What does it mean to be "Uncommon?"

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Kennedy High School's athletic director, Aaron Stecker, asked me to be the keynote speaker at their student leadership retreat event on Tuesday, October 29th. KHS has embraced the theme, "Be Uncommon" to define what it means to be a Cougar.
According to Dictionary.com, "What does it mean to be uncommon? est. not common; unusual; rare: an uncommon word. unusual in amount or degree; above the ordinary: an uncommon amount of mail. exceptional; remarkable."

Exceptional. Remarkable. Wow...what does it mean when we witness something exceptional or remarkable? Something that we would not expect, and it captures our hearts so quickly that we almost lose our breath? There are posts on Facebook or Twitter that appear to fit the "uncommon" definition: two toddlers running to each other on the sidewalk to embrace or a group of soccer players huddling around an opponent on the field to help her.  My question is, how many moments of "uncommon" are not captured on video and posted to social media every day? Those moments that happen between two people--unwitnessed--that are acts of sheer kindness, or acts where someone goes above and beyond to help someone else without recognition or 2K likes? Those are the "be uncommon" moments that I believe are more common than not. I have seen what I would define as "uncommon" moments throughout our district:
  • I was exiting an elementary school the other day, and a little guy said to me as I headed out the door, "Are you having a great day? I'm having a great day!" Be Uncommon.
  • We have three CRCSD educators--just in the past two weeks--who have been recognized on the state and/or even national levels as being significant contributors to their profession. Be Uncommon.
  • Our fall activities, fine arts, and athletic programs have produced phenomenal performances, achieved state competitive slots, and state awards and recognitions. Moreover, they have practiced day in and out since August (or longer) for their season. Be Uncommon. 
  • Our community provided tremendous input to guide the planning and construction of our new elementary building--learning spaces, safety, and environmentally inclusive visions! Be Uncommon.
  • Student-led conferences and families celebrating their children's progress throughout our entire district over the next two weeks. Be Uncommon.
  • The daily practices of volunteers greeting children, rocking Booster concessions, taking tickets, conducting fundraisers, sewing uniforms, reading in classrooms, cleaning instruments, chaperoning field trips, and showing up with the willingness to support our kids together. Be Uncommon.
  • Educators seeking every opportunity to get to know students, help them, guide them, and support them from morning until night. Be Uncommon.
  • Staff members putting in long hours to be ready for tomorrow, next week, and next month in just about every capacity of what it means to run the second-largest school district in Iowa. Be Uncommon.

I have the great privilege of witnessing "Be Uncommon" every day. I'm not sure if that means that it makes it "common," but I would rather think that CRCSD embodies the "uncommon" definition regularly. Maybe that just makes our school district "uncommon." I have to thank Aaron Stecker, the KHS students and staff, and Cougar Nation for the inspiration this week. I'm afraid their theme might go a little beyond the boundaries of Kennedy. 



Be Uncommon, CRCSD.

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