Adventures in Administration

As I reflect on the arrival of another Friday, I am amazed at the "normalcy" of this new job.  Let me explain... Months ago when my promotion was announced, I received a lot of congratulatory messages.  I also received a lot of advice about how this job was going to be tough but that I could handle it. During the summer, I began to wonder on both accounts...you already know that I spent days purging the office that I was moving into.  As I embarked on that process, I found that I was getting rid of items I had no idea were attached to my office and job responsibilities!  Hmmm, COULD I handle this job?  If all these "extras" were part of the title, the the toughest hurdle for me would be the time management needed to address the endless minutiae. Fast-forward to the end of this week.  Week 3 of school for us.  I have had numerous faculty and parents compliment me on the job that I am doing and that has given me pause.  Because to be honest, I d...

So make the most of this and every Friday! That was how I started my email to the faculty for today.  As the first week of school draws to a close I learned two very important lessons (IMO): 1. There is more in my "to learn" bucket right now than there is in my "I know this!" bucket  and 2. What I know doesn't matter so much as how I handle what comes across my desk My second point is going to be critical as the "I'm new to this office" excuse will only last for so long.  In the mean time, I feel I worked hard to set a great tone with faculty, staff, parents and students this week.  I was out of my office more than I was in it.  I was in classrooms, directing students, answering questions for parents, solving problems, sharing ideas, listening to concerns. There were questions asked for which I honestly had no answer.  I had to say so.  That is pretty humbling.  But no one seemed to mind.  Perhaps because I was honest?  Perha...

The school year begins in about 3 weeks for us.  I have spent the summer supposedly preparing myself for this new position: Associate Principal.  I dutifully vacated my old post of Social Sciences Chair and attempted to leave the department and its offices more organized and user friendly than when I arrived--the old adage of: "Leave the World a Better Place Than When You Found it" was my mantra as I sifted through literally decades of old text books and files.  I then began to make my new office my "home". Again I sifted through decades of books and files.  At times I wondered if I was making the right decisions.  After all, I've never done this job before so who am I to decide what stays and what goes? Slowly I gained confidence and books from the 1980s and 1990s on teaching methodologies were sent to the recycler, files were digitized, file cabinets removed.  I'm not finished yet (10 boxes and counting still to review) but I feel much better about my ...

Welcome to my blog!  It actually began as an assignment during a CUERockstar camp (I love tech so watch for it popping up here).  However, after some thought, it actually seemed like it could be more than "just another assignment" and here's why... This is my first year in Administration after 15 years of teaching high school history.  Experience has taught me that the first year of anything is nothing if not an adventure.  Now, those of you who are more seasoned might be saying: "I do not think that word means what you think it means" or "Ha!  That's an understatement!".  My hope is that through my blog, even if no one reads it, I will have the opportunity to reflect on my new position, with all of the ups and downs, and come out on the other end still smiling and looking forward to another year and more adventures.  So thanks for popping in on my journey.  Feel free to leave comments and share your wisdom, your fears, your experiences. ...