October will be a busy and exciting month for Team Selma.  One thing that I am extremely elated about is that October is a month to celebrate our amazing school leaders.  National Principals Month is our opportunity to say “thank you” to principals everywhere and to share with the community all the great things that our principals do.  Having served as a principal at all levels, I know first hand how dedicated and committed our team is and how hard they must work for their schools to excel.

The key to student success is a great school, and the key to a great school is a great principal.  Research supports that school leaders account for as much as 25 percent of a school’s academic success.  Principals are nurturers and leaders. 

Principals open the schools each day and ensure that our scholars have hot meals, clean facilities and high-quality teaching and learning.  Arne Duncan said, “There are no good schools without good principals.  It doesn’t exist.  Where there are good principals, great teachers come, and they stay, they work hard, and they grow.”   For these and many other reasons, I salute our principals. 

Thank you, principals, for caring with your whole heart for hundreds of children who you did not birth.  Thank you, principals, for being the lead learners in your schools and ensuring that our scholars have a wide variety of opportunities for growth.  Thank you, principals, for connecting with your school community and being a valued member of Team Selma.  Finally, I thank you, principals, for your selflessness and understanding what it means to keep students first!

If you Tweet, use #ThankAPrincipal to share stories and pictures that honor a principal.  There will be a number of Twitter chats using this hashtag on October 3rd.  Join the celebration!

In addition to thanking our principals this month, we are also recognizing our hard-working custodians.  Today is National School Custodians Day.  Clean and safe learning environments are important and contribute to the overall culture of our schools and district.  I thank our school custodians for their unwavering efforts.  By far, not an easy job!

At our board meeting on Oct. 3, we will recognize both of these amazing groups of professionals.  Team Selma is blessed to have members who embody excellence and who continue to strive to provide our scholars their very best.  If you know a principal or a school custodian, please join me in honoring them.  Not just this month but routinely for the important work that they do.

For more information, email me at avis.williams@selmacityschools.org.