Welcome to Kennebunk High School. The faculty and administration here are working diligently at becoming a “school for each kid”. As our enrollment creeps into the high 800's this is not an easy task as the following story illustrates.
On the very first day of school, I was wondering around greeting students when I stumbled upon a senior boy in the upstairs hallway and exchanged pleasantries with him.
“How was your summer?” I asked.
“Not long enough,” he answered.
“They never are, but it’s good to see you again,” I added. As I began walking away, this student, whose name I didn’t know, stopped me.
“You know, I was thinking about you the other day,” he said.
Somewhat intrigued, I asked him how in the world I had entered his thoughts during summer vacation. The student explained that he had thought about how hard I worked at making the school better by giving students freedoms, and encouraging them to act responsibly. I broke into a smile, puffed out my chest, and started to walk away. Senior boys usually don’t compliment their principal in this way. The student’s next words stopped me in my tracks.
“But, in a way, I feel bad for you,” he said.
“ What do you mean, you feel bad for me?” I inquired.
He reluctantly explained, “ Well, I feel bad because, don’t you know- some of our student just don’t care! You do all this work, and some people just don’t care!”
My response was swift and instinctive.
“Oh, thanks so much for thinking of me, but don’t be concerned. While I realize that some students don’t care, I can tell you that 10% more care than cared the year before, which was 10% more than the year before that. I know I can’t possibly get everyone to care, but as long as the numbers are going in the right direction, I intend to keep doing what I am doing”.
My response to this student was based on some impressive survey data that we had collected relative to our students' enthusiasm for learning over the past four years. The data in figure 1.1 shows a startling increase in positive student responses to the question: “Does this school make me enthusiastic about learning?”
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