Derek Bellow, the principal of Liberty High School, wears a hat for National Principals’ Day last May. PHOTO COURTESY OF DEREK BELLOW

Since I became principal of Liberty High School in Henderson, NV, I’ve spent a lot of time and effort developing a positive school climate and culture. We’re a huge school—3,300 students—but we’re arguably the premier high school in the state when it comes to academics, athletics, performing arts, and other programs.

Students want to be here, teachers want to be here, and support professionals want to be here. We really don’t have much attrition as far as people leaving to go to another school. If we lose an employee, it’s either through retirement or because of a move out of the district.

One key element of our culture is that we all treat each other well and with respect. I have an informal motto that I keep in mind and regularly remind my administrators and teachers of: “Let’s Not Forget” or LNF. The idea is that we as administrators need to remember what the job was like when we were teachers, and teachers need to remember what school was like when they were students.

Treating Staff as Professionals

As an example, let’s say it’s a Monday and your lesson plan fell flat, or you forgot to attend an IEP meeting, or something else didn’t quite go as planned. I don’t want my administrators ranting and raving about a teacher because those things happen. That’s an LNF moment. We need to remember, understand, and continue to treat our staff as professionals.

And this 100% applies to how our teachers engage with their students. Recently, I had a conversation with a teacher in which I reminded her that a 16-year-old doesn’t just wake up and get out of bed and say, “I can’t wait to solve and graph two-step equations today.” Well, neither did you and me. Let’s not forget that, at one time, you and I were in high school, and we probably didn’t care about the War of 1812 or polynomials or any number of subjects.

That doesn’t mean we’re not going to continue to have high expectations and rigor for our students. But we need to provide them soft landings. They’re not adults. They are going to fail, and part of the learning experience is giving them grace—and second and third chances—and saying, “Listen, I’m going to help you get through this.”

Students Rebel Against Too Many Rules

I’m also not big on having a laundry list of rules that kids must memorize and follow every day. We allow our kids to be kids. Of course, there are key behaviors that we expect from them, but if we give them too many rules, just by nature of being teenagers, they are going to rebel against them.

I think one result is that we have a family-type atmosphere in our school. When they walk in the front gate every morning, the students feel welcome here, and they don’t need to push back against authority. It’s our job to set the expectations and set the example.

We as administrators need to remember what the job was like when we were teachers, and teachers need to remember what school was like when they were students.

One reason I feel so strongly about the whole idea of “let’s not forget” is that I remember what my school experience was like. We moved around a lot when I was a kid because my dad was in the military; I think I went to five different elementary schools. I was always the new kid until I got to junior high school. I was a very average student, so I was one of those kids who flew under the radar. I had my buddies, but I felt like the adults never really knew me. No adult really took the time to get to know who I was or greet me in the way that I greet all the students at my school.

The Kind of Teacher I Wish I Had

When I went into education as a career, I thought, “I’m going to be the type of teacher that I wish I had when I was a student.” And that’s the type of teacher I think I was—one who knew all my students. And then when I got into administration, I thought, “I’m going to be the type of instructional leader that I wish I would have had, not only when I was a student in school myself but also when I was a teacher.” I also feel strongly that we need to appreciate our staff regularly and not just during Teacher Appreciation Week. That’s why I do something special for them every month. For example, I recently had a hot dog truck in front of school and every staff member could get a free lunch from it. Modest things like that make a difference.

Here’s the bottom line: We can talk all we want about our academic programs. But the number one thing you must have before anything else is that you better know how to treat people. You must know how to build and maintain a family-like atmosphere. We have kids from all walks of life here. I make sure they feel valued. They feel heard. They feel seen. If you don’t have that, I don’t care how good your teaching is. You’re not going to be as effective and efficient as you can be.

Derek Bellow is the principal of Liberty High School in Henderson, NV, and the 2023 Nevada Principal of the Year.