HE IS HERE

As a school principal and a father of a six year old, I was hit pretty hard by the recent events of the school shooting in Connecticut last week.   There has been no shortage of media coverage, nor has there been a shortage of opinions on why this happened.  It seems that everything is now on the table, gun control, mental health care, and religion.  However, there is one theory that continues to frustrate  and amaze me.  Why is it that people think that our public schools are vast spaces void of spirituality, a place where God is not welcomed, and a place where not even the most powerful of powerful dares shows his presence?

I have been involved in public education for almost 20 years as a teacher, coach, assistant principal, and currently a principal.  In all that time I never, not once, considered my place of work as a Godless pit of damnation, where evil was just waiting to raise its ugly head unabated by a higher force.  Now granted, the last 25 years have seen a move away from days where religion was blatantly expressed regardless of whether the student or their parents wanted it directed at them.  Gone are the days when posters of the Ten Commandments adorn the halls. Gone are the days of  prayer being lead by the principal over the intercom, and verses from the Bible being taught daily.  I will be the first to agree that all of those things can certainly enhance ones spirituality.  However, does the absence of a 2 x 4 foot poster with Moses’s face on it or a quick 20 second prayer given by the administration really mean that God has left the building?  Are some people’s faith so weak that they can only see Jesus in a poster, can only hear the words of Christ on the daily announcements,  that the word of God can only be found in daily scripture readings?  Furthermore, do they think that the very God that created the Earth, brought about a great flood, gave his son the power to heal the sick and raise the dead is not mighty enough to make his presence felt at any location he so deems.  Do these people really think that we Christian educators check our spirituality at the door?

No sir, God is more than present in our public schools.  I would argue that at the same time the public schools are respecting the individual beliefs of all of our children and protecting the first amendment rights of our families that we serve, God is working in more ways than people realize.  I don’t need a poster to see him at work.  I see him in our 6th grade math teacher, Bill Monty, every day as he arrives before 7:00 a.m. to tutor our students who need additional support.  I see him in the eyes of another teacher, Sherry Eckhardt, who invites a group of students to her house every Sunday evening to show them how to be “in this world” instead of being “of this world” as Christian leaders among their peers. I see the hands of God in another teacher, Amy Patterson, when she hugs those kids who just need a little extra loving on those bad days that teens often have.

No Sir, God is present in our public schools.  I hear his voice in the Christmas songs that our choir sings during their Winter concert.  Sure,Silent Night sung by forty 6th grade boys isn’t the most holy of sounds, but God can be heard in those squeaky little voices if you listen close enough.  I hear his voice in the words of our counselor, Byron Sparkman, as he deals with a child who is struggling with issues at home.  I hear his voice in my own office as I sit with students and hear the stories of divorce, death of a family member, or financial hardships that often time accompany these kids as they enter into our building. You won’t hear a daily prayer to him over the intercom, but if you just open your ears a little, you might find his voice so loud that it is deafening at times.

Don’t tell me I work in a place void of belief, spirituality  and holiness.  Don’t tell me my cohorts and I have shut God out of our building.  God is here, and I have to believe he is not threatened by the other beliefs that are accepted within our walls.  For God needs no support from any form of government in order for him to be seen or heard.

Yes Sir, he is here indeed!  And I have no doubt that he was present at Sandy Hook Elementary School on that terrible day.

NO HABLAS EDUCATIONISE

Our school has decided that one of the issues we wanted to address was the issue of how to better communicate with our students’ parents.  I’ll just never understand why parents feel frustrated or even confused with their child’s school.  For all you parents out there that might be reading this let me put it simply…..

The first step to being an informed parent is to join P.T.S.A.  This will ensure that you are aware of the T.E.K.S. that will be covered in the T.A.K.S.,(Formally known as T.A.A.S.)  If your child does well on the T.A.K.S. by learning the T.E.K.S. then perhaps they will be put into G.T., A.P., or Pre-AP. These classes would help on the S.A.T. or A.C.T. which will helpB.I.S.D.’s N.C.L.B. rating.   Do poorly and we will call an A.R.D. to discuss the possiblity SP.ED classes after of course we rule out M.R.  Perhaps your child might be ask to take the T.E.L.P.A.S. test so that they can be labeledL.E.P. and qualify for E.S.L. or L.O.T.E. During your child’s A.R.D. we might develop a B.I.P. to include with his I.E.P. which might mention B.R.A.V.O  This B.I.P. should ensure that your child stays clear of A.S.D., S.S., Z.A.P.or I.S.S. Other options include JJAEP and D.A.E.P.  These are located in the S.L.C. building next to C&I and B&G.  To help your child even further every teacher in B.I.S.D. is a member of an A.L.T. which covers W.O.W.and C.4.D using techniques from C&T, A.S.C.D. as well as T.E.A. and evenU.I.L.  Teachers sign up for their A.L.T. using the E.R.O. to get credit for thier P.D.A.S.  The T.A.S.C.B. has stated that a teacher’s P.D.A.S. should reflect the goals stated in the C.I.P..  If you have any questions drop byB.I.S.D.’ s F.A.A.C.

