From the Projects to a Ph.D. by Dr. Vanessa S Howard

Author:Dr. Vanessa S Howard [Howard, Dr. Vanessa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781736698716
Publisher: Howard Univer-City, LLC

5

Leading by Example

Growing up in North St. Louis, I learned to react immediately to avoid becoming a target. Life experiences and counseling have taught me how to process my temper and not be so reactionary. You can be right in your indignation and wrong in the way you respond. Counseling helped me process my feelings in a more positive manner. It also taught me to respond slowly and think before speaking. You will be surprised how effectively you can react when you pause and think. When you express your anger in a professional way, others can hear and relate to your plight. If your reaction is emotionally charged and negative, it will negate all issues at hand. The central point will become how you responded, and the underlying issue will be ignored.

Having gained a reputation for quickly resolving problems and being a master teacher, my district began strategically reassigning me to schools. Teachers are given contracts that guarantee them a position. However, they may be placed in any school building that the district sees fit.

My first teaching assignment was a kindergarten classroom. My principal was a former teacher leader for the Reading Recovery Program. That program provides intervention for primary students who struggle with reading. She encouraged me to become a reading specialist because she saw me skillfully using early literacy teaching strategies.

The district reassigned me to a new school whose principal had an authoritarian leadership style. The school district couldn’t find a reading specialist to work in his building because of his assertive disposition. Those assigned to his building frequently requested a transfer or left the school district.

Mr. Maxwell was over six feet tall. His stature, demeanor, and booming voice were intimidating. The staff members shared gossip, that included horror stories of their interactions with him. They told me that my position had been vacant for a year because no one wanted to work with him. What have I gotten myself into?

As the school year progressed, I observed Mr. Maxwell more closely to understand his leadership style better. The school was run like a well-oiled machine, thanks to his managerial style of leadership. He had high expectations for the teachers and students, and he wouldn’t accept anything less than the best from anyone.

In social settings, you can get a better grasp of a person’s true character. Mr. Maxwell consistently completed duty in the cafeteria. Students who owed money or didn’t have any cash to pay for their meals were given peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Mr. Maxwell instituted a policy that all children would be fed a hot meal for lunch. Cafeteria staff kept a tab of how many students needed assistance. Mr. Maxwell reimbursed the cafeteria at the end of the day.

He created a snack drawer for the staff and fed the kids with the monies collected from items sold to the teachers. The staff could buy snacks and he used the money to feed the kids. He also did recess duty with the students and interacted with them informally.

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