Gearing up...

This week marks the real end of summer vacation for a lot of administrators all over the country. (Those of us without twelve-month contracts...) July is when you get away for a bit... catch up on reading, catch up on home chores, let your children remember what their administrative parent looks like... and then August comes, and, if you're like me, you think to yourself, "How could I possibly get everything I need to get done before the first day of school?!?"

So as we get closer to September, what are the things you are looking forward to? What are the things that you love to launch into when you step back into your office? What are the things you know you have to get done but tend to leave to the last minute?

For me...
* I love planning the innovations. I love working with the teachers to see how we're going to do things better this year.

I love...
* Working with new teachers coming into SLA and seeing them get excited about our school.
* Working with the roster chair to put the schedule together.
* Getting ready for the Summer Institute with our incoming students.
* Trying to finish the last few texts on my professional summer reading list.

I don't love..
* Making sure the floors are waxed.
* Making sure that everything that we have ordered is in.
* Making sure that we have accurate data on every student.
* Realizing there's no way I will finish every book on my list.

All of this is just one more really clear picture that the stuff I love about my job is being the instructional leader of the school, working with students and teachers to really make the learning something special. That's great, it sounds great, but it does worry me when so much of what I don't like to do is operational. I know I need to enjoy that part of my job more so that it does get done, because whether I like it or not, part of my job is making sure that the school runs well so that the teachers *don't* have to worry about it.

So my question to everyone else is this... what are the things you love and don't love about the ramp up to September and what does that say about your leadership style?

Comments

[Barbara]

Chris, Amen to that! I am finding however that while the top of your list is the most important the bottom of the list is taking more and more of my time and because I am in the private sector you can add fund raising to the list.

[Antonio Viva]

Chris,

I too look forward to the starting a new year, of note for me is the return of students. Our campus is busy all summer long with summer camps, and yet I find myself missing the students walking across the quad and throughout the buildings. I look forward to welcoming new faculty to our school and reconnecting with our veterans. We have begun a new tradition at our school where one hour is devoted during our pre-sessional meetings where folks share what they did for summer professional development. I also look forward , oddly enough to my regular routine!!

I don't look forward to the chaos of registration day. Planning the beginning of the year meetings and realizing that I too have not finished every book on my list.

Cheers,
Antonio