Category School

7 Tips For Dealing With Challenging Students

A few years ago, I was talking to a teacher about a student she had volunteered to mentor. The young lady had had a difficult past, and the teacher had confided in me that some of their meetings had been…

And All That Without A Gun

I was talking to an assistant principal friend from a neighboring district who was telling me some funny stories from her middle school experience. She said her own mom and dad like to ask her to tell stories from school.…

6 Quick Leadership Takeaways From A Flight Through The Fog

Two weeks ago I attended the NASSP Ignite Conference in Dallas, Texas. On my flight home, the pilot informed us that we would encounter heavy fog at the Tulsa airport. As we began descending, we were shrouded in it. I…

5 Ways to Cultivate a Culture of Acceptance

The other day, I sat in a conversation with a student and a DHS worker who had come to take her into custody. She was no longer able to stay at her host home and would be moving back to…

7 Mid-School Year Reminders on Finishing Strong

Recently, I was inspired by the story of Diana Nyad, who made it a personal goal to swim from Cuba to Florida and did so at the age of 64. Her 100-mile feat came with many unsuccessful previous attempts, the…

8 Ways to Help Your School Manage Grief

This topic may be a little too recent to discuss with some perspective, but we recently lost a senior student in a car accident. She was one of our dream students: cheerleader, great student, fun-loving, and loved by all. You…

4 Lessons in Teamwork from my Son’s Hospital Stay

A couple of weeks ago, I posted about my son’s battle and recovery from an infectious disease known as Kawasaki. I am happy to report he is back in school and is happy and energetic. He has made a great…

5 Simple Lessons From a 10-year-old

Tobias, a 10 year-old Oklahoma boy, wrote a letter to a local TV station because he had a dream for his 11 year old brother who has Cerebral Palsy. He asked if they could spread the word that he wanted…

A Lesson From A Cross-Walk Guard

This year, my two youngest children started walking to and from school. On the first day, they were excited to tell us about their favorite crossing guard: Mr. Charlie, a grandfatherly man who stops each child to introduce himself. He…

10 Ways to Communicate About Your School

Recently, on a Twitter feed, I saw the quote: Communication is 100% of what a principal does. Although this may seem like an exaggeration, I believe it is true of almost all educators, especially school leaders. This past weekend, I…

Planting, Growing, and Flourishing

I heard a great interview with motivational speaker/author Jon Gordon recently where he was asked: What should you do if you find yourself unmotivated to face a day’s work? He responded by saying: You should plant yourself right where you…

7 ‘First Days Of School’ Questions

One of my favorite books to recommend to new teachers is Harry Wong’s First Days of School. In it, he outlines the essentials for establishing, organizing, and implementing good routines and procedures for students. I call it “teaching with both…

4 Ways to Learn From Other People’s Expertise

A few months ago I was planning to attend a principal’s meeting near the state capital. Since I was going alone, I asked a principal friend from a neighboring district if we could ride together. Little did I know how…

10 Lessons on Leadership from Seabiscuit

I recently finished listening to the unabridged audio-version of Laura Hillenbrand’s Seabiscuit. A biography about a famous racehorse, the story also centers on the lives of three men whom Seabiscuit involves in a network of drama, suspense, defeat, and triumph.…

5 Ways To Maintain Sanity During Stressful Times

This past spring, as I transitioned from assistant principal to principal, I began to wonder if I had made the right decision. As the school year closed, and my former principal departed, I found myself wrapping up many of my…

8 Ways to Discipline with Dignity

School discipline is often a hotly debated topic of discussion. If viewed simply as punishment, it is often ineffective in changing behavior. But if viewed as a way to measure, check, and coach, the results are often more positive. Toward…

10 Tips On Interviewing For An Education Position

We just finished filling a tenth teaching position at my school for next year. As hard as it is to work through the hiring process, nothing is more important to the success of school than finding quality educators. Although I…

Interview with Ruby Payne

The following is a Q & A between Ruby Payne and me. Ruby Payne is the best-selling author of A Framework for Understanding Poverty. Her book and other resources have significantly affected the way teachers reach at-risk students. Her work…

That’s What We Do In Oklahoma

I grew up in Tennessee, but I’ve lived in Oklahoma for more than twenty years now. I will never grow used to tornadoes. Spring time here means clearing out your storm shelter or your best hidey-holes. That’s what we do…

7 Ways to Show Appreciation for Teachers

A friend once told me, “One good deed is worth more than a thousand good intentions.” Sometimes I am guilty of good intentions without good actions. But when it comes to appreciating others, my good intentions won’t ever let others…

Interview with Tim Elmore

The following is a Q & A exchange between Dr. Tim Elmore and me. I had the privilege of connecting with Tim when a mutual friend introduced us after seeing I had recommended his book, Generation iY, and I am…

Tips for Dealing with Difficult People

If you are like me, you want school leadership to be about inspiring or encouraging others to reach shared goals. So often, motivational leadership also requires managing complicated situations or people. Over the years, I have begun to learn practical…

Interview with Jon Gordon

The following is a Q & A exchange between Jon Gordon and me. The first time I heard Jon Gordon speak was at a principal’s conference in Oklahoma City. A year later, he came and addressed our school district’s opening…

Interview with Mona Smith

The following is a Q & A exchange between Mona Smith and me. Mona Smith is the 2013 Oklahoma Assistant Principal of the Year. When I first met her, I was struck by her insight into school improvement and her…

Interview with Mark Scharenbroich

The following is a Q & A exchange between Mark Scharenbroich and me. Mark Scharenbroich is a fabulous resource of ideas for educators, leaders, and anyone interested in personal growth. I first heard Mark speak when he was a keynote…

3 Tips for Making Each Day Count

Recently I heard a great interview with Robert D. Smith, author of 20,000 Days and Counting. He explained the epiphany he had at 55 years of age when he calculated his years and realized he had lived 20,000 days. In…

Motivation by Wonder and Purpose

A good friend and fellow principal, Lydia Wilson, from Bixby Central Elementary, wrote me recently after reading my last blog post. Her response is a good reminder of the deep satisfaction that comes when we have the right motives for…

Staying Focused During Difficult Times

The other day, I had someone tell me, “I would never want your job.” On the one hand, that may be true. Sometimes the negatives can be overwhelming. When it comes to the part of my job involving student discipline,…

4 Caution Lights On Your Leadership Journey

Zig Ziglar’s “wheel of life” is often referred to by leadership coaches, like Chris Locurto, because it represents a good visual of the competing interests in each of our lives. The thought goes, when the areas of life are held…

Purpose Motivated Leadership

Recently, I was listening to an EntreLeadership Podcast interview of Lisa Earle McLeod discussing her book Selling With Noble Purpose. The premise of the conversation was that in corporations, the sales reps who make up the top 2% of highest…

Tips on Better Managing Requests

My first year as a school administrator, I was convinced I would not repeat some of the frustrating habits of my former leaders. Specifically, I wanted to be a leader who consistently followed through on requests from teachers. What I…

Welcome to Principal Matters

Thanks for taking time to visit Principal Matters, where you can find resources, insights, and inspiration for school leadership! William D. Parker Bio Will is currently the principal of Skiatook High School, near Tulsa, Oklahoma, U.S.A. He grew up a…