You see, its really pretty simple!!! I hope that cleared everything up.

IF I WAS IN CHARGE OF FEMA

I don’t claim to be the smartest person in the room.    However, due to the recent string of events involving hurricanes I do believe I have a better plan.  It seems to me that FEMA is having a problem convincing people to evacuate a potential danger area.  This undoubtedly leads to many deaths.  Now granted, while most of these people that refuse to evacuate are not the brightest people in the world , we should still be concerned with their well being. 

It seems to me that the problem lies mostly in the naming of the Hurricanes themselves.  I mean who is afraid of these type of names.  When was the last time you got beat up by someone named Katrina?  Ever met a bouncer named Rita?  And unless your Tina Turner your probably not afraid of anyone named  Ike.  If FEMA is going to convince people to leave then they need to look at doing a better job of naming hurricanes.  Yep, if I was in charge of FEMA I would implement the following Hurricane list effective immediately!!!!

A-Attila the Hun,  B-Bringer of Pain,  C-Crusher, D-Destroyer of hope,     

E-Evil Doer,  F-Flattener of Trailer Parks,  G-God’s Storm of Doom

H-Hater of life,  I-Intimadator,  J-Jesus is coming and he is not happy,

K-Killer of cats and bunnies, L-Lucifer, M-Mr. Destruction, N-Nuclear Bomb

O-Oscar the Grouch,  P-Purifier, Q-Quiet Riot, R-Revenge, S-Satan,

T-Travesty, U-Undertaker, V-Violent, W-Widow Maker, X-X Treme,

Y-Your all gonna die, Z-Zeus God of Thunder and Floods

That ought to get those people moving!!!

YOU DON'T ALWAYS GET WHAT YOU DESERVE....THANK GOD!

I really wanted my first posting to be something mind blowing, earth shattering, emotionally moving, or at the very least insightful.  However, I finally realized I have nothing even remotely close to moving, insightful, or mind blowing.  As my wife would say, “Your such a guy.”  She often sees me sitting in my favorite t.v. watching chair with a serious look of deep contemplation on my face and will ask me, “Whatcha thinking about?”  Oh how I would love to tell her I was thinking about world peace, global warming, Marzano’s Nine, or even how much money Phillip Schlechty is hauling in per year.  However, I just have to look up at her and say, “Nothing”.  Sure, I could tell her the truth, about how I was really thinking things like, “I wonder how many pretzels I could get in my nose?” or “It sure would be cool to have a pet pig” or “Dang that cat just licked his own rear, that can’t taste good”.  Women don’t understand thoughts like these-its a guy thing.

However, there has been one thing on my mind this week that might have at least a little morsel of deep thought.  Recently our school district interviewed four of my co-workers for a high school principal position.  Each of these four people are truly amazing in different ways.  The first one is the most child centered woman I have ever worked with and could probably motivate a snail to win Olympic gold in the 100 meter dash. The second one is a middle school principal who has a wealth of knowledge and treats his staff like gold. The third is an elementary principal who is without a doubt a master of creating a positive work culture and has a great reputation as a leader. The fourth one, who actually got the job, has a way of inspiring confidence in those around him and is no doubt going to do a wonderful job.  All four of these people would have done a great job and all four are very deserving.  It was a can’t miss situation for the hiring committee.  However, that can be the bad thing about some decisions, someone is not going to get what they deserve.  Our profession is no different than others in the fact that there is a group of us that work hard, serve others, and do what is asked of us.  In turn we expect to get what we feel we deserve.  I hope these friends of mine get what they deserve this next school year.  They deserve something far more that the title of “Principal”.  They deserve to see the kids on their campuses be successful because of the hard work these four put in.  They deserve to watch that one teacher they have been mentoring finally turn the corner to become a master of the trade.  They deserve to sit across the desk from a parent who is worried about their child’s future and then watch that parent’s face as they show them a report card full of A’s. In short, these four deserve to be reminded each and every day (often it is in the small things that we have forgotten to appreciate) that they are educators that have and will continue to make a difference.

One of these days each one of us will find ourselves in front of those pearly gates in heaven and will have to answer the question, “Why do you deserve to enter my kingdom?”  We will think back about everything we have done in our lives. Has the good really outweighed the bad?  Was God watching when I was in 8th grade science during 6th period?    Can he read my thoughts?  (If so I am sure he is not impressed with the cat rear thing!!) As we stand there waiting for God’s answer we begin to realize that in the in end the sins of humanity are just to0 vast for us to enter into heaven on our own accord. Do we really want we deserve in this case?  As the gates of heaven open up for us to enter we realize that we just received a gift we did not deserve.  We don’t always get what we deserve and sometimes that’s a good thing!