grades have forgotten this. There is nothing more ridiculous than seeing
students with GPAs of over 4.0. This casts doubt on the credibility of all
the marking in the school. Gifted students are called gifted because they
are able to achieve at a higher level and handle more challenging course
work. There is no need to adjust their grades.
There is one duty that no leadership course prepares us for: saying the
final goodbye to students, staff members, and school supporters by at-
tending funerals, conducting memorial services, and delivering eulogies.
Earlier in this chapter, the untimely death of a student was mentioned. He
was very well liked by classmates and teachers. Grief counselors came to
the school to help students and staff. The principal arranged a memorial
service. He spoke with the parents, not as a principal, but as a parent, but
what can one say on the loss of a child?
The Parent Teacher Association, in consultation with the principal and
the child’s parents, created a scholarship fund so that each year at gradu-
ation an award would be given in his name. For a while the parents came
to the graduation to give this award, but, as the years passed, they declined
to attend.
During the tenure of every principal, students, parents, teachers, and mem-
bers of the advisory board will pass away. The better a school leader knows
the deceased the more of an emotional toll this will take. One assistant princi-
pal had a student monitor suffering from juvenile leukemia. She was a smart
and funny child who won the hearts of the entire school. When the student
lost her battle with the disease, the assistant principal was devastated.
Helping faculty deal with the death of a colleague is a sad and critical task
every school leader will face. A good principal develops a talent for remem-
bering good and sometimes funny stories about those who have died, to stress
to the staff that we remember deceased colleagues best by remembering their
dedication to students and the good times we experienced with them.
I will end this chapter with part of the eulogy I gave for a colleague who
died shortly after retirement. There is no more appropriate way to end
this book.
“Always remember what’s important.” By this Howard meant several
things.“Always Remember What’s Important” 191