Administrator Retreat!

I always thought that the word "retreat" meant to leave reality for awhile. Escape into something else!

Well then, our Administrator Retreat is missnamed! We do not "retreat" from work at all but instead renew our focus all together, this year once again in Green Lake! The topic was Change ... how people deal with it ...how we acknowlege individual issues with it...how we, as leaders guide that journey!

Three days of sharing has now brought us all to a renewed "moral purpose"! We know that our journey in leadership is to maintain a focus on what's best for kids but sometimes we forget that in order to get what's best for kids we have to nurture the adults who work with them.

We have to see the adults as individuals who are dealing with the current changes in their own way. Some of them will embrace the change quickly while others grieve or battle. In some cases, we have spent too much time assisting those who battle change and we forget the one's who have quietly journeyed forward. It's time to recognize them, celebrate their successes, spend time in their presence. They need us right now as much if not more than those who struggle. And we have many, many teachers who are new to the profession. They need to know how they fit into to the greater scheme of things. They want to belong. We have to help them remain focused on the moral purpose; encourage their efforts, celebrate their successes. They will struggle from time to time and could easily become disallusioned and angry unless we stay close. And once again, we have to acknowledge those who are battling. It could be that they are struggling with letting go of a past that was, in fact, not bad but good; a past that had worked for other students, seemingly well. We need to remember that we all entered education with a desire to serve and this group of teachers, like all others, work with a belief that they are doing what is best for kids. We need to listen to their stories and help them say good bye to dated practices with a sense of appreciation and grace.

We also learned that we need to recognize that all of us process and make decisions based on brain patterns that may be different. For one, a decision to move forward may seem logical which makes rapid change seem simple. For others, the decision may seem monumental so there needs to be a process that allows for analysis and contemplation. They may need to watch others experience the change first so that they can judge the results in a calmer, more deliberate manner.

The greater danger, for us, in the world today, is to stay in a place because we think we are great; too good to need to change. If infact, life is about change then we need to practice changing little things to big things. We need to look critically at everything - view everything as potentially changable - because people/companies who fail often say they "didn't see it coming!" It could have been because they were basking in their sense of greatness!

So, this year, we did not "retreat" from work exactly but infact we did. We left behind the busyness of day to day so that we could focus once again on our purpose. We did indeed retreat! And we also came away with renewed convictions to work together to help our staff through today's trials. As a team, we can do great things! The first of which is to care about each other! The second will be to continue the journey of learning and growing day after day!