Freedom Focused

Wednesday, January 21, 2026

I Am Sovereign

Chapter 9

I Am Sovereign

Pedagogy of Personal Leadership &

Character Development

EXAMPLE #5

Deeply inspired by the character education efforts of Lynnda Crowder-Eagle, Kehl Arnson, and Thresa Brooks, I decided to develop and implement my own Pedagogy of Personal Leadership and Character Development (PPLCD) when I became a classroom teacher myself at a large, public high school in Houston, Texas during the 2009-2010 school year.

In designing my own PPLCD, I drew heavily upon my own personal leadership mantra and motif of "Self-Sovereignty," which I had championed in the First Edition of the SAL Textbook. This work, written primarily for a high school audience back in 2005-06, was titled: I Am Sovereign: The Power of Personal Leadership. (1) It emphasized the importance of taking complete personal responsibility for everything in one's life and was the source from whence all future editions of the SAL Life Leadership textbook eventually sprang.

First Edition of the SAL Textbook
Self-Published 2006
Booksurge Publishing LLC

The idea of Self-Sovereignty is that each individual human being is the sovereign ruler of his or her own world. This makes each of us the Captain of our own ship, the President of our own country, the CEO of our own company, the General of our own army, et cetera. Self-sovereignty focuses and capitalizes on the opportunity students have to consciously and strategically design their own lives over time.

A few years before I landed my full-time high school English teaching position, Joe Asbury—a high school teacher at Heritage Hills High School in Lincoln City, Indiana—used the First Edition of the SAL Textbook in his health classes during the 2006-07 school year. I had been invited by then-Principal Dan Scherry to teach six (6) of my I Am Sovereign personal leadership seminars to students in Asbury's health classes at Heritage Hills High in August 2006.

Following my in-person delivery of these introductory seminars to his students, Asbury then used the I Am Sovereign book as a text for the 3-week unit on mental health in each of his health classes. Scherry purchased enough books for all of Asbury's 9th and 10th grade students. These students read and completed assignments from the book on a daily basis throughout the 3-week long mental health unit.

In his own words, Asbury described the process and perceived efficacy of the experiment as follows:

"Each student received a copy of the book and we read aloud the entire book. I would add personal stories and comments throughout. We completed the written sections as well. I used those sections as a way to take grades.
"The students enjoyed reading the book, after which they drafted their self-constitutions in our computer lab. Overall. I think they enjoyed the work very much and I was impressed by some of the great projects [personal constitutions] they produced.
"I would recommend the I Am Sovereign book to anyone who is interested in advancing personal leadership in themselves or today's youth. My ninth and tenth grade students read and worked through Jordan's book and found it to be very rewarding. This book gave me a way to teach personal leadership where I did not have an effective resource before."

Encouraged by Asbury's positive feedback and glowing endorsement of the SAL Textbook (First Edition), and amply passionate about the I Am Sovereign personal leadership philosophy in that work, I was eager to creatively incorporate some of the same material into my own classroom environment as a 9th grade English Teacher.

Fortunately, for me, the two (2) traditional academic subjects that are perhaps best suited to incorporate SAL Training and instruction are English and history. This is because history and literature are full of examples of human beings—both fictional and non-fictional—who exhibit both positive and negative character traits and behavior. Thus, as a history-loving English teacher, I readily perceived a cornucopia of opportunities to weave SAL principles and practices into my lesson plans on a regular basis within a framework of the literature we were already covering—and in conjunction with the concomitant classroom discussions. It was also easy to incorporate SAL material into classroom writing assignments, including journaling.

Then, following in the footsteps of Thresa Brooks, I composed an original poem full of SAL affirmations and mantras I could use in my classroom.

I entitled this poem: I Am Sovereign.

I Am Sovereign (Classroom version)

As the Captain of my life, I understand that I am responsible for
my thoughts, my words, my decisions, my grade, and ultimately, my future.

Knowing this gives me power—personal power—to make good choices, do the right thing, (2) and be successful at Cy-Ridge High School and beyond.

No one can take this power away from me, though if I choose

I can give it away to someone or something else.

This I will never do. For there is but one me in all history,

And my one shot at life I will not waste.

