From the Desk of Mr. Jeff Kuhns

I inadvertently created a movement during our opening day, all staff meeting. I’ll explain:

I’ve been in the District for about seven months and not everyone sees me all that often although I try to get into every building on a weekly basis it’s hard to see everyone every week. Also, it is the first time I’ve had the opportunity to speak to everyone at one time. One thing that people who see me on a daily basis have noticed about me is that many times on West Perry Wednesdays, I will wear green sneakers.

One of my first purchases shortly after I got hired for this position was a pair of green and white Adidas sneakers. Shortly after that I bought a pair of green and white Nikes. My intention when I bought them was to show my school spirit, to show that I was ‘all in’ for West Perry. It’s a simple statement but even being simple it’s a sizable commitment. Wearing a West Perry shirt is one thing but to wear West Perry shoes takes a whole different level of commitment both financially and courageously. In other words, they're expensive and you run the risk of being mocked.

On Wednesday at the whole staff meeting I had on a nice shirt and tie (green of course), dress pants and I set the outfit off with my green Adidas. During my remarks I talked about my desire to bring the joy back to West Perry and my commitment to making an impact on the climate in the District. I showed off the shoes as my prop to exemplify my level of commitment to these goals. This brought some joy to the room.

Little did I know that the shoes would be such a huge hit. There were reports that staff members were immediately searching Amazon for green shoes. On Thursday, no matter what building I went to people asked me about my shoes, why I didn’t have them on, and showing me the green shoes that they had ordered. The movement had begun!

I love that this idea has gone a little bit viral, but I also hope that all of those green shoe purchases come with the intended commitment to be ‘all in’ for the students of West Perry - Every Student; Every Day. And that they help to remind us to bring joy to our buildings.

I know that it will take more than green shoes, but green shoes are a great place to start!

Additionally, I challenged the entire staff to reflect on a few questions that I feel should guide us in our daily journey at West Perry:

1. Why would someone want to work here? Would you want to start your career here?
2. Would you want your child to be a student in your class? In your neighbor’s class? If not, why not?
   
3. Would you want to be a student in your class?

And finally…

1. What is a Mustang? When our students walk out of West Perry, who do we want them to be? Do we have a vision for the future of our students?