The End Is Here…

Well, here we are, the end of the 2022-2023 school year…

Another one in the books, an added layer of experience, and closer to retirement…

I hope you have enjoyed the blogs this school year. Some have special meaning to me and the others were an opportunity to write about leadership and actually have people read it… well, I am very appreciative. Thank you.

For our traditional last blog of the year, here are the five most-read blogs from this past school year. Just click on the link to read again or read for the first time…

  1. The Value of a Mentor and a Tribute to Dr. Gerald Hasselman…
  2. An Appreciation and a Tribute to a School Counselor… Heather Norton
  3. Are you annoyed at what others say?
  4. Is There a Lost Camaraderie of Teaching?
  5. Blessings Counted

As for my favorite… I’m going with this: An Appreciation and a Tribute to a School Counselor… Heather Norton

Again, I would like to thank the readers of The Book Chamber Blog. Thank you for reading my thoughts, rants, or whatever you might call them. Your comments and feedback are always welcome.

And… As always, A Thank You to teachers everywhere who are in it for the students. You are the reason why education will always have a chance to help society.

If you are wondering what the most read blog is since I have been writing… Here it is… “Ride The Fence” Leadership

As summer vacation nears, make time for yourself and your family. In the end, that is what is most important. And as always… if all else fails and you need something to do, read a book.

Go be a great educator and leader today… Our future needs it…

Remember… Think Leadership and Be For Others…

©2023 J Clay Norton

Want more Leadership Thoughts? Follow me on… Twitter @thebookchamber or follow the blog directly.

Want to share this leadership thought with others? Click on one of the social media sharing buttons below and help spread the good…

An Appreciation and a Tribute to a School Counselor… Heather Norton

Well, I’m hanging on to the Teacher Appreciation theme for one more week…

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Today, I would like to write an appreciation and a tribute again, and I am 100% biased in writing this blog. Heather Norton, school counselor at Sumner Hill, is retiring after 28.75 years, the last 21 years at Sumner Hill Jr. High School of the Clinton Public School District.

A little background… Heather finished at Mississippi State University in math education. She started her educational career at Morton Jr. High, teaching math. Then she moved to the Morton High School. Then she went to Pearl High School and finally settled as the school counselor at Sumner Hill. During her school counseling career, Heather has been associated with many professional counseling organizations at the state and national level and served in leadership positions. While she is and will be remembered as a math teacher for some, her legacy will be carved for her passion and the lives impacted by her love of counseling.

Heather’s to-do list of day-to-day counseling would make most people dizzy to read it. It amazes me. There are individual and small groups, peer leadership, helping with in-school clubs, after-school clubs, scheduling, character traits, new student meetings, parent meetings, student plans, encouragement, awards day ceremonies, reality fair, grant writing, testing, counseling, etc., you get the idea. From the school job descriptions to the ones she creates for herself, the students always come first. Her door and ear have always been open, taking an intentional interest in students’ well-being.

Heather’s M.O. for counseling comes from her servant’s heart and the sweet spirit she has. In many ways, her success comes from the students’ success by helping them meet their social and emotional needs. One great, current example is her involvement in All-Pro Dads and getting Tony Dungy to speak to the All-Pro Dads group at Sumner Hill this past spring, made possible by a grant she wrote. She always took every opportunity to go beyond what was asked and put others first.

Also, her advocacy for what a school counselor should be, is unprecedented. Heather is a staunch proponent for school counselors to be counselors. During school hours or afterward, it does not matter.  Just like really good educators, we never stop being one, and neither does Heather as a school counselor. Students could easily tell that she was for them and their success. Imparting knowledge is good, but helping the whole child is what she strives to do. Thinking about it that way, isn’t that what education should be about anyway?

Her ability to work with faculty, staff, parents, and students over the years is one of the many reasons her life will spill over into others. She is one of the best at doing this because of her genuineness. As a counselor, she treats everyone with high expectations and finds value in them, traits that we all need more of, not only as educators but as humans as well. The climate and culture for school counseling she created is model worthy for schools and school counselors everywhere.

In closing, the world would be better if education had more Heather Nortons. My good friend Allen Marett and I jokingly say that he and I are “often imitated but never duplicated,” a phrase by an old wrestling tag team, “The Fabulous Ones.” But that phrase fits Heather Norton and her school counseling career better. She will be missed and most definitely, she will be often imitated but never duplicated.

Even though Heather is leaving the “school” side of counseling, let not your hearts be dismayed, Heather is still going to continue counseling in the private sector.

As stated in the beginning, I’m biased in writing this blog.

Go be a great educator and leader today… Our future needs it…

Remember… Think Leadership and Be For Others…

©2023 J Clay Norton

Want more Leadership Thoughts? Follow me on… Twitter @thebookchamber or follow the blog directly.