Just for today, (3) I will respect myself by respecting my school, my teachers, my classmates, and by doing my best to master what I am supposed to learn.

I know that I cannot control anyone or anything but myself. Yet with that control I create my world, design my destiny, and conquer the enemy within. Today I choose to be successful in school and in life, because...

I Am Sovereign!

Picture of JJ's I Am Sovereign poem as it was displayed
in his high school English classroom.
Cypress-Ridge High School
Houston, Texas
2010

I introduced this poem to students in January 2010—at the beginning of the second semester—and printed it on a large poster board in the back of the classroom. I further attached a sign that read "You are Sovereign" above the classroom doorway for students to see each day when they left class.

Sign posted above the doorway of my classroom in 2010.

While I lacked the experience, confidence, and personality-stylistic preferences to use Brooks' more formal and advanced methodology with my own poem, I still introduced and taught it to my students and then referenced it on a regular basis from that time forward to the end of the school year. For example, I would read the poem out loud to the students a couple of times a month and then assign students to write in their journals about the poem's subject matter—and other related topics, such as goal setting. I also repeated the mantra—I Am Sovereign—whenever a SAL principle became relevant to whatever lesson plan or literary piece I was covering on any given school day. This was easy to do because literature is littered with a potpourri of characters who either exhibit—or fail to exhibit—SAL principles (or both).

As part of our curriculum, my ninth grade English teaching team designed a journaling assignment that required students to complete five (5) handwritten pages every other week. To help them accomplish this task, we gave students daily opportunities to write in their journals and prompts to get them started.

For my classroom journal prompts, I would often write a SAL-oriented quote on the board or share a SAL-oriented poem on the overhead projector. I would then ask my students to reflect on what the quote or poem meant to them and jot their thoughts down in their journal.

Some examples of these prompts include the following:

What is something you do well?
What are you thankful for? Make a list and explain why.
When you have had a problem, who do you talk to? Or, who could you talk to, and why?
Do YOU think it is important to be honest? Why or why not?
Think of the best teacher you have ever had. Why was he or she a good teacher?
Do you think there is too much fighting on television? Why or why not?
Do you think it is necessary to have alcohol at a party in order to have a good time? Why or why not?
What is the best advice you have ever received?
What do you think makes a happy family?
What do you do for exercise?
What do you like most about yourself? Why?
What do you think courage means?

Answering these prompts in their journals provided students with positive and productive opportunities to reflect on SAL-oriented principles and practices. Just as importantly, the prompts invited students to think critically about the whys as well as the whats to each question-prompt.

Awards System

Another technique I employed in my classroom involved recognizing students for excellent or improved academic performances and attendance. By honoring high achievers and those who made improvements from previous grading periods, I was able to find ways to praise and encourage all of my students—not just the top academic performers.

JJ's "Wall of Fame" sign that hung above his classroom award lists.

As part of my "Wall of Fame," I included lists of student achievers such as the "Gold," "Silver," and "Bronze" medalists for top performers, and "Top 10" or "Top 15" lists for attendance, academic performance, punctuality, and improvement. I also had a list for the "A-Team," which referred to those receiving A-grades during any given six-week grading period.

I would then spend a portion of the first day of each new grading period announcing the new lists and giving out candy and other prizes to award recipients. Because of the diversity of the awards given, every student—even those with academic struggles, behavioral issues, or special education modifications—was capable of earning an award. As a result, the vast majority of my students ended up making at least one (or more) of my award lists during one (or more) grading periods. In other words, anyone who was willing to make an authentic effort earned an award and some form of accompanying recognition for that effort.

Impact of the I Am Sovereign Mantra

Toward the end of the school year, I started to see the I Am Sovereign phrase or principle show up in the work of several of my students—completely unprompted by me. This was encouraging and provided tangible evidence that the SAL concept of self-sovereignty was sinking in for some—and perhaps many—of my students. (3)

Impact of the Awards Strategy

Aside from the benefits to the students, which I'll discuss shortly, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the awards strategy myself. Observing my students receive tangible recognition for their performances and/or improvements—and noticing their obvious excitement and satisfaction for being recognized—also brought me great joy, satisfaction, and fulfillment as a teacher.

