Accountability

As the end of 2010 rolls around taking the time to reflect on the year, your beliefs and values, can perhaps, help the move forward in 2011. It is important that the behaviors we manifest represent the beliefs and values that we have. C4K values accountability. In his book, The Speed of Trust, Stephen M.R. Covey makes the observation that when it comes to being trustworthy and building trust, you cannot talk your way out of a situation you have behaved your way into. With that in mind, what are some of the character traits that are essential both personally and professionally? In other words, what are the principles that those of us who work with young people should live by? It is a fact that one of the most important roles we play when working with young people is that of the role model. Every behavior we demonstrate gives permission to a child or youth to manifest the same behavior. (Certainly this means that when others demonstrate a behavior that we do not appreciate we must at least consider if and/or how we gave them permission to do that.)

So as 2010 comes to an end, what are those values that role models might want to consider in the list of “the” Top 13? Let’s begin with accountability. Accountability has been defined as the willingness to accept responsibility for one’s actions (and of course if willingness is not there, it becomes the obligation to account for one’s behaviors). Accepting this responsibility is the first step in becoming independent and opening the possibility of working with others in a state of interdependence. Dan Zadra comments about some favorite expressions of small children: “It’s not my fault. . . They made me do it. . . I forgot.” Some favorite expressions of adults: “It’s not my job. . . No one told me. . . It couldn’t be helped.” True freedom begins and ends with personal accountability." Demonstrating for young people that we accept responsibility for our actions, without excuse when we fall short, can go a long way to “undo” these bad habits. The fact of the matter is this, there are many things that can act as obstacles to our performing in precisely the way we desire, and the question becomes, with this being the truth, ‘What will we choose to do?’ ‘Will we let people know we will not be able to meet our objective?’ ‘Will we renegotiate a time frame?’ ‘Will we work more diligently to accomplish the task?’ ‘Will we try a new strategy and enlist additional support?’ Accepting responsibility does not mean we are always successful, it simply means that we are responsible.

Following are some great quotes that address accountability. Consider them as you reflect on your own performance in 2010.

• "Accountability breeds response-ability." Stephen R. Covey

• "We must reject the idea that every time a law's broken, society is guilty rather than the lawbreaker. It is time to restore the American precept that each individual is accountable for his actions." Ronald Reagan

• "Life is not accountable to us. We are accountable to life." Denis Waitley

• "Good men prefer to be accountable." Michael Edwards

• "We are accountable for our decisions in our personal life so why shouldn't we be just as accountable in our work life." Catherine Pulsifer

Importance of Community Service

The movie, Pay It Forward, was released in October of 2000. In this movie a young boy attempts to make the world a better place as part of a social studies assignment. The assignment is to think of something that can change the world and then put that into action. Trevor, the boy with the assignment, decides to pay a favor forward, in other words, if someone does something nice for you, instead of pay back, you should pay the good deed forward by giving of yourself to at least three other people. Trevor’s idea takes hold and soon he is influencing an ever-widening circle of characters that are not even known to him.

Community Service is an opportunity for your youth to Pay It Forward by first identifying an unmet need in the community and then making a plan to address that need. Youth can work alone, in a club, or with a community organization to resolve the need. Sample projects can include neighborhood clean-up, supporting community health fairs, collecting recyclables, refurbishing and repainting a homeless center, collecting blankets for the animal shelter so animals can have a warmer winter, and any number of other projects.

Although the community will definitely benefit from community service, perhaps the greatest benefit will be for your students. In the Search Institute’s 40 Developmental Assets, two key areas stand out as those who will benefit from community service:

Positive Identity

• Self Esteem: The development of high self-esteem and self-efficacy
• Sense of Purpose: The development of a strong sense of purpose, and

Positive Values

• Caring: Placing a high value on helping other people
• Equality and Social Justice: Placing a high value on promoting equality and reducing hunger and poverty.

