Best of the Blogs
School Administrator, May 2017


“[W]e have learned that our competing values are not a Hobson’s Choice, best described by Henry Ford’s statement about the Model-T: ‘Any customer can have a car in any color as long as it is black.’ In my community, you can truly have, or be, any ‘color’ you want. It’s not a take it or leave it proposition. It’s about realizing that the quality of life we want requires an inclusive frame of mind.”

From “Hobson’s Choice” by Cynthia Lane (superintendent, Kansas City, Kan.) on her blog Journey of a Superintendent


“We all know of those moments in our life when we were in the flow with learning, they are the ones that stick out days, weeks and months later. A little bit of joy can go a long way to ensuring more of these moments.”

From “A Simple Message of Joy” by Chris Kennedy (superintendent, West Vancouver, British Columbia) on his blog Culture of Yes


“At a statewide meeting attended by both retired and sitting superintendents, a retired superintendent commented, ‘I am so glad I retired before the onslaught of social media.’ There were many heads nodding in agreement.”

From “Respectful Discourse” by Judy Paolucci (superintendent, Leicester, Mass.) on her blog Judy Paolucci’s Multimedia Blog


“[A]dults simply need to look inside our classrooms and learn from you. I see classrooms where everyone is accepted regardless of faith, culture, ability, economic standing and other differences. You all believe in the best of your classmates and their intentions. What you may not realize is that these lessons have been at the heart of public schools for a long time.”

From “An Open Letter to Students” by Eric Conti (superintendent, Burlington, Mass.) on his Burlington Superintendent’s Blog


“We must move away from working and teaching in silos, to a culture where collaborative teaching is the standard. … The culture of high-performing schools is characterized by a shared focus and collaboration. We find these same traits in the district’s high-performing schools.”

From “Monday, Feb. 13, 2017” by Brian Creasman (superintendent, Fleming County Public Schools, Flemingsburg, Ky.) on his blog The Weekly Leadership Connection


Read the full postings of these and other members’ blogs at www.aasa.org/SAblogs.aspx.