Reflecting back on my own experiences in middle and high school, I remembered well how satisfying it was to be publicly recognized by teachers, administrators, coaches, or the local press. But, I had not anticipated that giving awards to others could equal—or even transcend—the joy of receiving them myself.

Suffice it to say, the entire process was fun for everyone who participated. Honestly, it ended up being the highlight of the school year for me—and I believe that many of my students felt similarly. More importantly, it helped improve students' academic performances, attendance, and self-esteem.

While some students would laugh at, act embarrassed by, or be genuinely surprised to make one of my achievement lists, I never sensed that anyone failed to appreciate and enjoy receiving the recognition. Indeed, there seemed to be near-universal student assent for the program. In addition, there was evidence that this recognition went a long way toward boosting the self-confidence and sense of worth of every student who was honored—and in one way or another, most students were honored at least once during the semester. This evidence came in part from improved grades by both individuals and class groups.

For some students, this sense of accomplishment and pride was short lived and their names would not reappear on subsequent award lists. For others, a combination of personal satisfaction and public recognition motivated them to consistently work hard to maintain and/or improve upon their success and continue to make one or more of the lists throughout the remainder of the school year.

During one particular grading period, I noticed a friendly rivalry spark up between two friends—both of whom wanted to win the gold medal for overall grade percentage that grading period. As this competition heated up, I observed back-and-forth comments in their respective journals. Only one of the students went on to win this particular award (of course), but the other student's efforts were not in vain. While she did not win one of the top three medals, she did make the "A-Team" that grading period, which was an improvement from some of her past grading periods. The other student—Jessie Nazario, my young Native American student and friend—won the gold and eventually went on to win the first-place plaque, which was awarded to the overall grade percentage champion for the entire semester.

While students routinely complained when given an instruction or assignment in class, I don't remember any such complaints, nor was there nearly as much cynical "teeth sucking" (4) on award's day. Based on all the feedback I received from students, it was clear that the system was mostly liked and appreciated.

More Action Research

As the school year began drawing to a close, I conducted a survey to better understand the extent to which my efforts at teaching SAL and rewarding positive behavior were, or were not working.

It is important to note here that of the five (5) English classes I taught during the 2009-10 school year, one (1) of them was an advanced class, referred to as a "K-level" class. K-level classes were considered "Above level," similar to a pre-advanced placement (pre-AP) class.

The other four (4) classes were referred to as "L-level" classes, which were considered to be "On-level," or average classes.

For a variety of reasons, there was a significant intellectual and behavioral divide between my K-level and L-level students—speaking collectively and not individually (e.g. Jesse Nazario, my overall top-scoring student, was actually an L-level student). When collecting the research data, I therefore separated the L-level questionnaires from the K-level questionnaires.

K-level Student Questionnaire ANSWERS

Note: Seventeen (17) K-level students were anonymously surveyed from my one (1) K-level class. The following answers were submitted by these 17 students. Student answers are produced verbatim as they were written down, including errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation. This was done to preserve the authenticity of student responses. Rare exceptions to this practice exist where clarity necessitated a minor revision. The students were at liberty to answer (or not answer) each question. For undisclosed reasons, many students chose not to answer one or more of the questions on the survey. This is why different questions have a different number of responses, even though 17 total students responded to the survey in some way, shape, or form.

QUESTION 1: What did you like best about Mr. Jensen and/or his classroom teaching style?

It was a fun and memerable class. Always outgoing. you always gave us tips and encouragement.
I liked that you tried to incorporate life lessons into your teaching.
I like ... that we are rewarded for our hard effort.

QUESTION 2: What will you remember most about Mr. Jensen and/or his classroom teaching style?

All the great things he's done for me. All of the kind words and motivational acts. He really helped me out this year! It's so nice to have a teacher, or SOMEONE to talk to when you have a problem and he helped me.
I will remember his motivation and leadership skills speeches, helped me out alot.
The neat/unique writing assignments.
That you taught like a newbie

QUESTION 3: What is the most important thing you learned this year from Mr. Jensen?

Never give up, make the right choices, being sovereign.
Do your best, but only 'your' best
To keep going and pushing for your goal.
living life making good choices
Motivation and everything else he teaches
To have a good attitude and to not give up!!!
I'm in charge of my life
That I Am Sovereign

QUESTION 4: What does I Am Sovereign mean to you?

