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No Challenge
Left Behind
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It is often said that children are our future. Not so. We are their future.
The work of education is to create a future for our children.
With that in mind, I dedicate this book to my three children—
Lisa, Suzanne, and Caroline—and to my “grands,”
Will and Lucy. May their future be filled with
hope and possibility.
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No Challenge
Left Behind
Transforming American Education
Through Heart and Soul
Paul D. Houston
Foreword by Terrence E. Deal
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Copyright © 2008 by Corwin Press
All rights reserved. When forms and sample documents are included, their use is autho-
rized only by educators, local school sites, and/or noncommercial or nonprofit entities that
have purchased the book. Except for that usage, no part of this book may be reproduced
or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy-
ing, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in
writing from the publisher.
For information:
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Printed in the United States of America.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Houston, Paul D.
No challenge left behind: transforming American education through heart and
soul/Paul D. Houston.
p. cm.
“A joint publication with the American Association of School Administrators (AASA).”
Includes index.
ISBN 978–1–4129–6861–4 (cloth)
ISBN 978–1–4129–6862–1 (pbk.)
1. School management and organization—United States. 2. Educational
leadership—United States. 3. Educational change—United States. I. American
Association of School Administrators. II. Title.
LB2805.H6958 2008
371.2′070973—dc22 2008011867
This book is printed on acid-free paper.
08 09 10 11 12 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Acquisitions Editor: Arnis Burvikovs
Editorial Assistant: Irina Dragut
Production Editor: Libby Larson
Typesetter: C&M Digitals (P) Ltd.
Proofreader: Gail Fay
Indexer: Rick Hurd
Cover Designer: Jeffrey Stith
Graphic Designer: Lisa Riley
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CONTENTS
Foreword ix
Terrence E. Deal
Acknowledgments xi
About the Author xiii
Introduction 1
SECTION I. THE BUILDING BLOCKS OF LEADERSHIP
1. So? . . . But Not So What! 6
2. Finding Our Voice 9
3. Breaking Away 12
4. Risking Our Significance 15
5. Daily Blessings 18
6. Living in a Jerry Springer World 21
7. The Samurai Superintendent 24
8. The Axis of Evil 27
9. On Becoming a Hope Pusher 30
10. A View From the Top 33
11. Life’s Lessons From My Dog Holly 36
SECTION II. NEW ROLE: SUPERINTENDENT OF EDUCATION
12. Getting It Right 42
13. Revenge of the Blob 45
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14. Nearly Famous 48
15. A Critical Position in Critical Condition 51
16. On the Penguin March Through Life 54
17. Who You Gonna Call? 57
18. Building Fields of Dreams 60
19. To Lead My Trek, I Pick Scotty 63
SECTION III. TRANSFORMING PUBLIC EDUCATION:
CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS
20. Lessons From Room 411 68
21. Burning Thoughts on a Snowy Day 71
22. The Seven Deadly Sins of No Child Left Behind 74
23. Authentic Accountability 84
24. Barking Up the Right Tree 87
25. Intelligent Redesign: Reframing the Discussion
on High School Reform 94
26. Einstein’s Brain 100
27. Advancing System Leadership 103
28. Making Great Time on a Lost Highway 107
29. Diverse Learners 110
30. Butchers or Tailors? 113
31. The Bigotry of Expectations 116
32. Running Schools Like Business 119
33. NCLB: Dreams and Nightmares 122
SECTION IV. LESSONS FROM THE ROAD
34. Bagpipes and a Spot of Grace 128
35. Finding the Right Words 131
36. Snow Blind 134
37. Is Possible? 137
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38. A Pint of Good Sense 140
39. The Road to Hana 143
40. Water and Ice 146
41. Seeing the Forest and the Trees 149
42. Ode to Joy 152
43. Negotiating the Past and the Future 155
44. The Fantasy and Flow of Vietnam 158
45. A Worthy Import From Singapore 161
46. Digging My Way to China 164
Index 167
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FOREWORD
aint Paul, “the best man the world possessed, his hair whitened
Swith the labours for the good of men and the glory of God,”
etched his mark on history through his Epistles. Paul Houston is not
a canonized saint, but as a spokesman for the soul and spirit of edu-
cation he comes close. Several years ago, we published a quote from
Paul in our book, The Wizard and The Warrior: “At night I relish the
opportunity to indulge myself by exploring the unlimited potential
of the human spirit. In the morning I don my suit of armor and head
off to battle the dark forces at work. I am struggling to integrate the
two roles.” He speaks for most school administrators in the country
who know, deep down, what’s right for students but are struggling
against a strong riptide pulling schools away from their noble pur-
pose or calling. As an exemplar of heart and courage Paul, each day,
exhibits the essence of leadership. In this book he shares his well-
seasoned wisdom with the profession he represents.
As a student of leadership, I seldom read the educational admin-
istration literature. Most of the writing paints the work of superin-
tendents, principals, and teachers a shade of pale gray when I see it
as hot pink. When asked to write this foreword, I received a sample
of Paul’s “epistles” and then requested the entire volume. I read each
one with great joy, effortlessly drawn into a mystical, magical world
of teaching, learning, and leading.
A sample of the down-to-earth titles of Paul’s stories gives
advance notice of what lies ahead: “On Becoming a Hope Pusher,”
“Barking Up the Right Tree,” “The Seven Deadly Sins of No Child
Left Behind,” “The Road to Hana.” The pages are peppered with
allegorical language: spirituality, hope, soul, grace, blessing, joy,
fun, and fantasy. His writing is inviting and lyrical and his premises
compelling. His upbeat message is a welcome antidote to prevailing
mechanistic images of schools as factories and students as test
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