ASCD Educational Leadership Confronting POVERTY in Schools  Volume 80, December 2022/January 2023

I started my teaching career in 1999. Technically teaching was my second career, including treasured years at home raising two boys. When entering the teaching profession, it took me longer than most to land my first position. For the first year or two, I bounced around as a substitute teacher and even landed a few long-term opportunities teaching in my local school district. As hard as that was, it gave me incredible insights into what school communities I wanted to be a part of.

When the call finally came, offering my first position, I was extremely grateful I landed in a high-poverty Title I elementary school. It was exactly where my heart needed to be. It wasn’t with the mindset of saving them; looking into their eyes, I understood them. We were more similar than they knew. They taught me so much about the value of establishing high expectations, instilling a belief mindset, and celebrating and recognizing their efforts toward their goals.

Almost twenty-three years later, I am still highly engaged in a similar school community as a principal. When reading the recent ASCD Educational Leadership Magazine, Confronting Poverty in Schools, I couldn’t put it down. I read it from back to front. (Who else does that?). Many articles were my favorite, but a few spoke of what, over twenty years, I found to have the greatest impact on teaching and learning.

Jim Knight’s article, The Beautiful Question, reminded this school leader, “Our lives are lived in conversations, and when we ask better questions, we have better conversations.” As a principal, my number one responsibility is instructional leadership, which requires mastering the art of instructional coaching. Knight, an expert on creating positive change in teaching and learning through coaching, shared how effective questions can be empowering, authentic, respectful, and invitational. Good questions he shared include listening to others' options, showing genuine curiosity, building connections, and encouraging educators to think deeper.” 

When you read Jen Schwanke’s article Every Student Is a Firecracker, you can feel her advocacy for students living in poverty. Her personal experience reminded us, “Poverty isn’t the same thing as a lack of love…If a child is hungry, their parents must have failed at something. Right? Wrong.” I must admit my heart soared, and my eyes started to water. I wholeheartedly agree with her statement. I have witnessed the fierce love, devotion, and unwavering belief parents and families living in poverty have for their children. I’ve been humbled and inspired multiple times over the years. Schwanke mirrored my thoughts when she declared the following.  

Although the article that almost brought me to tears was the story of Butcher Greene Elementary, Learning from a School on the Path to High-Performing. As a turnaround principal, it could have been our story. A dedicated group of educators on the path to ‘yet’! “We have to remember, we’ve made so much growth. What we’re doing is working.” Their pursuit of providing high-quality instruction to each of their students, and developing their own belief mindset within a shared leadership framework was riveting. Respectfully, you can read the words of authors who write about the work. Still, those in the trenches often provide real-world examples of the influence school educators can have when they prioritize every initiative to change the trajectory of learning for each child they serve. 

There were many other articles in this issue that I read fervently with my red pen in hand, underlining, and note-taking, while building awareness and understanding. Discovering insights into What It Takes to Truly Leave No Child Behind, STOP Punishing Poverty in Schools, and, When Confronting Poverty, Think Abundance, Not Scarcity gave me greater hope knowing there are many educators across the country who are in pursuit of equitable outcomes each of our students deserve and need! This issue of ASCD Magazine provides research and examples of what is needed in our schools that confront the effect of poverty every day. A must-read for every educator.