As I sat staring at a blank page, attempting to put into words first full week of school for once found myself speechless. For school officials there are so much anxiety, anticipation, frustration, joy and even a hint excitement I could not adequately come up with the words that fit. As certainly as summer school ends, the new school year begins with a whirlwind… well maybe more like a hurricane!!! It seems that we just wake up one morning to find a tidal wave of teenagers, bright eyed and bushy tailed, holding a U-Haul load of textbooks and the promise of a new day!
Attempting to be good instructional leaders, we pass out textbooks, schedules, lockers, ID cards, etc, a week before school begins. This way any scheduling issues can be resolved prior to the infamous 1st Day of School! Watching “our kids” (all 2800 of them) return excited from their summer activities is truly mesmerizing. I might add I am also still in awe how our counseling staff manages to design schedules for all these children complete with special program requirements!
The first day finally arrives with a sense of “hope” for all of us. Countless discipline office “frequent flyers” stop by to apologize for their behavior and promise… this year will be different! I attempt to bury my cynical side and become their greatest cheerleader… after all, that is why I entered this profession in the first place! My “ministry” to these struggling souls is what gets me out of the bed in the morning hanging on to the hope that indeed this year will be different for them.
The first bell rang and I found myself pointing a plethora of mortified freshmen to the correct building, lest any rogue senior prey on their innocence. Five minutes after the bell sounded the campus was calm and ready to begin a new chapter in the lives of our youth. My principal, who has been boasting his theme of “Shine in 09” walked into my office and said… “Let’s start things off on a positive note… I’m going to walk through classrooms if you want to join me.” I gladly hopped out of my chair to witnesschildren in school, on time, with books and supplies, listening to the teachers who were engaging, interested, motivated, and using recently purchased technology. We had just found out we met our API/AYP goals and all was well! Ah… if every day could be like the 1st Day of School.
Unfortunately, that 2nd Day always arrives with a whirlwind of chaos to disrupt our peaceful launch … this year complete with a parent who was blaming a teacher because her son did not pass his summer school class therefore could not play football, a mob of athletic parents who demanded the coach be fired, a group of gangsters arrested by the police for attempting to recruit new members after school, dress code violators, a girl fight after school complete with pit bulls, and a teacher who lost control during an act of student defiance and called the student an inappropriate name.
At the end of the day, I longed for my comfy chair and my puppy kisses waiting at the door. I guess in a way school organizations are much like my Shih Tzus … we put in good things, and then out comes the poop. (no pun intended) What we choose to do with that poop is the true test of learning. If they roll in it, they get stinky and gross, if we ignore it, then it becomes a greater issue (fine), or we can scoop it and dispose of it properly. There are even folks who make fertilizer out of it and watch things grow! I guess it all depends on how dedicated you are to your work! My prayer for the year, is that I will scoop with humility and plant lots of flowers along the way!
