street!

• Go down Busy Street, but make sure you exit the freeway often to take a slower scenic route.
• When you get on Memory Lane, don't take Busy Street behaviors with you.  They take you away from the reason you're on Memory Lane in the first place.
• While on Memory Lane, pull over on the side of the road.  Stop and just soak up the scenery.
• Put your phone down and don't worry about what's happening on Busy Street.
• Make your time on Memory Lane special by showing your love for your family with your words, actions and most importantly time.

As we get older, there is a consuming fire within leaders that drives them to do everything we can to solidify our career.  We must reach the goal, achieve excellence and make our organizations highly effective and efficient.  Everyday, this fire forces us to narrow our focus even more to the point that we forget that there is actually life beyond the superhighway of success.

So for Thanksgiving, I challenge you and me both to exit the freeway wherever we may be.  Take a path that is slow where we can create memories that will last forever in our lives and in our families' lives.  Disconnect and unplug from all the tools and structures of progress, and enjoy life.  That is hard for driven people because true life is not task driven, and in the end, it doesn't really matter how far you got down Busy Street.  Life is relationship driven and that is what Thanksgiving is all about.  Give thanks for the life that God gave you, the people that he put in your life and the ability to create and remember special times with them.

Happy Thanksgiving

Never Neglect Insignificance

I read a blog the other day about the leadership of the winningest coach in NCAA basketball history, John Wooden. I wondered what epic leaders do differently, and I was shocked to find that the first lesson that Wooden taught his players was how to correctly put on their socks. Really?? Socks??? His rationale was rather simple. If the players can't put on their socks correctly, they will get blisters on their feet. Once that happens, no amount of leadership, motivation or coaching will make the player effective or successful.

So What are the Socks in Education?

To me, it seems that the socks of education are support and how to access it. Teachers stay covered up in the ever changing mandates and accountability pressure. If educators don't have the necessary supports in place, they will surely get blisters or burnout; thus, knocking them out of the game. Sadly, many leave the teaching field because their lack of support gave them a poor impression of the profession all together.

How Do We Correctly Put on our Socks?

From day one teachers must hear and feel from their coach or leader  that the leader's job is to support and serve the teachers. The leader and fellow teachers are the socks that prevent initial injury.  Teachers must also know the detailed expectations for how to be prepared with the curricular, instructional and assessment practices of the district. This takes lots of organization on the leader's part to ensure that teachers are adequately prepared for success in the classroom. If teachers do not receive support through mentors, teams and pacing guides with important details, the path of student performance will be left to chance, and leaders will be left with unreliable results on whether students are learning or not.

Once We have our Socks on Correctly...

Players are ready to grow and perform by receiving feedback that is concise and precise, positive and constructive, direct and affirming.  Leaders can help players capitalize on mistakes by turning them into coaching points. Coaches must avoid being critical and punitive in their tone and actions because the player will never be receptive to future ideas of how they can improve. Players are conditioned  by the coach's daily interactions, and it is important to make sure the coach doesn't condition players to never reveal mistakes and even worse present a false facade that all is well.  Failure on the leader's part to establish this critical line of trusting communication could result in many kids failing, and this would be due to the leader creating conditions for the player  to fear having their mistakes used against them.  In short the relationship between the coach and the player keeps the socks on correctly.

Buzzer Beater

There is nothing more exciting than watching a buzzer beating shot in a closely contested basketball game.  The reason that John Wooden is the most prolific coach in NCAA basketball history is because his teams were consistently victorious. He was a masterful motivator, but even more important, he became a legend because never neglected details that seemed insignificant.

What if We Quit Caring...

I was at the grocery store waiting in line and noticing the tabloids about the worst in every "important" celebrity. The headlines brought us the infidelity, divorce, weight gain, incarceration and every other bad thing that was currently happening to "important" celebrities right now.  As I processed the mindlessness of the headlines, I couldn't help but imagine. What if our society quit caring about all of the ridiculous stories about people that do nothing more than entertain us and started caring about the really important people, kids that desperately depend on the society that they live in?

• Instead of the headlines that tell us about a bitter divorce between 2 superficial celebrities, we would see a headline about the importance and sanctity of marriage and how kids need both parents working together.  We could even read about 2 important people in pop culture that put their marriage above their careers. #wow.

