Spirit Work and the Science of Collaboration

An examination of education leaders building faith, hope, trust and love in school communities

As the principal led her superintendent into the classroom and greeted the 4th-grade teacher and students for an informal observation, the administrators noticed one student with her head folded in her arms on her desk.

The principal asked if she and the superintendent, Susan Enfield, could talk to the little girl. In the context of a friendly conversation, Enfield asked the girl what her favorite things were. “Teriyaki chicken,” she replied.

Enfield attempted to stay in touch with the student, bringing teriyaki chicken from home to share with the girl over lunch one day. When the superintendent asked the principal about the student weeks later, she learned the school had lost touch with her and her family. After much effort, the administrators located the family living in a motel outside the district. Enfield and the principal visited them there, bringing food, supplies — and enough chicken teriyaki for the whole family.