One of the cardinal tenets of the school I lead—Odyssey Leadership Academy—is celebrating all that is Good in our community

We routinely practice celebrating each other within our rhythms as part of the common-unity that creates the community we hold dear

Every Monday, we start the school week shouting out any birthdays that happened that week and we close every Friday by celebrating the Good we “caught” each other doing that week

Part of that culture of celebration comes in the form of a weekly award I, as the Head of School, give out: The “Scott’s Tot” award, named in part because my first name is Scott but really because we wanted to create a spin on the classic “Office” episode where the boss, Michael Scott, is supposed to honor his own group of “Scott’s Tot” students with free college tuition (if you haven’t seen the episode, it is one of the funniest, most cringe-inducing episodes of TV you will ever see!)

Our “Scott’s Tot Award” is described as follows:

The Scott's Tot Award at Odyssey Leadership Academy is a weekly recognition given to a student who exemplifies exceptional qualities both inside and outside the classroom. Named to celebrate those who rise to the occasion and make a positive impact on their community, the award highlights a student who consistently demonstrates aspects that we strive for here at OLA: dedication to peers/community/classes/self, leadership, care, a strong work ethic, etc. This student not only shows up academically but also works to show kindness, integrity, and a willingness to support their peers. The Scott's Tot Award celebrates those who embody the spirit of excellence and contribute to the vibrant, supportive environment at OLA.

The award is given with a bag of donut holes, so there’s nothing fancy about it at all but here’s the thing:

The students LOVE IT!!!

There’s just something about being recognized, being seen, and being told you are valued and valuable that goes a long ways

Typically, this award goes to a student I’ve observed over the week that really stands out for doing something above and beyond

For being kind, considerate, and welcoming

For serving the community with humility and selflessness

For being “caught” doing something praiseworthy

So typically, the award is calling out that which we recognize as faithful to what we consider to be our best virtues in a given student

Calling students out for doing something good is, unfortunately, too rare and the research suggests that far too many students walk our halls who feel that no one at all sees or cares about them

When we call students out, we get to shine a light on some part of them that all too often goes unnoticed

In doing so, we hold up a mirror to them and say, “I see you and I value you”

It reinforces the Good we want to see in them and in our school community

It fosters a community that looks for the Good and the Praiseworthy in each other and celebrates it when it happens

Calling a student out publicly for the positive acts, attitudes, and behaviors certainly goes a long ways towards fostering a healthier educational ecosystem…but there is another step beyond even that

Calling a student UP

To call a student out is to name what is already happening in the present or has happened in the past that is celebratory and praiseworthy

But to call them up is something deeper

It’s a practice of vision. It is naming what may yet be

It’s seeing who they are becoming and sowing seeds of value in them perhaps before they even see it in themselves

Let me give an example:

Most of the Scott’s Tots are students we call out for Good we have already seen

However, this past week, I chose a Scott’s Tot that I believed had oceans of value and good to offer our community, even though this student had not yet fully stepped into that posture

In fact, this is a student who had displayed some disrespect to faculty earlier in the year. A student who got behind on some discipline issues. A student that needed a bit of encouraging and encouragement

In the fall semester, this student had to come see me for some classroom concerns and we worked out a path of restitution and resolution that, to his great credit, he leaned into and walked out

When it came time to choose this week’s Scott’s Tot, this student came immediately to mind. Not for what he had done in a specific sense, but in the Good I knew was just under the soil

When it came time to announce the Scott’s Tot, I began as I usually do: anonymously praising the virtues I see in this student, shouting out the value he brings to our community, identifying the Good in him as a person and a student

Then, as I always do, I dragged out the moment where I named the student…waiting until all eyes were on me and all ears at the ready

I turned slowly toward this student and said his name…to which he responded with the most sincere shock I’ve ever seen, saying with wide eyed disbelief, “REALLY???”.

Now here’s the best part!

Later in the week, I saw some area of carpet that needed a quick cleaning. I grabbed the vacuum and started cleaning up the crumbs, when, out of the corner of my eye, I see a student moving chairs out from around the tables so I could get to the messy area more easily

Yep. You guessed it. It was this week’s Scott’s Tot who had left his lunch table and came over to help make my job easier!!!

THAT is the power of calling someone UP!!!

Calling Out with Hope-full Optimism

Calling students out is a wonderful practice that I highly recommend

Every school leader should take time to celebrate students who are doing the right thing in the right way

The administrator should send emails home to parents to brag on students and create public moments of celebration honoring the ways they are “catching” students doing Good

However, there is power not just in calling out but in calling up

In doing so, in calling students up, in leading from a place of vision, of hope, of optimism, we’re holding a mirror to their own highest sense of self to say, "I see more in you than you may yet see in yourself”

Calling out and calling up is an act of disrupting the often negative story they’ve started to believe about themselves

It is rewiring their brains and hearts to hear something positive, something hopeful, something beautiful about themselves they may never hear from anyone else

It is calling forth the deep truth they want to believe about themselves: that they matter, that they are seen, and that they are worthy of being believed in

Calling students up is the invitation to live into the truth of who they are

It’s about naming identity over behavior. Purpose over performance. Potential over problems

This kind of leadership is grounded in hope and possibility

Why This Matters

Our students live in a culture that is often quick to blame and slow to believe

They all too often have a tape running in their head that convinces them they do not matter, an inner dialogue that is highly critical and tragically negative

When we practice calling our students out and calling them up, we resist the pull of cynicism and lean into formation

We become the kinds of leaders who don’t just manage schools but mentor character

Because education is not about information but the in-formation of hope, belief, care, and value in each and every student

Genuine leadership in schools is not ultimately about control—it’s about cultivation

And cultivation requires naming the seeds of the Good and helping them grow

This Week’s Invitation

Try these two practices of hope-full leadership

**Create a culture of celebration by fostering weekly shoutouts that call students out and up. Come up with a catchy, maybe even corny, title that makes it something the students look forward to each week. Then “catch” students doing Good and shout it out! We even have the other students shout each other out so the entire community practices weaving membership in a community of celebration

**Think of a student who has potential and may need to hear from you, as the leader/administrator, that you see the Good under the soil. Especially if it is a student that has only crossed your path in a disciplinary matter. The next time a student frustrates you, pause. Take a breath. Then ask: "What truth about this student do they need to hear from me right now?" Call them out, yes—but more importantly, call them up. You just might be the first person who ever has. And, in doing so, you may be the one who helps turn the acorn of their life into a robust oak tree

With you in the work,

Dr. Scott Martin

A Few Things Worth Sharing

If you are looking to find deeper purpose and meaning in your role as a school leader, I am opening up the next administrative leadership cohort for the 2025/26 school year

I work with school leaders to help them find greater fulfillment, meaning, purpose, and connection in their work as educational administrators.

If you would like more information on joining us, visit https://www.drscottamartin.com/ to learn more or reach out directly to schedule a free call to chat

TESTIMONIAL: “You are a real force, Scott. All of us are grateful and benefit from your vision and what you are able to continue to create for children middle school through high school! And really beyond!” Jenny Dunning, Head of School Keystone Adventure School

AND…I Wrote A Book On The Journey I Took To Start A School!!!

It is called “The Edupreneur’s Field Guide” and it gives you the blueprint to do something really purposeful in education!