As I was researching for this new school proposal, I came across a YouTube video a student created for their AP US history project.

I’m literally blown away. My students have created original documentaries in the past, from interviewing musicians, to editing and previewing them at Carnegie Hall.  Yet the inclusion of authentic footage from the time period was lacking, and it makes me think that I need to broaden my horizons a little further and dream a little bigger.

I don’t know how this HS student created this video, or how much they did on their own, but the possibility is there for other HS students to create films that combine original footage with period footage to educate others about a topic.  As the new administrator, my first thought is what do the students and teachers need me to do to facilitate this?  We hear about academic rigor and authentic assessment all the time, and here is yet another way to engage our neediest students in a project that they would enjoy, and learn from.

I came across this quote while I was researching my new school proposal. Oh how apropos it  is for the schools too.

“The day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you have stopped leading them. They have either lost confidence that you can help them or concluded that you do not care. Either case is a failure of leadership.”

–Colin Powell