Helping young people to develop and hone these traits will prepare them for productive and successful life.

Gratitude

Gratitude is being thankful and grateful for what we have. November is a perfect month for considering how much we have to be thankful for since Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday. The first Thanksgiving was in 1621 and was held to celebrate the harvest that had just been gathered after the first colonists had survived a very harsh winter. George Washington was the first to declare a Thanksgiving holiday in 1789 and by the mid-1800’s, Sarah Hale, a poet and editor, began lobbying for a national holiday. In 1863 Lincoln proclaimed the last Thursday of November as Thanksgiving Day and in 1941 Congress declared through joint resolution that the fourth Thursday would be henceforth known as Thanksgiving Day. Taking time out of our busy lives to be grateful for the opportunities we have allows us to appreciate being a citizen of the United States of America.

Following are some quotes to remind us of the importance of being grateful.

“It is easy for us to complain about things we do not have. Instead, let’s be grateful for our many gifts and be willing to share them with others.”

Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.
William Arthur Ward

“There are so many reasons to give thanks. Make a list of all the things and people who make a difference in your life and find a way to show your thanks this week.”

“True happiness can only be found when we learn to be content with what we have.”

“Gratitude preserves old friendships, and procures new.”

“Good cheer is something more than faith in the future; it is gratitude for the past and joy in the present.”

“Gratitude is the most exquisite form of courtesy.” Jacques Maritain

“A person, however learned and qualified in his life’s work in whom gratitude is absent, is devoid of that beauty of character which makes personality fragrant.” Hazrat Inavat Khan

“Develop an attitude of gratitude, and give thanks for everything that happens to you, knowing that every step forward is a step toward achieving something bigger and better than your current situation.” Brian Tracy

With Liberty and Justice for All…

On November 22, 1963, the assassination of President Kennedy helped to define a generation of baby boomers. I can still remember exactly where I was and what I was doing when the news was announced. I remember having to take the announcement of the assassination from classroom to classroom on my small high school campus, because I happened to be the person in the office at the time. I remember the looks on the faces of the teachers as they read the announcement first to themselves and then to a classroom of students. I remember one teacher in particular, who read the announcement to himself, handed me back the paper, and walked out of the door, leaving me to share the sad news with a classroom full of peers. Students were dismissed from school and a nation watched the unfolding of events on television for the next several days. It was all that we could talk about. The mystique of Camelot has developed since, but at the time it seemed that hope and promise were somehow made victims of a sniper’s bullet.
In 1963, the Civil Rights Movement was just coming into its own, and we will never know what affect the Kennedy Assassination had on those events. Would events have occurred in the same way or was the timeline accelerated or slowed because of it? Where would we be as a nation had this single event not occurred? Certainly we kept Kennedy’s promise to land a man on the moon before the end of the decade, but what other promises would have been made and consequently kept had he lived? While there is no answer to those questions, as we cannot have a retake on history, we are faced with similar challenges in 2010 as a result of the achievement gap. We are faced with deciding whether or not we will become a nation that embodies the words of the Pledge of Allegiance which state, “with liberty and justice for all”.
For me, the decision is “yes”, and the work of public education and after-school programs is to ensure that social justice is a reality for all students. We must take seriously this new civil rights issue and refuse to rest until the achievement gap is closed and every youth is able to reach his or her amazing potential. We can accomplish these results. If you look back over the course of history, many of the accomplishments of men have had an equal or larger number of skeptics boasting that it will never work. If we are dedicated to “liberty and justice for all”, we must also find strength in the words of Margaret Mead,
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”

