Opening Day!

Opening day of school! It was great to see all the students invading the school building today after the long silent summer. I love the summer months because it allows me time to plan, think, organize and dream. But all the activity of summer is meaningless without the students and the families that they represent. To see the excitement reflected on the faces of the little ones is precious.

I spent some time on the elementary floor this morning just observing the new kindergarten students and the more veteran first graders as they arrived on campus. I have to admit there was more apprehension on the faces of the parents than on the students themselves. I didn't see any tears or separation anxiety, but I did observe lots of parents peeking in the windows to be sure that their precious ones were making a smooth transition.

Moving up to the second floor, I had a blast watching the middle school students take up residence in their lockers and finding their spots in the classroom. The reunion of friendships was sweet to see. The girls were filled with giggles and hugs for friends and teachers alike. The guys were more concerned about locker combinations and book bags. Everyone looked sharp and ready for academic pursuits. A little fashion trend was pointed out to me as I walked down the hall with a colleague. Many of the girls had matching polo shirts and sneakers....green shirts with green sneakers, blue shirts with blue shoes, red polo and red sneaks... you get the idea.

The high school floor was filled with the cool crowd trying not to show their apprehension and nervousness about the new school year. Teachers were fired up and ready for the adventure (although nerves could be seen on their faces as well). As usual, there was a line in front of the main office made up of students who forget their schedules or needed some sort of direction. Smiles on all three floors... excitement throughout the school... anticipation and enthusiasm were the overall descriptors of Day One.

One of the blessings of school leadership is seeing months of preparation culminate in something good. New programs, new teachers, new technology, new students... all bathed in prayer... provide reality to the planning. All the administrative meetings, the hours spent interviewing and hiring new personnel, the time evaluating past performance and developing future strategy, and the detailed effort in gathering all the resources needed for the coming academic journey resulted in a symphony of voices as the students arrived on campus. Leadership is creating, communicating and transforming vision into reality. Each school year allows me to see a partial transformation of our school's vision.

School photo found at http://ofdotsnthings.blogspot.com/2011/06/first-day-of-school.html