Narrowing gaps behind-the-scenes

/ Julie Nariman / 6 Comments

blue sky 2What impacts student learning?  Teachers, school leaders, counselors, parent-school partnerships.  Access to quality books and materials, curriculum.

And seemingly mundane things.  Like air conditioners.

NYC Mayor DiBlasio introduced an initiative to put an air conditioner in every NYC classroom by 2022.  Next week, our school is getting eight new air conditioners funded by the city.  (Thank you Mayor!)

However, since summer, when the city surveyed our school, several more ACs had broken.  I decided to replace these ACs from our school budget before Spring when classrooms would get hot.  Continue reading →

No school, no dance?

/ Julie Nariman / 3 Comments

glow sticks dance.jpgA couple of weeks ago, Sami arrived at our school dance.  Sami is a dynamic 12th grader who is passionate about basketball and Star Wars.  He is a charmer and a social butterfly.  He looked excited at the entrance to the dance, surrounded by his friends, ready to pay his $5 entrance fee.

The only problem was, he had skipped school that day.  In fact, he had skipped many days of school this year: over 30 days.

One of the biggest predictors of student success is attendance.  My school is comprised of 380 students, most of whom are newcomer English Langauge Learners.  Missing even one day of school can throw learning off-course. Continue reading →

I can tell you anything, right?

/ Julie Nariman / 2 Comments

20190202_122445.jpgJeetu, a 12th-grade boy, sat in my office, eager to talk.

“You’re the principal, so I can tell you anything, right?”

I was tickled by Jeetu’s question.  A lot of kids might have the opposite thought: You’re the principal so let me choose my words carefully and make sure you don’t find out whatever I’m hiding.

Jeetu took New York State Regents exams* in January.  I was meeting with every 12th grader who had taken exams and experienced at least one disappointment in failing an exam.  Continue reading →

Dance, dance, dance

/ Julie Nariman / 1 Comment

glow sticksI find my students touching, and often cute.  However, in thinking of them as “cute,” I don’t always see their wisdom.

Three 12th grade students approached me a few weeks ago.  I call them my “movers and shakers.”  They are active in student government and always looking to plan new activities.

“We want to have a ‘Glow in the Dark’ party,” said Stephanie.*

“Yeah!  Kids are getting stressed out studying for Regents exams and this will be fun,” added Hassan.**

I did what I often do with kids: I told them I would think about it and get back to them. Continue reading →

Melting grudges

/ Julie Nariman / 2 Comments
20190118_061350.jpg

Student watercolor from the High School of Language and Innovation.

As a principal, I hear complaints from teachers and students about each other.  “Ahmed refuses to participate.”  “Ms. X didn’t help me even though I was raising my hand.”  I typically try to “solve” or mollify the complaints quickly so everyone can move on.

This week, coming fresh from a seminar on listening, I heard complaints differently.  Behind the complaints, I found hurt feelings and disappointment.

I came in for an early meeting with two teachers who are respected and even loved by their students.  We were deciding which kids needed extra academic support.

As we went down the list, the conversation seemed normal: “Jennifer could use more support outside of class.  Mohammed is doing fine in the class, he won’t need extra help.”

Then the tone changed, hitting upon two names: “Samantha doesn’t care.  She doesn’t do any work and when I talked to her about it, she said ‘whatever.’  Neither does Abdul.  He does nothing in class.”   Continue reading →

The Smell of Oranges

/ Julie Nariman / 5 Comments

orange peelAs the principal of a high school that serves newcomer English Language Learners, I track many pieces of students data: progress with English, attendance, participation in clubs and sports, grades, test scores, etc.

Yet sometimes, a seemingly insignificant moment teaches me more about my school than any piece of official data.

Last week, I was walking past the cafeteria while my students were eating lunch.  I heard the normal sounds of lunchtime: over 300 students talking loudly, the occasional shriek of laughter or flirtation.

And, the smell of oranges.  Continue reading →

The Pressure to Punish Part II

/ Julie Nariman / 1 Comment

Briliant hues

Last week, I wrote about a student who sent an angry email to a teacher during winter break. I talked about my own initial instinct to “jump to punishment” instead of finding out what had happened.

Returning from break, I was reminded of another layer of complexity: the parents’ pressure to punish.

The day we returned from break, I assumed that the student who wrote the email would feel remorseful. We would start off with discussing why the email was a problem, the student would apologize, and all would be well.

Nope: the student returned to school angry, sure that he was “right” to express his feelings in the email.

Continue reading →