Having good confidence and self-esteem in yourself.
You are in charge of your life and your own decisions.
I am in control.
Being respectful to others, make better choices
Try your very best in school and out of school on trying your best in everything you do.
That you are in charge of yourself.
It means that I am in control of my destiny.
Motivate yourself
That I have the potential and standard to be able to lead my life to a happy ending and live it to the fullest.
I make my own decisions. I run my own life.
Not much : /

QUESTION 5: What are your opinion and thoughts on the whole I Am Sovereign poem/motto?

I thinks it is very motivational experience, gives us support and life needed skills to help us become successful, very good idea.
I think it's fine, but it can be shortened to a simpler motto.
It was influencing, but it was just another thing taught at school and most students wouldn't care much about it.
It's a really good poem, can help ppl in the future.
It's pretty lame, but I guess Mr. Jensen thinks it's useful. I don't memorize it by heart, but I remember some of the words to it.
It's okay.
I think that it's a nice try but it didn't give a huge impact on me.
To be frank, I didn't really pay much attention to it. I'm sorry! : (
It's a good poem
That it fills our mind with affirmations of how we can accomplish anything we can do, but it could be reused in a way where everyone can agree with it.
It is a ... nice poem, indeed. I am just sick of hearing about it. It seems to be incorporated in nearly every activity, whether he is reading it, or reffering to it.
It is inspiring.

QUESTION 5: Has the phrase "I Am Sovereign" ever entered your mind to motivate you to work hard or make good choices when you were not in Mr. Jensen's class? (at home, after school, in another class, on the weekends, etc.)

YES: 6 Votes NO: 8 votes If YES, how many times? 47 Times (total from all student responses)

QUESTION 6: Please explain when and how remembering the I Am Sovereign phrase helped you.

Gave me confidence and made me feel successful in my life right now.
It motivated me to do better things in everything I do.
It motivated me to do better.
It has helped me through my pain of how I cannot finish strongly, to [become] one of the most influential people in my team or in my group.

QUESTION 7: Have you ever told anyone else what I Am Sovereign means? If so, how many times (and why)?

YES: 1 Vote NO: 16 Votes

L-level Student Questionnaire ANSWERS

Note: Forty-five (45) L-level students were anonymously surveyed from among my four (4) L-level classes. The following answers were submitted by these 45 students. Student answers are produced verbatim as they were written down, including errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation. This was done to preserve the authenticity of student responses. Rare exceptions to this practice exist where clarity necessitated a minor revision. The students were at liberty to answer (or not answer) each question. For undisclosed reasons, many students chose not to answer one or more of the questions on the survey. This is why different questions have a different number of responses, even though 45 total students responded to the survey in some way, shape, or form.

QUESTION 1: What did you like best about Mr. Jensen and/or his classroom teaching style?

Keeped room clean
I learned alot of life lessons from him.
The best thing is that you try to motivate us all the time.
I liked the way you were able to relate old style language or any piece of literature to our lives as teenagers
You give life lessons

QUESTION 2: What will you remember most about Mr. Jensen and/or his classroom teaching style?

You never gave up on me when I did.
His silly dances, and "sayings"
"I am soveriegn"
His motivation, when we will get awarded for having good/bad grades. (Made me want to try harder)
"I AM SOVEREGN"
The advice he has given me
The awards

QUESTION 3: What is the most important thing you learned this year from Mr. Jensen?

I learned to be sovereign.
How to be a better writer and to succeed in life and school and everything else.
Suicide and all the advice he gave us (pregnancy, suicide, etc.)
To be sovereign.
I Am Sovereign.
That I am Soveran.
I am sovereign.
To push it to the limit
To always try to reach a goal
Being soverign. It has helped me to never give up.
I can do whatever I want as long as I try hard,
To never give up on my education. To just keep trying.
When he told us not to give up, and never quit.
That no matter the circumstances you should never give up.
To be more serious about my life and future.
That I AM soveregin. (smiley face)
I am sovereign.
To be Sovereiegn.
To be Sovereign.
Sovereighnty
Be Sovereigne
Taking control of one's life
Be yourself.
Sovereign
Never give up on yourself even if you think things are hopeless.

