Saturday, January 31, 2015

TOMMIE SAYLOR: One bad moment should not outshine all of the good


“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that.  Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”
 -- Martin Luther King, Jr.

By Tommie Saylor
Kennedy High School Principal

Sometimes I ask, why do they hate us so much?  What have we done to deserve such vile attitudes toward us?

I must believe that it’s because people just don’t know, they don’t know what our staff does each and every day for their kids, they don’t know about all the great things taking place at John F. Kennedy High School.  They don’t know because it’s often not reported. Instead self-sacrifice and honest effort goes unnoticed as it fades into obscurity. 

We have a JROTC program that is ranked as one of the best programs in the state, and just recently won the Commanders Cup in a multi-school competition.  Our band is preparing full heartedly for the MSBOA District competition, our DECA club had nine students qualify for State-level competition, and our Youth In Government group attended the Detroit Economic luncheon this last Wednesday. 

In addition, we have many projects taking place that includes supporting a recycling program, purchasing bulletproof vests for police dogs, a canned food drive for the needy, a used book drive for anyone who has a passion for reading and fund raising for children suffering from hair loss. 

Does any of this make the news? No. But have a few students act foolish causing a disruption to the educational process, and we become the top story of the day. We have teachers who make the arrangements to take Advanced Placement Government students to see the movie “Selma,” teachers who dig deep into their own pockets to purchase necessary classroom supplies, and none of this makes the news. But we are “laid bare” the moment we falter.

Simply, the troubles we had at Kennedy High School this week does not reflect who we are.  We are a reward school, a school that is among the top 5 percent of schools in Michigan for achieving significant gains, and finds itself among the top 25 percent of schools in the nation. 

We are a proud community dedicated to the advancement of students, and embroiled in a tradition of excellence. Though from time to time we may stumble,  we are far from a school that has fallen from grace.  We are, John F. Kennedy High School, the standard for educational excellence.

What starts here, changes the world. Making Kennedy the school of choice. Excellence by design….

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