I am always asking myself the question, “What makes a school great?”, and it drives me as the Principal. I know the teachers think that I wake up saying, “We need to be a world class effective school!” One of my daily goals is to find ways to improve upon Owens Cross Roads (OCR) success and make it an even better school. There are so many factors that contribute to a school's success. Certainly, we can begin the conversation by talking about academic achievement and support for all students. When you look beyond this obvious indicator of success though, I think there is another essential characteristic that great schools share, a true sense of family. To say another way, most members of great schools share a true sense of ownership and togetherness.
As Principal, I am approached often by students, faculty and parents to discuss various aspects of OCR that should be improved. Sometimes we try to improve these situations by throwing band-aids on them. Unless the faculty, parents and students are collectively on board with the improvement though, these band-aids rarely correct the issue. One of the things I have learned in life is that it is much easier to identify issues and problems than it is to develop and implement solutions. A quote I remember reading which applies is “No prizes for predicting rain, only for building arks”.
Owens Cross Roads School is an incredible place, I truly believe though that we are capable of more; more success, more togetherness, more smiles, and more desire to make a difference. How can WE get there? Who wants to build an ark and encourage others to come on board?
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