When Ron Cote became Whitefield School principal six years ago he had his marching orders, so to speak. The recurring question in pre-hiring interviews was how would he deal with bullying?
Cote, of Falmouth, concludes 38 years in public education this week, 24 as principal in five school systems, the rest in teaching. Reflecting on his time in Whitefield, he said the school under his administration has “done a lot in curbing” a problem “you’d find in every public school in Maine, I think.”
He said he looked for ways to reduce harassment and inject more discipline into the school day.
Compared to today’s student population of 190, there were about 205 pupils then. Cote swiftly set up expectations. Students would no longer roam the hallways when they “should be in class and learning during instructional time,” he said. Organizing the building was key to adjusting an atmosphere where bullying and other negative behavior could occur. He also made a point of being visible – out in the hallways, visiting classrooms, talking to teachers and students.
As the new administrator, Cote frowned on the way parents and other visitors could come in and “go wherever they wanted in the building.” With safety in mind, he set up a procedure that required signing in at the front office and wearing a visitor’s pass.
Training parent volunteers then followed, with an emphasis on respecting the rights and confidentiality of both students and adults. “I could see the need for there being some commonality around procedures of volunteers coming into the building,” said Cote, using the example of special needs students being discussed inappropriately outside the school setting.
Then, a Civil Rights Team, which began as a student club first at the middle school level and more recently the elementary, was formed. Two middle school teachers and one elementary teacher volunteer their time to work with the student members.
“We had to ask what kind of school do we want? How do we welcome new people? How do we make school a better place to be, to learn?” Cote said.
Diversity Day, launched in January 2010 and followed by more sessions this spring, offered paths to “building on our differences,” he said, whether those differences are because of disabilities, skin color, or religious beliefs.
Representatives from the State Attorney General’s Office Civil Rights Team have spoken to school assemblies about what constitutes cruel and unacceptable behavior. Similar assemblies held in the evening have attracted parents, because, Cote said, an important key is to involve adults from the community. In addition, Attorney General advisors have worked with staff and teachers.
“I’m proud of this, it’s one of our big initiatives,” Cote said, adding there is no resting on laurels for his successor. It is an issue that will demand ongoing attention.
Other achievements during his tenure were curriculum improvements. Before the “Everyday Mathematics” program was established, the school lacked a coordinated elementary level math program. Similarly with science, a particular interest of Cote’s because he previously taught that subject. He applied for a grant at the Maine Math and Science Alliance in Augusta and won acceptance for an integrated science and literacy program at the elementary level. Several teachers took the training and showed other teachers how to implement it in their classes.
Staff development for all teachers was a pressing need, and remains an ongoing one, Cote said. “I think we’ve been successful. Staff have to have ongoing development to get new skills, to be more effective with the kids.”
Grant money for enhanced science teaching brought Yarmouth Maine Teacher of the Year Gordon Corbett to Whitefield to conduct hands-on science instruction.
Another essential instruction area, health education, was sorely lacking. Cote said middle school students especially “need a solid health education program,” as well as nutrition instruction to promote healthy eating habits. With two willing teachers, plus a workshop led by Cote’s wife Linda, a North Yarmouth public school teacher who was named Maine Health Educator of the Year, a lesson design based on Maine Learning Results was developed.
What his successor will face is a trend Cote feels relieved he doesn’t have to deal with any more: high stakes testing and accountability, and the practice of labeling schools that don’t meet federal No Child Left Behind expectations as “failing schools.” Between the New England Common Assessment Program tests every October, more in May, and routine classroom exams, Cote said, “We test kids a lot during the year. We’re testing too much. I think principals are frustrated. Teachers, administrators, kids all feel the stress.”
Cote said he recognizes there is a need to test, “but when do we get instruction time back for the teachers? It’s a big concern.”
Education is in Cote’s blood. His mother taught fourth grade for much of her adult life; his father taught New England Telephone Company employees; his sister is a high school teacher; and his grandfather taught in a one-room schoolhouse in Bowdoinham. “There’s a lot of teaching in my family,” he said.
Cote majored in elementary education at University of Southern Maine and taught three years in South Portland. He enjoyed teaching, but then the superintendent encouraged him to become a teaching principal to better use his administrative skills as a strong leader and decision maker. Describing his strengths, Cote also said he had a “good vision of where education needs to head to improve it for kids.”
He considered resigning last June, after his mother died and left his 91-year-old father suddenly widowed. Instead, he finished up this year, and feels “now is the right time.” Spending time with family is a top priority, Cote said this week.
“I’ll miss the staff. We’ve learned together,” but it’s the children he will especially miss. “That’s why I went into the profession, to make a difference,” he said. “I think I’ve done that.”
