Lincoln Street School is ‘a whole jar of smart cookies’
I had the pleasure of being part of the Worcester Education Collaborative’s 13th annual Principal for the Day program on Monday, March 4. I was assigned to go to Lincoln Street School, which serves children from kindergarten through sixth grade. I was joined by two of my newest friends, Jennifer Hubert of Bay State Savings Bank and Ramon Perez of the Guild of St. Agnes.
Our host for the day was Assistant Principal Matthew Heenan. I suppose we all take for granted that people like Matt are helping to lead our public schools daily, but I must admit he was a truly positive spirit who has found his calling in our city’s public schools. He told me so himself, and for every minute of our visit it showed. But it was not just Matt who exhibited this “man on a mission” character; in every classroom we visited the teachers and students were engaged in the mission of teaching and learning.
By the way, our visit was a bit of a surprise to Matt. He did not have us scheduled for a visit that day so everything we witnessed was genuine, not just for show, and unplanned.
The physical structure of the school is charming but in need of significant capital investment. Each teacher has decorated their rooms with lighting and other homey effects that create a warm and caring environment. To my eyes it seemed to set everyone at ease, and foster a sense of belonging. I did not sense stress or impatience among all the students and staff we met. The conduct of the students was excellent. They have made the absolute best out of the building they have been given.
The school no longer has a gymnasium. It has been converted to classrooms. Those rooms are also cheery places, but the lack of a gym is a real hardship for the students in the winter. There is no cafeteria (you read that right), and we watched the kitchen staff preparing lunches that are hand-delivered to classrooms by assigned students and teachers. I saw a music lesson being conducted at the bottom of a flight of stairs as it was the only space for this two-man saxophone lesson. The music teacher shrugged off the setting and got down to playing some tunes. Clearly suboptimal, but overcome with a can-do attitude.
Despite these hardships, the children I witnessed were raising hands and interacting with teachers in math, science and reading.
I read the book “One Smart Cookie” to a class of sixth graders. It’s about a cookie who plays the role of a child in a classroom where he doesn’t believe he is up to the quality of his peers (croissants, muffins and other baked good people). He never answers fast enough even though he knows the answers, he is down on his abilities, and he is even embarrassed by his shortcomings.
But one day, the teacher gives his class an assignment to come to class the next day and share anything they would like. The only guidance was, be creative. The smart cookie is panicked at first, but he finally decides to write a poem. When his turn comes, he shares the poem with the class and the feedback is off-therails positive. His confidence grows even larger when the teacher says he should write more poems. He had found a talent that was his, it was unique and felt a calling. His attitude about school changed forever.
As I reflected on the book and my morning at Lincoln Street School, I started to wonder whether it had been given to me to read as an explanation through the message of the story just what is happening in this little corner of Worcester every day. Matt Heenan, his colleagues in the administration, the teachers and the students have all found their calling. They have a firstrate school community that has overcome their physical surroundings to participate together in giving and receiving the gift of education. Near the end of our tour, we were shown the school’s food pantry and a large area dedicated to providing clothing for members (young and old) of the Lincoln Street School community. It was both heartbreaking and uplifting. Maybe someone should write a children’s book about an elementary school in Worcester, Massachusetts, that tunes out the noise of the world around them and turns lemons into lemonade. Bravo Lincoln Street School. You are a whole jar of smart cookies.
J. Christopher Collins is of counsel at Mirick O’Connell in Worcester.