(Originally published in the November 11 gscs Communicator)

First, let say that with today is November 11, Veteran's Day, and it's a great day to be an American! On behalf of all of us, I wish to extend a special thank you to all who have served and who are currently serving in our armed forces, you protect us and the provide opportunity for us to enjoy the American way of life. Thank you for your service!

I could take time to talk about our budget situation, but we've talked about that a lot lately. Please know that we're continuing to work hard to bring this process to a conclusion as soon as possible. We understand your concerns about the 170-day calendar, administrative early retirement initiatives, and the possibility of a reduction in force. Please continue to work with us, ask your questions, and help us with solutions.

One reason, I believe, that we're going to come out of this leaner, more effective, more efficient is because of all the people working in our school system. Several months ago I asked principals, "Why do you think our school year 2011 is better than 2010?" Consistently, the principals' answer was, "Our workforce is doing a much better job." You have been provided tools and professional development. You're using it, and you're talking with each other in professional learning communities.

I repeated that conversation with teachers, and they told me, "My students are working harder. They appear to be smarter, and they're coming to me more prepared."

Students are working hard. Teachers are working hard. The results are clear in our AYP report - we're 17 to 1! It is a good year!

Leadership counts!
But one group not talked about much is our principals. We have some of the best principals in the state. It's an easy statement to make and hard to back up - but there is antidotal information.

As you know our SACS visit starts this Sunday and concludes on Wednesday. In anticipation of this visit, as well as preparing for our next SACS visit, we sent a team to a conference to learn what AdvancEd is currently doing and how accreditation visits will work. We just wanted to be sure that we hadn't missed anything.

Two Griffin-Spalding County School System principals presented at this SACS conference in Atlanta.

• Mr. Keith Simmons presented what Griffin High School is doing with the School Improvement Grant, saying this is what we're doing and this is why it's working. Keith has been sought out for additional speaking opportunities. We believe he and a team from Griffin High will present at the model schools national conference this summer.
   
• Dr. Martha Taylor of Moore Elementary School presented, "Removing Barriers in Instructional Delivery Through Professional Growth and Teacher Retention." She also presented at a national conference last year. She's well known and respected, and she is providing valuable leadership to her school and beyond.

Other principals have been featured speakers at conferences, too.

• Mr. Larry Jones of Futral Road Elementary School presented "Enabling High Performing Learning Environments" at Griffin RESA last March. He was selected because of Futral Road's performance. Larry's presentation was well received and attended.
   
• Mr. Derrell Jeffcoat of Spalding High School presented "Increasing the graduation rate by reducing the dropout rate by increasing subgroup performances" this year at Griffin RESA during a lunch and learn. I attended the session. Derrell and Dr. John DeCotas did an excellent job of explaining how Spalding High School has increased its graduation rate to record highs.
   
• Mr. Dexter Martin of Orrs Elementary presented at last year's National Character Education Conference. Orrs, as you know, is a National School of Character. At their conference, he presented how Orrs is increasing student achievement by focusing on character development.
   
• And next week, Mrs. Evelyn Jones of Anne Street Elementary will present to aspiring leaders. She was selected because of Anne Street Elementary's performance and the successes that they've had as a Title I Distinguished School for nine years.

All of these principals, as well as others, are providing great leadership in our schools. An excellent indication is that good leadership is being recognized outside of your own building and school system. I think this a story not well known, which is why I wanted to share it with you today.

We have a lot of folks to be proud of - and we are! We thank each of you for working hard and doing what you do for our children. Please have confidence that your leadership team will continue to work with you to help find the best solution for moving forward.

Why? Because that's the Griffin-Spalding County School System way. Daring to do Better! Have a great Veteran's Day and a great weekend!

Curtis