Welcome back, Loyal Daily Dawg Readers!  I hope your holiday was restful and enjoyable.  Mine was, and I am cracking to go for 2024. 

I have a slate of wonderful court cases to tell you about. We’ve got cases about grandma getting lost on the way to an ARD meeting, kids getting left on the bus, transgender athletes, admissions policies at selective schools, the NSBA’s infamous letter to the Biden Administration about trouble at school board meetings, and much more. 

But before we dive into all that substance, let’s take this first school day of the new year to be mindful of the importance of kindness to each other.  This time of year when the days are short and the mornings are dark bring to mind the call I got from a school superintendent who wondered what to do about the teacher who appeared to have the cheese slipping off her cracker.  Could we put her on admin leave?  Could we require her to get a mental health check up? 

I asked the superintendent for some facts. What made the administration think that the teacher was having problems?  The supe related the latest episode, which had happened that morning. She showed up at school wearing shoes that did not match.

Well….I thought there might be a logical explanation for that.   It’s dark in the morning. It’s easy to pick up a black shoe along with a navy blue and not notice the mismatch.   The supe responded: “Yes, I agree with that. But it was a flat and a three-inch high heel.  She’s listing to the left and still hasn’t noticed.” 

Oh. 

You may wonder what happened after that. Me too.  I don’t remember much about these long ago phone calls. I just remember the punch line. And that’s why you read the Daily Dawg, isn’t it?

So be kind to your colleagues as we join together for the long slog to the summer.

DAWG BONE:  KIND.  PATIENT.  IT MATTERS.

Got a question or comment for the Dawg?  Let me hear from you at jwalsh@wabsa.com. 

Tomorrow: Toolbox Tuesday!!

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