Superintendent’s Chat

Richard McClements, Shonto Preparatory School

Perhaps you have noticed that I have changed pictures. That tuxedo picture that I have used the past couple of years just doesn’t quite fit here on the Reservation. Second, I have aged considerably since that tux picture was taken, and it is obvious I am no longer that same guy. Normally, I don’t take a decent picture. I could take a 100 and not find one that is acceptable. What if those horrible pictures I have been taking all along were the real me? What if those horrible pictures truly represent how I look? That is why I hated to give up that tux picture.

We all look in the mirror and see exactly what we want to see. I have been looking in that mirror every morning to shave, and up to now, I had thought everything was all right, thinking I am still the Dick McClements of the 1960’, 70’s, 80’s and 90’s. I guess I had somehow assumed that the grey in my hair and mustache and the wrinkles hadn’t really changed me. I saw what I wanted to see. All along, Father Time has been laughing at my twisting of the truth. Well, Father Time, I will concede that you have caught up with me, but I am still going to try to “think young!”

Many of our students are looking into the mirror of life and observing what they want to see as well. They envision school as a place to socialize and focus on friends. They think it is OK to not be able to read, write, or compute well. They rationalize that they can go home at night and not have to study. They assume that by dozing in class they somehow will master the material. They are fooling themselves by thinking that being poorly educated doesn’t make a difference.

FOX News reported recently that two-thirds of low-performing students tend to have unrealistic future expectations. They have these aspirations that when they grow up they will become professional athletes and make millions. Others imagine themselves as being rock stars. On several occasions I have pointed out in my “Chats” that Americans are now competing against others in a global economy. I once wrote that in my father’s day, he competed against other men in the Mohawk Valley for the available jobs. People from my generation competed against others from across our nation. Youngsters today will compete for jobs against others from England, Japan, Brazil, Russia, and Germany. These countries have excellent educational systems and their students tend to consistently outperform ours. They will also work for less money than Americans. You do the math. You either are better, or the other guy ends up the winner.

Look deeply into that mirror. As Aristotle once said, “Know Thyself.” Fix your academic flaws. Turn weaknesses into strengths. Pay the price to be a good student.