Knowing When To Leave
Springfield High School
Spring 2007
I loved being a high school principal. But then slowly and ever so sneakily, my passion and interest began to slip away from me. I told the faculty that I no longer heard the music, I just heard the noises. And they were very distracting to me.
So I submitted my intent to retire. My final year, we had implemented a successful Freshman Academy; every freshman received a laptop computer; our students again made AYP (Average Yearly Progress) on the state test; college acceptance rates were up; our students raised over $50,000 for childhood cancer research; we had more seniors registered in dual enrollment programs than any other high school in the county and yet, I still wasn't satisfied. I felt flat. So I just knew it was time to leave.
One of the teachers told me she was sorry to see me leave but she understood that I had to go.
"You know, my father always had a talent to know when it was time to go. He never stayed any longer than he wanted. He never stayed and hated his job. That's a real talent: to know when to leave," she said softly.
"Is your father still alive," I asked.
"No, no, he died years ago. He was a young man when he died."
"How did he die?"
"He committed suicide. He shot himself" she responded matter-of-factly.
