Part I: I think what most resonated for me was the conductors passion for his craft.

Evident in his
speech, his mannerisms, and most notably in his instruction, you could actually feel the energy,
emotion, enthusiasm, and again, passion that he felt towards music, conducting and teaching. I began to
look at his age, and reflect on how many educators I know that are as old (and I say that only in the
literal sense) as the instructor in the video, that each and every day bring that same level of energy into
their instruction, albeit one on one, a classroom, or leading a building. Unfortunately there isnt a critical
mass.
Instead, (and sadly) I often see the opposite. This brings me to the point in the video that also resonated
the idea of breaking the cycle of downward spiral conversations and replacing it with the journey to
radiating possibility. For as long as I can remember, there has been a contingent in each and every
building that tends to focus on the negative aspects of education. These conversations could include
district policy, legislation, morale, workload, and most troubling - individual students. The idea of
replacing these downward spiral conversations with dialogue centering on possibilities is refreshing. I
once laughed when a high ranking administrator in our district referred to what are often the context of
these conversations as probletunities; problems that could be reframed as opportunities. Much like
Stephen Coveys idea of synergizing or thinking win-win, this concept of radiating possibilities could
help to redirect negativity towards positivity and ultimately, proactivity.

Part II: From my perspective, there is a clear divide amongst those district leaders that lead by making
others powerful versus those that lead by harnessing all the power for themselves. Weve recently
begun what I see as the onset of a renaissance in Huron Valley Schools; whereas a fairly new school
board, changes to key communicators in Central Office leadership, and a handful of fairly new principals
have embraced an ideology of true collaboration and relationship building. As the video suggests, we
have begun a systematic process of enrolling every voice in the vision of inspiring and educating
students one child at a time. Still, a handful of leaders would rather go it alone. More times than not,
these are the same leaders that experience pushback in their building, reprimands from the board or
central office, or an overall deterioration of the relational trust and collaborative culture necessary to
develop and sustain a healthy climate for teaching and learning.
Personally, I believe that as the landscape in education continues to change, and outside forces (such as
local, state, and national leaders and legislators) continue to encroach on ed. policy, districts will be
forced to embrace an all hands on deck way of doing business, or they will not survive. Optimistically,
my hope is that the aforementioned changes and encroachments will serve to galvanize educators at all
levels from the board office to the transportation department. Proverbial walls between differing
factions of the educational community must be broken down and a new model for true collaboration
must be built, or public education is in big trouble. Luckily, that construction has begun in Huron Valley.
We still have a ways to go!