I spoke to a fabulous group of Principals this week. They were dedicated professionals who truly felt inspired about their work. Some worked in economically depressed areas of town so were faced with unique challenges. One story relayed to me following my presentation was very moving. A principal was called down to a grade 8 classroom due to a disruption. A young black student was ranting and swearing at the teacher. When he saw the Principal at the doorway he hurdled from a standing position over the desk in front of him, cleared the desk entirely and bolted from the classroom. The following day the Principal saw the student in the hallway and asked him to have “a little chat” in her office. He reluctantly agreed. The first words the principal said to him, “have you ever thought of track?” The student was stunned. “Aren’t you going to yell at me?” he asked. She replied, “we’ll get to that later.” “No, I haven’t thought of track…I don’t think of much these days…, but it’s not like I have a full schedule so I guess I could try it out.”
The principal connected the student with a coach across the city who specialized in training in track. It involved travelling across town each day on the bus. He did just that … every day. This young man graduated with a full scholarship for track and field to one of the top universities in the states. After he graduated from that university he went on to become a very successful stock broker. He moved his entire family down to where he lives in the states and every Christmas sends a beautiful bouquet of flowers to the home of the Principal. She changed the course of his life. He was on track to a dead end life. She saw his potential, connected him to the people who could nurture that talent and he took a completely differenct direction with his life. That same principal has moved twice since and yet the flowers always find her. That young student who became a successful young man would never forget the impact she had on his life. You can never underestimate the lives that you touch when you nurture potential.
Posted by Meg Soper at 8:56 AM 0 comments