Want to share this leadership thought with others? Click on one of the social media sharing buttons below and help spread the good…

It’s time (once again) to appreciate teachers…

Well, Teacher Appreciation Week is next week again, that one week where we, as educators, get appreciated and I wanted to get this out this week, so you can be appreciated today and next week…

The funny question might be, how often do we appreciate ourselves? You might ask, “Isn’t that selfish thinking?” I’m not sure, but it seems very hard for others to appreciate you if you do not appreciate yourself. Too often, that seems to be the case. But, nonetheless… as a teacher, we have to appreciate what we do.

So, what does it take for an educator to be appreciated? Numerous studies have been done regarding teacher appreciation, teacher morale, teacher recognition, etc. The literature is full of these topics, and we can’t really add to the literature anymore (sorry future dissertation writers).

Here’s my one-cent answer: Appreciation for teachers should have three major components. One, let teachers teach. Two, it should happen every day of the week instead of one week a year. Three, appreciation should become a habit instead of a forced or obligated “thank-you” so Hallmark can sell cards.

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Appreciation should be a cultural identity of the school, its district, and, most importantly, the community. It should be a reflection of the district’s light that shines so bright that teachers are on the waiting list to teach and they are wearing sunglasses because of it instead of wearing them to hide their faces to conceal that they work there.

Appreciation contains substance and value, not fluff. It’s more than “lip service” and a “box check.” It goes just like anything else in life for people. The more we can show that we appreciate teachers, the more teachers will feel appreciated (duh! moment). When that happens, the paradigm swings in favor of education, and education needs all the help it can get.

Come week after next, the teaching world will wait another year for teacher appreciation to take place. That’s unfortunate. Many communities, districts, and schools get it right, and I am glad I am part of one where all three does that. While at the same time, there are those… you get the idea. No one wants to work at a place where they are not appreciated, but many have to. That’s unfortunate also.

Thank you to all the teachers out there. Thank you for helping our future. As I have said before, “Education is that last one stronghold that we have to help straighten society on the path it should be going.” If we as educators do not, then who will? Find a way next week to appreciate a teacher, better yet, every day; they will appreciate it.

Final thought – Appreciation is in no way a concept that pushes people away from wanting to feel appreciated. Appreciation invites one to come, not drive away. And it all starts and ends with leadership.

Go be a great educator and leader today… Our future needs it…

Remember… Think Leadership and Be For Others…

©2023 J Clay Norton

Want more Leadership Thoughts? Follow me on… Twitter @thebookchamber or follow the blog directly.

Want to share this leadership thought with others? Click on one of the social media sharing buttons below and help spread the good…

Truth matters, even when it is attacked…

They say, “The truth hurts.” Well, non-truth does also.

For all practical purposes, I believe people care about what is true. Now, you can get caught up in the nuances of the definition of truth, but… Even Pilate asked Jesus, “What is truth?”

What happens when we cannot agree upon what truth is? Do we chalk it up to relativism? People can get stupid when debating “truth.” There lies the problem, people want to debate “truth” to prove a point. I’ve often said, and truly believe, that the truth does not need to be defended. However, it seems that we must do that now. Just listen and watch; it will not take long to see it happening. But to quote Mark Twain, “Never argue with a fool; onlookers may not be able to tell the difference.”

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I joke with my family that if it were not for being disengaged from family and friends, I would be a candidate for being the first to colonize the moon, just to get away from fools and stupid in general. All I need are my books and golf clubs. Used to be that most of the stuff you saw happening, debated, and truth attacked would not even make a difference or would be forgotten five or ten years later. But now, these same happenings, debates, and truth attacks are beginning to have possible long-term effects; some even everlasting.

The definition of truth is now defined as what benefits the person speaking. Any conversation that goes against truth is immediately shut down, ridiculed, or shunned. When those see their “truth” attacked, they become divisive, aggressive, and sometimes passive-aggressive; we can even say violent. Truth becomes irrelevant, people become emotional, and chaos begins to simmer and eventually boil.

Truth will always be attacked. But you know what? Truth is going to win out. As we look forward, truth will continue to stand the test of time. Truth is spoken by honest people who have track records based on, you guessed it, truth. People who speak truth are seen as powerful, which scares many people. Why? Probably due to insecurity. It’s one thing to know the truth and act upon it, yet knowing and not acting on it is where the issues begin.

With light, no amount of darkness can overcome it. The same analogy works with truth; no amount of lies will diminish it. Truth is the constant. There will always be truth attackers and truth bashers. As long as we have people speaking truth, that is enough to give hope for future generations. Have the courage to do so.

Go be a great educator and leader today… Our future needs it…

Remember… Think Leadership and Be For Others…

©2023 J Clay Norton

Want more Leadership Thoughts? Follow me on… Twitter @thebookchamber or follow the blog directly.

Want to share this leadership thought with others? Click on one of the social media sharing buttons below and help spread the good…