I recently met with a group of teachers who represent their colleagues on the Deal faculty. We meet to share concerns and hopes for the school and to work through any challenges that have arisen over the course of the month. Sometimes we have quick agreement, other times we take longer, but each time I am reminded of the dedication of the staff that have gathered here at 3815 Fort Drive. They are a wonderful group of professionals. And, frankly, they don't get their due in this town. While there are great teachers in almost every nook and cranny of DC, the ones in my building have a special challenge.

Reading the paper, listening to the radio, or browsing the Internet one gets the sense that Alice Deal Middle School has come to represent both strong academic success and privilege - and that one (success) is due to the other (privilege). There is agreement that class and family circumstances play a significant role in every child's success - but they are not the only factors. Many students come to Deal ready to learn, and many come to Deal and see that learning is what is going on and then get with the program. The teachers in our building are the conveyors of that academic culture and the singular reason why our student population has grown and maintained its success.

Statements to the effect that Deal is where it is because of its student profile do a disservice to the efforts of teachers. There are plenty of examples of schools with a student profile that matches Deal's - and many that exceed it - in which the combination of rigorous classes and motivated students is not matched. Teaching at Deal is not an easy proposition - I ask a lot of the staff and their students ask a lot of them. Teachers here plan intensively and collaboratively - and often into the evening. They are pioneering a curriculum focused exclusively on mastery while meeting the changing expectations in this era of the Common Core. They have organized their own professional development opportunities around texts; they visit each other, observe, and discuss their work; and they push each of their own subjects. World languages are taught in the subject language, science teachers work on exciting labs and community partnerships, Individuals and Societies teachers dig into the meaning of Chinese legalism or human rights; mathematics teachers challenge our understanding of math placement with the broadest, most advanced program available, physical education teachers drive their students to design programs of motion; music and arts teachers generate great artistic output, and English teachers explore classics and contemporary literature with a heightened focus on literacy. Deal does not have a casual program of studies - it has a forward-thinking, challenging approach that, frankly, is tough to do and tougher to do well. Teachers have made that program one that is for all students. A great academic program should be an expectation of a good school, and so we expect it of ourselves.

In addition, Deal teachers are expected to create a loving and caring environment in a team setting, to lead clubs and activities, to come up with creative field trips and to infuse joy into their rooms and children's lives. Every child has individual needs and deserves to have a community of adults who are working to support him or her. It is my expectation - and the staff knows this well - that our job is to take care of the students in our charge as best we can. This staff works hard to live up to that expectation, and we succeed more often than we fail.

It is these qualities of the teaching and support staff at Deal that I think get overlooked when others discuss the school. It is important to keep these in mind as we continue to work to improve - that our goal at Deal is to make a significant academic and social difference in the lives of everyone, child and adult, that comes into our building. When I look across the table each month at my staff's representatives, I keep in mind the people that are making that happen every day at Deal.