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I have tried really hard to avoid saying anything further about the “Race to the Top” initiative and the reauthorization of No Child Left Behind because I have been fairly vocal about this in the past. There comes a point when you keep yelling about something that people stop listening. Yet, the arrogance with which Arne Duncan specifically, and the Obama administration generally, continues their...

If you have been educator for any length of time, you know how difficult it is to get the education system to change. During the nineties, I remember all to well the struggles my high school had when we were trying to switch to block scheduling from the traditional six-period day. It took an entire two years to get the idea finally implemented, because it honestly takes long time to win over students,...

As a school principal, I am always fascinated with the stories of other principals who have done the miraculous, turned around failing schools. Apparently, Dr. Chavis has done this. He is certainly to be commended for his accomplishment. What turned me off in this book is his constant bashing of viewpoints opposite his own. We all know that the "one-size-fits-all" approach to fixing what ails education...

One of the many administrative tasks a school principal faces is hiring personnel for her school. There are certainly a number of philosophies and ways of thinking that guide school leaders in making such selections, but the selection of a teacher, counselor, receptionist, or any other position is a critical task. In all of our school administration courses we heard over and over the importance of...

No matter how many times I visit the Biltmore Estate, I am never disappointed. This weekend was no different. My wife and I purchased year-long passes because we do make this visit on a regular basis, and no matter how many times I visit, I always see something new. During this visit, the Biltmore Estate had opened four additional rooms to the house tour, they have added a tour of Riverbend Farms,...

Obviously, one of my own personal gripes about “Race to the Top” and “No Child Left Behind” is the relentless focus these policies place on testing, in some cases even at the expense of the student. But instead of once again digressing into one of my personal polemics about testing in general and legislation in particular, I want to focus on what really should be the focus of schools: the students....

I have now spent the last two weeks, give or take some snow days, as principal at a new school. During these two weeks, I have spent most of my time observing. This school is at a unique crossroads in its development. It has never had a principal other than a lead teacher during its four and half year existence, and I have been granted the privilege of working as their first administrator. It is a...