Principal's Quest II

Courage

What a sweet little angel! Baby Noor is a real charmer as she smiles and coos for those around her. This beautiful little girl has flown from Iraq to Atlanta, Georgia to get necessary medical intervention to save her life because she has spina bifida. The soldiers who found Baby Noor as they went from house to house in Iraq showed perseverance in making all the arrangements for getting Baby Noor and her family here to the United States. They didn't give up on their plan even when it was difficult to take care of all the details. It took several weeks to make all the arrangements and many, many phone calls to the United States. The soldiers also showed empathy for Baby Noor's family. Each soldier who was interviewed said that they put themselves in this young mom and dad's place and thought how they would feel themselves if this were their own child. Whenever you put yourself in someone else's place, it makes you want to do whatever you can to help.

Compassion was shown by the doctors who volunteered their services to do the necessary surgery on Baby Noor. Local churches have also shown compassion as they made arrangements for the care of Baby Noor's family while she is in the hospital.

Baby Noor's grandmother and her young father flew with her from Iraq. It took a lot of courage to get on a plane with a sick little baby and come so far away from home. They knew they wouldn't know the language in this country, and  that the food and customs would be very different from what they had been accustomed. But they loved her so much that they were willing to do whatever was necessary to save her life.

Everyone seems to have fallen in love with Baby Noor. She has such bright little eyes and her smile is pure sunshine! I really do hope everything turns out well for her.

Responsibility

Before Christmas, a high school student decided to go on a very dangerous adventure without telling anyone he was going. He wanted to go to Iraq and see what it was like there so he flew there alone. Perhaps he thought he was being courageous. He apparently is a very intelligent young man, but I don't think he thought through the ramifications of his actions. Any number of things could have happened to him including losing his life. His mother was worried sick because she knew that what he had done was very unsafe. His absences from school were not excused so his work in class suffered as well as his grades. What do you think? Did this young man behave responsibly or were his actions somewhat foolhardy?

Generosity

We have a wonderful dilemma at our school! Because of the generosity of the McDonald's Corporation, we have a brand new bicycle and helmet to be used as we see fit. I need help with this decision. Should we use the bicycle as an incentive for "perfect attendance"? If so, how do we go about doing that since so many people have perfect attendance this year. Should we award this prize bicycle to a "Super Citizen" at J. H. House? What would we use as the criteria for determining a "Super Citizen"? I know you must have some creative ways of examining this problem and coming up with suggestions. The Building Leadership Team will meet on January 9, 2006 and the decision will be made at that time.  Before then, our Student Leadership Team will also discuss this and let me know what they think.  I'm looking forward to getting input from all of you.

Rosa Parks: Face of Courage

Mrs. Rosa Parks passed away Monday night at the age of 92. This gracious lady showed tremendous courage when she refused to give up her seat on a Montgomery, Alabama bus in 1955 so that a white person could have her seat. She was arrested for this action, and that sparked a 381-day bus boycott. Mrs. Parks is considered by many to be the inspiration of the American civil rights movement. It takes courage to stand up for what's right as Rosa Parks did.

Have you ever known someone who stood up and let others know what they believed in? Just this week at J. H. House, Sol and Miranda showed courage when they read their "Stay Drug Free" essays to the student body.Although it was scary to read to all those people, these two girls felt strongly that drugs can harm us.They took a deep breath and then very clearly stated their views. Remember: we can show courage every day in small ways just by letting those around us know that we intend to stand up for what is right. 

New York Subway Threat

Have you ever been tempted to tell just a little white lie? Sometimes we just don't want to tell the whole truth for fear of getting into trouble or in an attempt not to hurt someone's feelings. Although telling those little white lies is not a good thing, they probably don't harm anyone either. However, there are times when people prepare elaborate untrue stories in an effort to get attention or to create some excitement. Have you ever heard of someone calling in a bomb threat to a school right in the middle of semester exams? What about those people who pull a fire alarm just to see all the commotion that ensues? Just this past week, in New York, the whole city was on alert and many, many hours of manpower were required to investigate a credible threat to the city's subway system. At this point a spokesman for the Department of Homeland Security said the threat had doubtful credibility. That means that someone could have simply been setting this up just to watch the excitement. This issue speaks to a very important character trait which we have discussed on many occasions and that is honesty. When those around you know that you are honest, then you earn their trust because they know that regardless of the circumstances you will tell the truth. Let's choose to be that kind of person.

Patience in the Wake of Katrina and Rita

Wow! The victims of Hurricane Katrina and Rita have had to exhibit patience many, many times in the past few weeks. How difficult it must be to wait and wait for help with basic necessities such as food and shelter! Many hurricane victims have had to be very patient in locating other members of their family because the process has been slow. The adults who are trying to find jobs so they can support their families have had to show patience while waiting to hear about available jobs. Though most of us have never experienced anything of this magnitude, are there any instances when you have had to show patience?

Showing our Compassion in the Wake of Hurricane Katrina

The compassion shown by each of you toward the victims and survivors of Hurricane Katrina truly warms my heart.  From Jason bringing in his entire allowance of $62 that he has been saving, Omar's huge bag of coins, Joseph's letter to the citizens of Louisiana and Mississippi, and all the teddy bears donated from JHH students for the children of Hurricane Katrina, it is obvious that J.H. House is sending out our love, hope, and compassion.

The compassion expressed by each of you will help those millions of people who are rebuilding their lives persevere!  Thank you students for being so generous and supportive.

Please share with me how others you know have helped the survivors of Katrina. 

Hurricane Katrina Aftermath

Perseverance: the act of keeping on trying and not giving up, even if you are faced with obstacles or difficulties. 

The citizens in Louisiana and Mississippi must show a great amount of perseverance in order to overcome the disaster brought by Hurricane Katrina.  Although tens of thousands of people have lost their homes, their businesses and jobs, and even family members, they cannot give up!  Life as they know it has been completely disrupted. It may take years to rebuild their communities, but with the rest of the world supporting them and sending them necessary supplies such as food, water, clothing, etc., they will persevere!

What are some other examples of perseverance that you have seen on the news?   

Gaza Pullout

Compassion: concern for suffering or distress of others and response to their feelings and needs.

As I watch the news, I am often filled with compassion for people that I do not even know.  For example, this week I have watched many stories concerning the Gaza Pullout in which Jewish settlers are being removed from their homes.  The Israeli Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, hopes removing the settlers will help foster peace between the Israelis and Palestinians.  I cannot imagine how difficult it must be for those people who are forced to leave the homes they have lived in their whole life. 

What are some other current events that cause feelings of compassion within you? 

Continuing My Quest

As most of you know, last year I embarked upon a new educational journey of weblogging!  In Principal’s Quest, I blogged about our character education traits and how we incorporate them into our actions and lives at JHH.  It was so exciting to read all of your wonderful comments to my posts.  I have to admit, reading your comments is definitely my favorite part of blogging!

This year, I intend to continue my “quest”.  In Principal’s Quest II, I am going to blog about two important curriculum pieces we take very seriously at J.H. House: character education traits and current events.  I will be responding to segments of the CNN Student News show while identifying the positive character traits exhibited by someone in the news or lack thereof. 

I look forward to reading your comments as we begin another great “blogging” year at J.H. House!