School AS Community

I don’t know if I’ve questioned myself and my capabilities more than I have in my first year and a half as an assistant superintendent. I don’t know if it’s me, if it’s me in the role, or if it’s me in the community that I proudly serve.

But what I do know is that I cannot live outside of my values nor can I work outside of my values. To that end, I cannot stress enough how much George Couros’s new release, Forward, Together, has held me together. I had the honor of reading the book as he was writing it, and I read it again over the winter break. When it officially arrives tomorrow, I will read it a third time. Deeply affirming, surprisingly funny, profoundly relatable, and accessible, this book (and quite frankly, George’s friendship) have kept me upright and focused on what matters most.

It’s not a guide or a how-to. Our work as leaders is too complex and our communities too nuanced to be distilled down in that way. Instead, it’s rooted in principles and perspectives that illuminate possibilities in a heavy world. When someone you admire speaks honestly about their struggles and what they’ve learned from those struggles, it’s powerful. I can think of few things more positively impactful than trying, struggling, learning, and then doing better in front of others. George not only talks about the importance of this in his book, he models it with his storytelling, and I can tell you wholeheartedly that he models it in his daily work as well.

George has made so many of us feel like we can be bigger and stronger than we dreamed possible. Something dawned on me as I read this amazing book which somehow hugged and stretched me with each page turned.

There are many aspects of my work that I want to improve. I have big hopes and dreams for our school community, celebrations too. But there is a long list of areas for improvement in my personal leadership.

As George explains in Forward, Together, we don’t just serve a community, schools ARE a community. And while I will always be a work in progress, and while I won’t always be strong in every area or aspect of the work, I don’t have to be. That’s the power of community. None of us is a smart as all of us.

As someone who loves meeting with educators 1:1 and as someone who comes alive when hosting spaces that cultivate collective genius, maybe I am doing work that I’m meant to do, in a place where I’m meant to do it, and in a role that’s not too big for me. Maybe.

In the meantime, I know this. I want others to feel capable and to feel significant. I want them to feel connected to our community and a part of shaping something bigger than themselves. I want them to see themselves as important contributors; I want them to see their fingerprints on what we’ve built together.

Thank you, George, for being that person for me. For so many.

I will do everything I can to pay it forward. Together.