"... and we thought this would be easy?"

Once the word was announced that North Carolina was approved to receive Race to the Top (RttT) funding my phone, cell phone, email, snail mail, voice mail and any other means of communication has been bombarded with “solutions”, “answers”, “products”, “services”, and “silver bullets” to improve teaching and learning. Rivaled only by the barrage from “experts” after the No Child Left Behind Act was approved in 2002, this present onslaught has the makings for an Oliver Stone conspiracy thriller. Most certainly educators have been holding back.

Motivated by being the subject of ridicule, condemnation, and threats from every direction about work ethic, commitment, competence, and conviction or the lack of – yes, educators have been holding back. Akin to the medical doctor that purposely holds back care – yes, educators have been holding back from using what works.

In the latest of what surely will be continuing requirements, threats of takeover, and court orders, we can now educate all students to high standards because it is in the plan. Are you feeling it?

Call my cynical or possibly naïve, but you have to be kidding?

The work of addressing both the failure to learn as well as failed learning will not so easily be achieved by simply redressing failed solutions with new clothes – however attractive those clothes may appear.

The work – our work is far greater, deeper, and complex than simply demanding adults work harder, care more, and give of themselves more. The work – our work requires unprecedented commitment by all those who genuinely, sincerely and authentically are interested in the success of each learner. The call to arms answered by policy makers, business, civic, and faith leaders, grand parents, citizens without children – the community is without question essential.

However, what must be different is not the coming together to lament about the youth of today. Though tempting, we must ask and grant permission to resist dwelling on historical or legacy issues. Though many of these remain factors and serve to assist with understanding context as well as culture – they cannot be allowed to dominate the conversation.

A different lens to view the obstacles and challenges is needed. Seeing challenges, obstacles differently is critical and provides an unprecedented moment in public education to see opportunities for change in practice, purpose, and results.

Race to the Top (RttT) is a reset – a do over if you will. But, we must see it as such. I rail against those that suggest that the state’s RttT plan is the answer. It isn’t and won’t be. It fundamentally does not and cannot address the root cause of failed learning or the failure to learn. RttT, however, is an opportunity to see our work through different lenses – or we will, once again, fail to achieve what we most desire – successful learners.

Seeing possibilities, solutions rather than problems is at the heart of our individual as well as collective transformation. Understanding that RttT is happening “for us” rather than “to us” is equally necessary. We are not victims!

We have a significant, defining choice to make – we can either proactively embrace the challenges and accept our role as both part of the problem and solution or succumb to past or historical explanations or excuses for the way things are.

Simply, we can accept the responsibility, accountability, and authority to design our preferred future or we can be pulled, shoved, pushed, or dragged to a future that we had little, if anything to do with.

For me, I would rather be proactive. To that end, we know what we must do. Intensity, focus, and urgency must be applied to the programs, practices, and initiatives we have underway.

Every indicator of growth, improvement, and transformation gives evidence that we are pursuing transformation in a manner that yields results – we must now more than ever stay the course by deeper, consistent, and unrelenting implementation of what we have begun.

We must do not just know what to do!