• Instead of the headlines talking about a teen pop star entering rehab for the 4th time, we could read about how a high school student body is working hard to battle against drug abuse and the community is actively supporting them. #canyouimaginethat

• Instead of the headline reading that a leading actress is overweight or looking haggard, we could read about an organization that promotes the real beauty that we should see in young ladies that is grounded in self-confidence, intellectuality and modesty. #weneedthis

• Instead of reading about the latest stupid act that some actor did that landed him in jail, we could be inspired by a community that has joined together to mentor disadvantaged youth to keep them from becoming a statistic of the criminal justice system. #thatdoeshappeninamerica

• Instead of reading how America's schools are horrible because of a few that are not doing well, we could read the headlines about the actual reality of schools which is they do the best job ever preparing kids for a college and career pathway. #testscoresdonttellthewholestory

Let's be honest.  What we read and allow to enter our brains affects us.  It numbs our character and dims our wit.  In the 1940's & 50's, mainstream literature was grounded in character, examples of improvement, and obstacles overcome that motivated and inspired a nation.  What do we have today in mainstream America that is available to every American that motivates and inspires us?  There are too many examples of literature that tears people down which in actuality rips apart our nation's fabric.  As a nation and as Americans, we should and we must promote and provide our students with multiple examples of literature that will stimulate and inspire their minds in such a way that will encourage them to become something bigger and better than literature that they read.  #itcanhappen

So here is what I suggest that every one of us do.
Let's not wait for this change to take place and take matters into our own hands. What if we used our schools as the new source for meaningful news in our community?  Our kids could work with our local newspapers to write inspiring stories about the excellent education that they are getting and the issues that are important to them.  Our webpages, blogs and social media could feature the writing of our students and staff members.  If we want our children to be focused on this utopian type of  character, we must take purposeful steps to make it happen.  #wecandothis

We have the smartest kids in the world, and unlike other countries in the world, we don't limit their opportunities or potential due to socioeconomic status, race, religion, or disability.  Every child has an equal opportunity, and our schools do more for kids than ever in the history in the world.  We owe it to our kids, their future children and our country to demand that we all save and protect the character of our youth, not by eliminating or censoring literature, but by something bigger and better, diverting our attention from this trivial gossip.  This change would push our collective character to expose ourselves and our moral fiber toward meaningful literature that will challenge us everyday to be better individuals, to create a better community and a belief in a better America.

In Search of Significance

What's this life for?  What purpose do I serve?  Why am I doing this?  Why am I here?

At some point in our lives, we have jostled these questions around, and they are truly perplexing ones. Without faith, it is a hopeless question.  This constant battle to figure out our earthly purpose tears at us, and in times of weakness it brings us to our knees.   So what is the purpose of this post?

The purpose of my post is significance and how we find our own.  If you think about it, every student, teacher, and leader in education is in search of it.  Some feel that they find it in accolades and accomplishments.  Others find it in the daily completion of a routine of activities.  It can be found in the short-term through the tangible things that we receive, but all of the things listed above have one thing in common.  They are man-made and can't guarantee us perpetual significance.

Significance is not found in what you receive, earn or achieve. Significance can only be found in what you give.  The reality is that the things you gain are easily forgotten.  Can you name the last SuperBowl champion, teacher of the year or last year's accountability rating?  That is because these things are permanently irrelevant in our lives.  They are events that disappear from our minds faster than they appeared.  Life moves faster than our accolades, and we are pressed to replace them quickly with an even bigger feat.

Now if I ask you who was the most inspiring teacher you ever had, someone who was there for you in your darkest hour or the greatest influence on your life.  These names flash to the forefront with lightening speed.  Why is that?  These memories consist not of things but of people.  They are critical to our DNA.  They made us who we are.  Even the most terrible people in our lives are significant because they played a role in our hard-wiring.  They shaped us in how we relate to others, how we serve others and how we guide our daily lives.

So what does this all mean?

It means that we have a constant internal battle to pay it forward.  If we truly are in search of significance, we are not looking for the next big thing to do.  We are looking for the next person to help, and we want the talent that we give to be of  grand and long-lasting nature.  It is this constant desire to ensure that what we do changes the lives and more importantly the moral fiber of the person that we intend to help.  Because if we are able to make an immense change in someone's life, that means that our lifeblood will continue to flow forever.  We will have found a way to signify ourselves by developing value in others, and I can find no better way than this to discover our significance.

Interview to Learn

Hiring season is in full swing and lots of applicants are feverishly working hard to make themselves marketable.  I like interviewing several applicants because it gives me the opportunity to find the best employees for our campus, but it also gives me an opportunity to learn.  I am always looking for new ideas for instruction, assessment and intervention.  I also look for new ways to strengthen our collaborative culture.  There are ideas and strategies that campuses and universities are using that I have yet to discover and the only way to learn about these ideas is by interviewing products of their organizations.

Before I begin the interview, I always give the applicant an overview of our campus and the systems that pertain to the questions that I will ask.  I think that is important because I want see how the applicant thinks within our system and what types of ideas the applicant has that can be added to our system.  The key to interviewing is designing questions in such a way that elicits the applicants beliefs and experiences.  In short, interviews are a kind of scavenger hunt. You never know what you are going to find. You may find the next teacher of the year, the next idea that could solve the biggest problem on your campus or even better, you may find both in the same person.