Ageless wisdom from a wonderful leader

 I began my teaching career in the 1971-72 school year. Coach Ken Dugan, my college baseball coach, had helped me land the job at David Lipscomb Elementary School as the physical education teacher for grades K-6.  It was a private school that was connected to David Lipscomb College, now known as Lipscomb University,  where I had just graduated. 

I was assigned to ten thirty-minute classes for approximately six hundred students each day. Large classes were not uncommon. The job required planning, organization, and energy. Discipline and structure were very important in order to have a productive program that consisted of gymnastics, swimming, roller skating, strength and conditioning, track, and skill development in various sports. I was privileged to work in one of the premier physical education elementary programs in Middle Tennessee.

At the conclusion of a normal school day in the fall of that year, I decided to play tennis with a college buddy of mine. We were in the middle of a match when a lady by the name of Mrs. Green approached the tennis courts. I could see that she was upset and wanted to talk to me immediately. As I left the court and inquired about her concern, she pointedly told me that she wanted to know why I had spanked her son, Jeffrey. 

Being somewhat confused with her statement, I asked her, "Where is Jeffrey?" She informed me that he was in the car so I asked if I might talk to him. We both approached the car only to find Jeffrey huddled up in the backseat floorboard of the car, crying. He was clearly upset and embarrassed by what had happened. I told Mrs. Green that I had only gently slapped him on the bottom once to get him back in line since he was not following directions. She did not like my response and immediately informed me that she was going to the principal. Obviously the tennis game was over and I began to wonder what would happen next.

Times have changed dramatically since then. But school paddlings were common in the 70s even though what I had done was not in this category. But the next morning Mrs. Hopper, the principal, wanted to talk to me about the incident. Apparently, Jeffrey's mother had gotten in touch with the administration. This was my first encounter with a parent complaint. I didn't know what to expect.

 After a brief conversation about other things, Mrs. Hopper asked me about what had happened with Jeffrey. I repeated the same story that I had told Mrs. Green. Mrs. Hopper did not rebuke me for my actions, giving me the impression that she believed that Mrs. Green was overly protective of Jeffrey. But what she did do had such a profound effect on me that it has shaped my philosophy of teaching for a lifetime. Somehow, as the meeting unfolded, I got the distinct impression that she was more concerned with me as a first year teacher than a single incident.

Mrs. Margaret Hopper began, "Do you know what the Bible says in Luke 6:26?" At this time in my life, though I was raised going to church, I did not know much about the scriptures. I reluctantly replied, "No, ma'am." She then quoted the passage to me. It was the words of Jesus, "Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for so did their fathers to the false prophets." She then explained to me that everyone is not going to speak well of me and that I will not and cannot please every person. 

And then she asked me another question, "Do you know how many apostles the Lord had?" I knew that answer (yay!) and quickly responded, "Twelve." From a place of deep wisdom she began her lesson, "You know, Jesus had twelve students and they were all productive except one and that one was Judas. How many students do you teach each day?" I replied, "About six hundred." She expounded, "Well, our Lord had one unsuccessful apostle out of twelve and he was perfect in every way with the perfect lesson plans." She continued, "Mr. Massey, this means that, if your teaching compares to the student learning model of Jesus, you will lose one twelfth of your students for a total of fifty." She then kindly added, "But you are not perfect and your lesson plans are not either."

 What a rich lesson of wisdom from my first principal! We were part of an outstanding school. She did not want me to be distracted from the goal laid out for us--the pursuit of excellence. The conference ended and very little if any more was said about the incident. 

Little did she know that she was setting a standard which would serve me throughout my educational career. You are not going to please everyone and everyone will not always speak well of you. In addition, you are not perfect and you are likely to lose some of your students. Seasoned leaders like Mrs. Hopper understand these principles. 

Remember, I believe we are all leaders regardless of our position.