October is National Principals Month, and the Arlington ISD is fortunate to have outstanding campus leaders. We wanted to hear their thoughts on being a principal so we’re asking them questions throughout National Principals Month 2020. Here’s part three.
〉What’s the funniest thing that’s happened to you as a principal this National Principals Month 2020?
“A student in kindergarten told me she was going to teach me Spanish. Every day she would quiz me. The only words she ever taught me were the words for cow and dog. A day never passed when she did not ask me how to say those two words. She was very proud that she taught me Spanish.”
– Dawn Zdrojewski, Johns Elementary
“One morning, I was greeting students in the main hallways and one student stopped to tell me that my hair was so beautiful that it made me look like a rock star! Well, at dismissal time, I was telling kids goodbye as they left the building and one student stopped me to ask me if I was sick because I looked really bad and my hair didn’t look so good. How do you start off your day as a rock star and end your day looking ill?”
– Katina Martinez, Short Elementary
“After telling staff I was afraid that someone would trip over a power cord and that it might need to be moved, I proceeded to demonstrate the least graceful trip and fall in grand fashion to punctuate my point.”
– Stacey Maddoux, Ashworth Elementary
“Can we talk about the day I chased a student through the woods in my high heels and fell through a rotten log into a pool of water? Or is that something we don’t speak of?”
– Christi Wilks, Burgin Elementary
“We planned a trick-or-treat community event and our theatre department added a free haunted house. We were expecting maybe 100 people the whole night. I think the word got out that our haunted house was good (and it was!), and we ended up with hundreds of people all waiting to get to our haunted house that night. The theatre kids were so proud, but man we were not expecting that size of a crowd! We learned a lesson that night – free candy and a haunted house – plan for hundreds of folks to come out!”
– Catherine Claiborne, Nichols Junior High
“Finding a puppy in a child’s backpack – in a locker – on the first day of school!”
– Mary Helen Burnett, Dunn Elementary
“I can think of an embarrassing, scary moment that turned out to be funny. Falling off the stage in front of a presentation with a Dads Club. High heels and microphone cords can be a dangerous mix. Thankfully, some strong gentlemen helped me and we all just laughed it off because things happen.”
– Katiuska Herrador, Jones Academy
“There are funny events daily. It is hard to just pick one. I might say, allowing students to turn me into an ice cream sundae and one of the students took the metal spoon and hit it on my head, like you would on the side of a bowl to get the ice cream off the spoon. You could hear the ‘thump’ across the cafe. I quickly learned, use plastic for everything and set clear expectations on how to cover the principal in food items. From there I have been covered in mustard/ketchup/slime/so much more.”
– Shelly Osten, Miller Elementary
“The funniest thing that has happened to me as a principal was the day I let my students throw whipped cream pie at me as a prize for a fundraiser. A group of first graders won and I was confident that they all had bad aim and that I would be clean as a whistle at the end of all of the pie hurling. The first little boy who got up to throw a pie at me wound his arm like he was about to throw the first pitch at opening night at Dodgers Stadium. I was sure he’d miss so I started laughing. He hurled the pie at me so hard my shower cap flew off and all of the nasty whipped cream got in my mouth.”
– Hallema Jackson, Key Elementary
We want to thank all of our wonderful principals for National Principals Month 2020. We appreciate all you do!