Friday, April 12, 2013

New High School Principal



These are Sad Times!

Our planet, as seen from outer space, views Beautiful!
Aliens may be tempted to colonize this orb of blue waters, rich fertile lands,
deserts, mountains, four seasons, and year round changing temperatures.
Yet...mankind has and is slowly (quickly at times) eroding
our environment and family lifestyles.

                                       Gone are the evenings for a quiet stroll.
           Gone are the opportunities for children to play in neighborhoods.
                   Gone are the days when one retired after 25 years with the same firm.
      Gone are  the days when “hubby” was the sole breadwinner..
   Gone are some countries to which we would love to travel.

Amazingly, there are a few men and women who
“step up to the plate” setting new standards of  living,
new principles to abide by, new disciplines to govern attitude to others.
At this time when a recent tragedy erased 20 children's lives
(Grades 1 to 5) and 6 adults in a Newtown, Connecticut elementary school,
we question the safety of both young and old in our society.

At the opening game of the Major Baseball League, between the Toronto Blue Jays and the Cleveland Indians, a moment of silence was dedicated (prior to the opening pitch) by the 2 teams and over 50,000 fans…to the citizens of Newtown. How precious was that moment…many a tear was shed, including me.

The following article is so pertinent, so vital, so compelling... it is my theory (as a retired teacher) that all schools in our country should adopt stringent patterns of behavior. These should be initially taught at home, then reinforced in all classrooms from primary grades to graduating students.

New High School Principal

This is what every school principal and administrator should expect from their students.  It was...when I was growing up!  Principles...have not changed.

We watched high school principal, Dennis Prager of Colorado, along with Sara Palin and Tom Brokaw on TV a couple weeks ago...what a dynamic, down to earth speaker!  Even though Palin and Brokaw were also guest speakers, they did little but  nod and agree with him.  This is the guy that should be running for President in 2012.

A Speech Every American High School Principal
Should Give...by Dennis Prager.

To the Students and Faculty of our High School

I am your new principal, and am truly honored to be so. There is no greater calling than to teach young people.

I would like to apprise you of some important changes coming to our school. I am making  these changes because I am convinced that most of the ideas that have dominated  public education in America  have worked against you, against your teachers and against our country.

First, this school will no longer honor race or ethnicity.  I could not care less if your racial makeup is black, brown, red, yellow or white.  I could not care less if your origins are African, Latin, American, Asian or European...or if your ancestors  arrived here on the Mayflower or on slave ships.  The only identity I care about, the only one this school will recognize, is your individual lidentity ~ your character,  your scholarship,  your humanity.  And the only national identity this school will care about is American.

Your clubs will be based on interests and passions, not blood, ethnic, racial or other physically defined ties.  Those clubs just cultivate narcissism ~ an unhealthy preoccupation with the self ~ while the purpose of education is to get you to think beyond yourself!  So we will have clubs that transport you to the wonders and glories of art, music, astronomy, languages you do not already speak, carpentry and more.  If the only extracurricular activities you can imagine being interested in are those based on ethnic, racial or sexual identity, that means that little outside of yourself really interests you.

Second, I am uninterested in whether English is your native language. My only interest in terms of language is that  you leave this school speaking  and writing English as fluently as possible.  The English language has united America's citizens for over 200 years, and it will unite us at this school.  It is one of the indispensable reasons  this country of immigrants has always come to be one country.  And if  you leave this  school without excellent English skills, I would be remiss in my duty to ensure that you will be prepared to successfully compete in the American job market.  We will learn other languages here ~ it is deplorable that most Americans only speak English ~ but if you want classes  taught in your native language rather than in English, this is not your school.

Third, because I regard learning as a sacred endeavor, everything in this  school will reflect learning's elevated status.  This means, among other things, that you and your teachers will dress accordingly.  Many people in our society dress more formally for Hollywood events than for church or school. These people have their priorities backward.  Therefore, there will be more  formal dress code at this school.

Fourth, no obscene language will be tolerated anywhere on this school's property ~ whether in class, in the hallways or at athletic events.  If you can't speak without using the f-word, you can't speak.  By obscene language I mean the words banned by the Federal Communications Commission, plus epithets such as “N****”, even when used by one black student to address another black, or “b#$%&,” even when addressed  by a girl to a girlfriend. It is my intent that by the time you leave this school, you will be among the few your age to instinctively distinguish between  the elevated and the degraded, the holy and the obscene.

Fifth, we will  end all self-esteem programs.  In this school, self-esteem will be attained in only one way ~ the way people attained it until decided otherwise a generation ago ~ by earning it!  One immediate consequence is that there will be one valedictorian...not eight.

Sixth, and last, I am reorienting the school toward academics and away from politics and propaganda.  No more time will be devoted  to scaring you about smoking and caffeine, or terrifying you about sexual harassment or global warning.  No more semesters will be devoted to condom wearing and teaching you to regard sexual relations as only or primarily a health issue.  There will be no more attempts to convince you that you are a victim because you are not white, or not male, or not heterosexual or not Christian.  We will have failed if any one of you graduates this school and does not consider him or herself inordinately fortunate ~ to be alive and to be American.

Now, please stand and join me in the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of our Country.  As many of you do not know the words, your teachers will hand them out to you.

I extend my gratitude to Carolyn,
a constant follower of my blog writings,
who sent the foregoing article to me in August, 2012.
 
“Words of Wisdom”...by Dale Carnegie
There are four ways in which we have contact with the world:
We are evaluated and classified by:
What we Do! How we Look!
What we Say! How we Say it!

Merle Baird-Kerr...written January 3, 2013
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