In a 1675 letter, Isaac Newton said , “If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.” He recognized that while he is remembered as one of the greatest thinkers, not just of his time, but in history, he only built on the thinking and discoveries of those who came before him.
None of us are starting from scratch.
I certainly didn’t.
We lost a giant this week, a woman who fundamentally changed the way our school district supports teaching and learning. When I was transitioning into my current position in the district, it was sitting in her seat, taking on her role, that was the most daunting piece for me.
Penny was in this role during the 80s and 90s and early 2000s when we were growing by leaps and bounds. We had multiple classrooms in gyms as new buildings were getting finished, and we had a curriculum management audit that revealed the dangers of losing control of the guaranteed and viable curriculum (before that was even a term we used) as we grew.
She led the writing of policies and the development of procedures that ensured what a student experienced in one school mirrored what they experiences in another.
We lean on those same policies and procedures today.
I can’t even begin to imagine what that work entailed. The knowledge and skill and vision required overwhelms me. Of course Penny was not alone in that journey, but she was a guiding force in the work. So many others led the way and served as leaders to grow our district into what it is today. We owe them a great debt.
As I transitioned and started this work, Penny and I had lunch many times. She would tell me about what it was like then. She would encourage me. She would talk to me about the coaching she was doing now, and she would most definitely coach me.
We lost a giant this week, and I am filled with gratitude for the legacy she leaves behind.
Be That Person 
She was a giant, an outstanding mentor, and a warrior.