What Will They Remember?
Quick! What do you remember about your principal when you were in middle school or, for those of us past a certain age, junior high school? I can recall exactly four things – his name, he was short, he had beautiful handwriting (he signed my yearbook), and his wife was my kindergarten teacher (which is probably why I remember him at all). Not exactly the type of impression most of us are hoping to leave.
Sometimes, in the midst of all school leaders do to keep a school up and running and moving forward, we forget why we do what we do – but the simple truth is that we better be doing what we do for the students! So it pays to ask yourself the question -- “What am I doing to stay in touch with my students and what will those students remember about me?”
One of the things I loved about being at Talent Middle School was my “job” as the choir accompanist. It kept me in touch with the kids, it let them see me in a completely different light – and I have to admit, it was a really nice feeling to walk into the choir room and be greeted by a round of applause! Supervising the halls in the morning was another opportunity to greet students and have quick conversations with them and while lunch duty wasn’t quite as much fun as accompanying the choir, it did give me regular visibility and contact with the students. And even though these activities took up a chunk of my time on a regular basis, the relationship building was worth it.
I recently had an unexpected glimpse of what at least one student remembers about me. It was a wrong number - a contractor I’d done business with in Oregon got my number mixed up with my brother-in-law’s and called me by mistake. We chatted a while and he mentioned that his son (who attends my former school) had remarked that he missed me. When he asked why, his son said, “When she was in the halls or at lunch she wasn’t looking for kids doing something wrong, she was always talking with us.” Since most of the time I really was keeping an eye out for kids who were acting in an unsafe manner or not following the rules, his perception of what I was doing warmed my heart! Next time the busyness of being a school leader gets you down -- remember why you’re there in the first place and get out and spend some time talking with the students.
Sometimes, in the midst of all school leaders do to keep a school up and running and moving forward, we forget why we do what we do – but the simple truth is that we better be doing what we do for the students! So it pays to ask yourself the question -- “What am I doing to stay in touch with my students and what will those students remember about me?”
One of the things I loved about being at Talent Middle School was my “job” as the choir accompanist. It kept me in touch with the kids, it let them see me in a completely different light – and I have to admit, it was a really nice feeling to walk into the choir room and be greeted by a round of applause! Supervising the halls in the morning was another opportunity to greet students and have quick conversations with them and while lunch duty wasn’t quite as much fun as accompanying the choir, it did give me regular visibility and contact with the students. And even though these activities took up a chunk of my time on a regular basis, the relationship building was worth it.
I recently had an unexpected glimpse of what at least one student remembers about me. It was a wrong number - a contractor I’d done business with in Oregon got my number mixed up with my brother-in-law’s and called me by mistake. We chatted a while and he mentioned that his son (who attends my former school) had remarked that he missed me. When he asked why, his son said, “When she was in the halls or at lunch she wasn’t looking for kids doing something wrong, she was always talking with us.” Since most of the time I really was keeping an eye out for kids who were acting in an unsafe manner or not following the rules, his perception of what I was doing warmed my heart! Next time the busyness of being a school leader gets you down -- remember why you’re there in the first place and get out and spend some time talking with the students.
