On May 14, 2020, I was hired by the school board of Siloam Springs School District as the new Assistant Principal at the high school. This is a dream job with one of the best administration teams I have had the privilege of knowing.

On July 13, 2020, I started my first official day in my new role. It has been a rollercoaster with many highs and lows in the past three weeks. We are put in impossible situations and have to choose what is best for students and staff- sometimes those do not line up and it makes our job even more challenging.

Over the past three works I have learned so much and wanted to get my thoughts down on paper (blog) to reflect back in years to come.

I am not trying to win a popularity contest.

A few days ago I made the comment, “I don’t think that teacher is going to like me much, but what I am suggesting is best for the students.” My mentor looked at me and said “Brittany, you are not trying to win a popularity contest. You got this job because we trust you and know you will do what is best for students.”

I have to be adaptable.

I also made the comment that I feel like I will be a first year administrator all over again next year when **hopefully** COVID-19 is gone or at least more manageable. The vice principal kindly chuckled and said “It will be something else, that is the job. There will always be something that you are dealing with, you just have to be able to roll with it.”

I will make mistakes.

I made a phone call today, no big deal, just a quick chat. I went and told my boss about it and he said “I would have said that this way… but you already talked to him.” My heart sunk. I felt like I had failed miserably and I was only 14 days into the job. I played it off like no big deal but I have been thinking about it all day. I am writing this hoping I can actually take it to heart- I will make mistakes, and THAT IS OKAY. I have to own them, accept them, learn from them, and move forward.

I need to listen and ask questions.

Clearly these are unprecedented times, so not only am I learning, but so is everyone else. No one has the perfect solution for how to open schools right now. It is times like these that we all need to be able to truly listen to concerns, seek out ideas, and ask questions that get everyone heading in a positive direction.

I know I will learn much more as the years go on, after all, we are all life long learners; but for now I am going to look forward to this next journey and celebrate the start to a new school year.