Greetings Dragon Nation! For this edition of the Director’s Desk, I want to do two things: first I want to give an update on where we are in terms of our journey to the finish line, and second I want to talk to you all a little bit about communication.

Spring has definitely sprung as evidenced by the fact that I have had to cut the grass for the first time this season. Along with spring comes several important things that take place on our campus. The application process for our new freshman class is almost complete and we had our first in-person Future Dragon Days in two years last week. A special thanks to all of those who are involved in showcasing our school to help our inbound freshmen make the right choice to join our family. We are also so happy to have other in-person activities on campus as our conditions continue to improve. Spring sports have begun, freshman registration is not too far away, neither is prom, junior and senior awards, senior night, and of course graduation!

Next, I would like to talk a little bit about communication. Often, I have found that when problems arise amongst people or institutions, the lack of communication is often cited as a reason. Communication is a two-way street. There must be one side that is giving information and another side that is willing to receive it. Any breakdown in that process results in a message or information not being properly received.

Healthy communication requires both the sender and the receiver of the message or information to understand their role. A good example could be communicating an event. I often hear a Dragon tell me that they simply never heard about something. Upon investigation I find that the information was posted on the school website, in Schoology, and on the Sunday night update. The receiver simply did not look at any of these information outlets and assumed that the information was never sent. The same can be said when a student sends a teacher or an administrator an email and the receiver of the email never responds. One little trick that I often use is that when I receive an email I will always respond with a “got it” so that the sender knows that their message was received.

Aside from the mechanics of communication, there also must be a willingness to communicate. We can’t expect change to take place without open communication. This can mean several things on our campus. It could mean communicating to a teacher when you think something isn’t right in a classroom, communicating with each other when something isn’t right with a peer, and it can also mean communicating with the administration when you think something we could do something better. In order to achieve this we have to feel safe, free from retaliation or judgment, and respected. It is important to identify this reality so that we can take our school to the next level. Free and open communication is the lifeblood of any organization, and our governor school is no different. Let’s all commit to becoming better communicators.

Thanks again to The Jabberwock for allowing me to stay connected with you. Until next time, stay safe, stay strong, and go Dragons!