Waiting for state assessment scores feels a lot like walking across a frozen lake. Which is a ridiculous metaphor because I live in Arizona, it's June, and it's 108 degrees outside. The signs are encouraging, but we still wait for the full picture. A reflection on leadership, culture, and anticipation in turnaround work. #TurnaroundUnscripted

There is a moment every spring when the building feels different. You can hear it in the quieter laughter, see it in the way teachers hold eye contact just a second longer, feel it in the unspoken question sitting in every room. State testing is coming, and in a turnaround school, that does not feel like a date on a calendar. It feels like a verdict.