March 29, 2024

Leadership lesson: BMS teacher focused on helping students excel

It wasn’t long after he started coaching Darin Tisdale realized what leadership was all about.

Tisdale, who teaches business education at Berg Middle School, in addition to coaching the school’s football team, found out quickly being a leader meant more than just having a title. After picking up a copy of John Maxwell’s “The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership,” Tisdale was hooked. Even before he’d finished the book he knew it was something he wanted to pass along to his students.

“The goal is to create an idea in them that leadership doesn’t just happen, things lead up to it,” Tisdale said. “I noticed through my coaching that with kids today there’s not a lot of leadership skills.”

A new program at the middle school this year has allowed teachers to offer a “seminar” program, an opportunity for teachers to host a short, week long class. Students who are eligible can sign up for the classes, which run four days a week. It didn’t take Tisdale long to seize the opportunity to start offering the leadership seminar. Beginning last fall, he’s been running the leadership seminar every three to four weeks at the middle school, a move he hopes will help improve the school’s culture.

“I think it’s great for me, because teaching technology, that’s great, but there’s this moment each day where I get to branch out and explore this concept,” Tisdale said. “We have a lot of freedom to do what we want, what we’re passionate about.”

Tisdale said he’s seen a decline in leadership among students over the years, something he blames on generational changes. As a kid, Tisdale and his friends would get together to play baseball, forming their own teams and calling the games themselves. Working together as a team without any adults gave Tisdale and his friends a chance to “try on” leadership roles, something he doesn’t see happening with his students today.

“Kids need to step up and have their voices heard,” Tisdale said. “We had a phone chain to call one another, there was no adult to lead us.”

Instead of throwing Maxwell’s book at students and asking them to read it in a week, Tisdale has searched through the book to find examples that are easy for his students to relate too. Using Ray Kroc, who joined McDonald’s early on and helped the fast food giant achieve its unparalleled success as an example. It takes more than a great idea to move a business forward, Tisdale said.

“If you keep pursuing this, you can make them understand how you become a leader,” Tisdale said. “It’s like getting in their head.”

Tisdale’s message has been resonating with students, BMS eighth-grader Braydon Chance said he’s attended several of the leadership seminars, and he’s already found ways to put his newfound knowledge into practice. As Chance gets ready for the start of baseball season, he’s been working to communicate better with his teammates, working hard at practice and paying attention. Chance is hoping to earn a spot on the high school team this spring. To reach the goal, he knows he’ll need to make sure the coaches can count on him.

“Being a leader in the classroom is about making sure you’re leading by example,” Chance said. “I want to be an all around good person, not just a good athlete.”

Helping students find themselves in a leadership role and giving them the skills they need to take charge helps boosts the work that coaches do as well, Tisdale said. During football season there’s usually only three coaches to keep an eye on 45 players, which means Tisdale needs his players to help their teammates and to hold them accountable. While he doesn’t want his athletes to yell at their peers, Tisdale said he think it’s easier for many of them hear advice or reminder from Chance or another peer.

“It’s great to have a kid like Braydon [Chance] take on a leadership role and help another kid,” Tisdale said.

Contact David Dolmage at 641-792-3121 ext. 6532 or ddolmage@newtondailynews.com