I would like to take advantage of the space this column provides to set up a three-part series highlighting employees of Bentonville Public Schools.
Our district’s vision statement is “Excellence with Every Step.” This statement exemplifies our first group of employees — our principals and assistant principals. The principals in our district deserve a large portion of the credit for the excellence of our schools.
If these administrators wore effort/energy pedometers, the gears would be worn out from the steps building administrators take to get us closer to our vision. Principals motivate their faculty and staff to step in the right direction. They always are one step ahead using advanced curriculum and modeling learning delivery. They inspire all students to learn step by step, and they protect the learning environment by making sure no one steps out of line. Sometimes principals don’t even have time to simply step; they actually run from one event to the next.
Principals are usually the first to arrive at school and the last to leave. Many of our principals go home after a long day to work on advancing robust college degrees to achieve even higher levels of education and certification. They attend student extracurricular activities, visit students who have had extended illnesses and volunteer with community and civic groups. In addition, our principals attend almost every school board meeting to support the mission of our district.
I have heard many great stories about our principals from the community. I continually receive notes, phone calls and email from parents whose building administrators go the extra mile. These heartfelt communications are testimonials of how our principals reach out to families in crisis, tutor students or inspire students to dream and plan for the future.
In closing, I am humbled by and grateful for the service, support and expertise of our building administrators. I want to publicly acknowledge how fortunate we are to have their leadership. I hope we will all take a moment to “step out” and recognize the quality of education leaders we have in the Bentonville School District. They sincerely and completely support the needs of the students in our community each and every day. I am proud to work beside them.
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Michael Poore is superintendent of the Bentonville School District.