change

Not great circumstances, but at least I have something about which I can write. I've not had much to say over the last couple of months, but this needs to be said.

Don't you hate change? I mean I REALLY DISLIKE IT.

We usually all have our faculty meetings in the mornings, on the first Thursday of the month. We never have them in the library after school. The last two times we have had them in the afternoon, in the library, it was because a faculty member had passed away or had gone missing. So, when a meeting was called, we thought, "Nah. Not again. This is just going to be the debrief of the first week of testing." We'll just do some good things, have a few positive comments, and start the weekend. Wrong.

Our head principal informed us that he will be leaving to become the head principal at another school. Let me remind you, I HATE CHANGE.

I have been teaching for 4 years. I have been at Putnam City High School the entire time. I did my student teaching at Putnam City High. I had the head principal as a professor for one of my undergraduate classes. He is the only principal who has ever interviewed me. He is the only person who has been the example a head administrator for my entire teaching career. He's even going to be my professor for the final class of my Master's program. Maybe there is a little irony there or maybe it's just coincidence.

Publicly, I would like to say, Thanks Dr. Wentroth for your leadership of Putnam City High School. Thanks for being willing to take a stand to support students, even when it wasn't popular or got you into trouble. Thanks for being willing to encourage the legislature to change the law regarding the amount of time we have to be in class so we could institute Friday tutoring. Thanks for being a leader and sometimes letting your anger show when parents act like idiots concerning their kids. (I personally think kids need to know that educators support them when parents are stupid, but that's just me.) Thanks for being a mentor and believing in my abilities even when I didn't think I had what it took to accomplish my goals and dreams. Thanks for encouraging me and always being there with a smile and a kind word. Thanks for your words of encouragement when I did something you thought was special or "over and above". Thanks for being the captain of our ship when we were in rough waters or fair. Thanks for being someone students (especially my own children) could talk to and know you would listen. Thanks for being someone who recognized that even though you can't make everyone happy, doing what is best for students is always the right answer. Finally, thanks for being someone who helped me to see what being an educator looks like.

Bethany High School, you need to know you are getting the best principal in the State of Oklahoma. I just hope you guys can convince him to wear your Purple Broncho clothing because he will always be a Black and Orange Pirate to us!