Being in Life School's Leadership Academy has been a terrific experience to this point. The information shared from our leader, Mr. Oneil, as well as from others in the group has been very insightful. Hearing their experiences only made me want to get my feet wet that much more.
Two weeks ago, that opportunity finally came. To say I was nervous would be quite the understatement. I went over the policies and procedures for my campus to make sure that I would do the right thing if needed. I asked my principal and assistant principal questions as they came to me. I like to go into every situation as prepared as I possibly can be.
Once my time actually started as acting administrator on duty, the day seemed to go by slowly. Of course, I did not want anything to happen. At the same time, though, I would love for something to take place so that I can gain the experience that I both need and want. As the hours went by, nothing was the only thing happening.
The most eventful part of my day was scheduling an upcoming ARD meeting. Somehow, it took me close to three hours to get the meeting scheduled. It seemed like every time I went back to the computer to complete the meeting notice paperwork there was someone else standing in the doorway wanting to talk. It was only after I finally got the meeting scheduled that I truly realized that, as an administrator, when nothing happens, there are still things happening.
After having some time to reflect on my first time filling in at my campus I realized that I did gain some insight. Even though there were no discipline issues to handle, no upset parents or teachers, there was still plenty that kept me away from getting the only thing on my to-do list completed.
There will be more opportunities and I am ready for them. A great way to learn is to be thrown in and see if you have what it takes. This might be a bad comparison, but I learned to ride my first bike by having my feet duct-taped to the pedals!
Let the learning begin.....
