Dr. Cook's Blog

Dr. Gentile and Dr. Moore, (My Superintendent and Assistant Superintendent)

Source: thefoxisblack.com

Last week I am sure you saw my email to the staff titled, “Teachable Moment.” In the email, I encouraged the teachers to show the historic sky jump of Felix Baumgartner. Unfortunately, the jump was unable to happen that day.

Today, as I was eating lunch in Dallas, TX I watched Felix make the historic jump. I was amazed at the whole production: five years of training, corporate sponsors, innovation, data, and family support. This jump really struck  a chord with me. I want to be your Felix!

If you are looking for something to challenge the status quo, to be innovative, or even different, I am your guy! I know that I learned a lot from the jump and I can’t wait to see the documentary on this epic journey. There are so many parallels to what we are trying in our school district. I my humble opinion, he was able to make this jump for the following reasons:

- Ultimately he was researching product advancement such as space suits, technology, etc.

- Someone had to do it, so he worked with a team of individuals who helped him accomplish the task.

- The information collected will help the space industry.

- His team believed in him, and supported his “calculated” epic jump.

- No one told him “no” or it cost too much or it was “impossible.”

- There were many process checks along the way to ensure safety.

So, next time there is something you want to try, or something I want to try, let’s work together and break a record, or two. I will be the one that jumps! I will be your Felix!