Getting Back to Good

Tonight's football game is a big deal for Greene Central. More than that, it is a big deal for Greene County and for our school system. On the surface, it's a rivalry football game and at the end, one team will emerge unbeaten and another will lick their wounds and seek to find a way to win down the road in the playoffs. More importantly than a football game is the community support behind Greene Central and the rest of Greene County Schools. Before the game even begins tonight, I think that it is important to acknowledge how we got here.

Several years ago Greene Central was struggling in more ways than one. The school was recognized as a low performing school in the state. Our graduation rate was well below the state average. Teacher turnover was high and morale was low. Who really knows how things got that way. Truthfully, it was probably a combination of many different factors that plague high poverty schools and school systems. On top of that, sports programs that receive a lot of press (like football) were not doing very well either. If memory serves me correctly, the season before Coach Wooten took over was winless. Those of you that have worked for the school for many years remember that time.

I was lucky enough to join the school (like most of you) during the upswing and I have seen the emotional struggle that getting back to good has caused. People, young and old, tend to wear their beliefs about themselves and their community. Much like a child labeled as "bad" will continue to misbehave, this community has struggled to forget that we once were not what we wanted to be. But things are changing.

This school year I have seen more community support for our school and our students than ever before. While the attention from the press for both athletics and academics has been exhausting at times, it is worth the time and effort to rally the community. When I thought up the theme of Teaching Grit, I could have never imagined or scripted an event like tonight's game. Win or lose, tonight is about grit. It took grit to get here. It will take grit to move on. The work has been tough, time consuming and exhausting. Tempers have flared. Tears were cried. Despite the struggle, the tide has turned. While we will always have students with issues and parents that disagree with us, wins and losses on any field, we are indeed, getting back to good.