The Importance of Character

When it comes down to it, the only thing that any of us have is our word. We are either seen as a person who (most of the time at least) keeps our word, or a person who does not. People constantly assess to determine if each of us is a person who says what is meant, and means what is said. Youth are particularly interested in this question as they learn how to navigate in the very complex world in which they live. Nearly from birth, youth are determining if you are a person they can trust. Youth are interested in knowing about your character. Do you have integrity? Do you respond in the same manner when times are tough as well as when times are good? Do you speak the truth, even when it would be more convenient not to? Do you have a good intent? Do you motivate others to do THEIR best work, or do you manipulate them to do YOUR best work.
Youth are also looking to see how you measure up on these character traits as well:
• Optimism
• Positive Attitude
• Generosity
• Friendliness
• Gratitude
• Perseverance
• Passion
• Dedication
• Excellence
Character Counts shortens this list, identifying six pillars of character: trustworthiness, responsibility, respect, fairness, caring, and citizenship.
Stephen Covey tells us that until about 150 years ago, leadership was defined in terms of character, but that today, it has been redefined by the personality ethic. In other words, leadership was defined by an integration of such traits as integrity, humility, patience, and following the Golden Rule, while now, leadership is based on personality, technique, appearance, and having a positive mental attitude. He goes on to say that character creates long-term lasting relationships that are there for the long haul, while the personality ethic has much less staying power. Emerson perhaps says it best, “What you are shouts so loudly in my ears I cannot hear what you say.”
As we move forward in our work with young people, let’s remember that one of our most important roles is that of role model, and that character truly is what coun

Theory of Change

More and more we are hearing the words, “What is your Theory of Change (TOC)?” This is not to be confused with the pattern of change below:
• sustainability
• integration
• engagement
• knowledge
• awareness

While change begins when we are first made aware of some new information and we make a decision that this different way of thinking or doing things could benefit us, and ends with a sustained habit, this does not constitute a Theory of Change.

A TOC has been defined as “a strategy or blueprint for achieving large-scale, long-term goals. It identifies the preconditions, pathways and interventions necessary for an initiative's success.” A TOC is a way of looking at very complex issues that are interwoven, braided and blended together so it is difficult to break them apart into stand alone units. A TOC helps you to determine the necessary conditions and pathways to follow to have the effect and results that you desire. The Harvard Business Review, October, 2010 published an article by Robert Kaplan and Allen Grossman, that those of you in the world of after-school, and particularly non-profits engaged in the work of after-school might find interesting. “The Emerging Capital Market for Nonprofits”, discusses how “market mechanisms from the private sector could energize the nonprofit world”. On page 116 of the magazine, an interesting graphic outlines a possible TOC which could at least help you begin to think about your purpose and your theory of change.
 

Alignment

Most every driver understands the importance of having wheels that are aligned. According to an article by Sarah McBride, “In installing the wheels, proper wheel alignment is important so as not to sacrifice the tires life and hence, the cars ride and handling. Often times, wheel alignment is confused with wheel balancing; the two, however are two different terms. Wheel alignment consists of adjusting the angles of the car wheels so that they are perpendicular to the road or the ground and are parallel to each other. Improper alignment of the wheels results in excessive tire wear, steering and tracking problems….”

I am struck by how much in common wheel alignment has with the educational and social alignment of school day and after-school. This article could have as easily read, ‘In instituting an after-school program, proper educational and social alignment with the school day is important so as not to sacrifice learning opportunities for youth, and hence, their success both in school and in life. Often times, alignment between the school day and after-school is confused with replicating the school day program, however, these are two different terms. Alignment consists of adjusting the strategies of after-school to support the good work of the school day and to be parallel with it, although supporting learning through the multiple intelligences, a variety of learning modalities, and engaging skill building activities that are not duplicated in the school day. Improper alignment of the school day and after-school results in excessive wear and stress on both students and staff members, and can end in results that could have demonstrated stronger student outcomes if the programs had been aligned.’

Alignment is not the work for the faint of heart. Beginning with the end in mind, young people who are better educated and better prepared for the advanced citizenship of being an American, a great deal of communication and information sharing must occur to create an aligned system. It is possible, and if you work in an after-school program, please make a commitment to contribute to the work.