TOMMIE SAYLOR: Let's finish the year the way we started it

“The last thing you want to do is finish playing or doing anything and wish you would have worked harder.”

Derek Jeter

By Tommie Saylor

Kennedy High School Principal

We’re not done yet.  Yes, the end is near, but it’s not here.

As the end of the school year creeps up on us, we have a tendency to let our guard down and become a little less vigilant regarding school policies, procedures and especially student behavior.  We keep thinking, “Well, it’s no big deal. We’re almost done anyway.”

But that’s wrong, because it is a big deal. How we finish the year is just as important as how we start it.  We like to talk about getting the school year off to a good start, and likewise we should now be concentrating on having a good end to the school year. We need to end on a good note.

Part of ending the year the right way is making sure we follow our own procedures and policies, and not lower our standards just because the end is near.  This includes calling home when a student is “messing up” in class. 

Often teachers have no idea the difficult position they put the administration in when we bring a student to the office, contact home, and discover that the instructor never called home about the student’s misbehavior that was taking place all trimester long.

Instead, now that the near the end, the instructor had enough. 

What do we say to the parent when they tell us that if only they knew about the misbehavior, they could have fixed the problem? What do we tell the parent who assumed everything was fine because no one from the school was calling and telling them anything different?

Those parents are correct.  If you allow a student to “get under your skin” all trimester long, but never call home and never write them up, what do you want from the administration when you finally have had enough and drag the student to the office?

In our eyes, this is the first offense. In the eyes of the student’s parents, this is the first they have heard about the problem.  If you’re not calling home regarding your student’s behavior and/or grades, and things are not going well in class, then you own some of the responsibility for the dysfunction.

This is also the case when it comes to cell phones in class.  We made it very clear at the beginning of the school year that we did not want to see nor hear a cell phone in class. This offense would be considered insubordination. 

We also made it very clear not to take cell phones from students. That only causes more problems.  We have had confiscated cell phones stolen from teacher’s desks, and the administration is left with having to explain this to the parents, who become very upset and demand satisfaction. 

If a cell phone is seen or heard in class, write up the student and let the administration do our job without the added complications that are associated with confiscation. 

Essentially what I’m asking for is that we adhere to our own policies (Hall Sweeps, Pass Procedures, Cell Phones, Parent Contacts, ID cards, Dress Code). We want to remain strong through the end of the school year. We should use every second given to us to teach our students. We need to vigilantly demand behavioral excellence from our students. 

We need our teachers to help the administration by following protocols, so that the administration can do their jobs in supporting the teachers.

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