QUESTION 4: What does I Am Sovereign mean to you?

Motivation
You are in control.
That I am in control of me and my decisions have the conclusions i chose.
IDK What does that mean?
You are in control of your life and not anything or anyone else.
Self goverend
Staying confident and being a gentilmen
I control the outcome of my life.
To me it means that I control my life, and no one can control me.
Willing to have faith and hope to never give up your dreams. Stay and remain strong; do what it takes to achieve your dreams things in life aren't free: work hard.
Being my own boss
To respect your self and do good things.
I'm the ruler of my world.
Never give up. Keep trying.
That I can finish no matter whats in front of me.
That I shouldn't give up on my dreams.
No matter what you never should give up.
To be succeful.
I can do anything if I put in the effort.
I am in control of what I do.
It means to me that you should never give up and keep going on.
That i can do whatever is coming at me. i can finish whatever i start! I can do anything
Basically... Im the pilot of my life.
To never give up no matter what comes
That I'm good.
Never give up.
I could do better thing than me, the one i have to defeat is myself.
To never give up.
To push your self.
That I can try.
You are you no matter what everything is possible if u just believe.
To be loyal.
To not give up.
It means alot to me. Hopefully someday there would be more sovereign pople out there.
I am smart inteligent and won't do stupid stuff in the real world.
Means I control what I'll do.
To respect every body and don't let my anger catch me and to succeed in school everyday and in life.
I control my destiny.

QUESTION 5: What are your opinion and thoughts on the whole I Am Sovereign poem/motto?

Its a good question for motivation.
Its something that can be very motivational.
It is a really motivating poem.
Took to long to do.
That you have ruff times at first but you get better at what you do.
It is great and everyone should know it.
I think it is very insiring.
I think it can give people hope and strenth when they seem they don't have control of their life. It's a motivational push in their life to get them started.
To respect your self and do good things.
Its a good a encouring poem that motivates me.
I feel it is a very good and motivative poem and I plan on getting a copy of it and put it on my wall.
I think it's a beautiful poem.
It was good but kind of repetitive
When I hear that I get more motivated.
Its a good motivator. Makes me want to never give up on anything in life.
It gives me the strength and power to keep fighting to the end.
It give me more motivation.
I think it can help me in life
I will live by it.
Good or self confidence
Its okay, never heard of it but that's fine with me.
It should be a shorter poem. It could get annoying at times.
I liked it
I think the poem/motto was well writn and had best strong vocabulary. People can bettr themselfs out following the motto.
They should show this to every 9th grader so they can get their mind straight for school and life.
I agree with it.
Yes because I know that I can do it and that I am sovereign.
I like it. Makes you feel powerful.

YES: 31 Votes NO: 7 votes N/A: 3 Votes If YES, how many times? 142 Times (total from all student responses)

QUESTION 6: Please explain when and how remembering the I Am Sovereign phrase helped you.

I don't need to rely on others who do stuff for me.
Becuse I am being soverign and it help me by becoming a better person and not letting alot of thing get to me and succed in shool and life
I was playing Modern Warfare 2 ith some people, and they didn't want me to use my assault rifles. Just sniping and quick scope. So I took my game elsewhere.
At home when I give advice to my cousin and family.
To study hard for my test in all class.
I was doing an assignment and some how (sovereign) popped up in my mind. I thought I was the smartest girl in the world.
It helped me when I was playing football with my friends.
It showed me that I can do it and never give up.
When ever I'm playing a sport or iam lazy or something i have to finish
In basketball, Im not the best but I should never give up.
Working out and Algebra
When: whenever I feel like giving up on something big (basketball, home, other classes). How: keeps me going!
It helps me to not give up, and never give up.
I haven't read
When I wanted to drop out because I thought school was hard and I thought about I am Sovereign phrase and I want to continue school.
When I was taking the Math TAKS test, because there was a point where I wanted to give up.
With all my projects I had to do at the end of the year.
When I struggle with math I always remember I a Soveregn.
I was mad at my mother then I realized I was in control and it wasnt her fault.
When I faild alot and had f's then brought it up.
I Didn't
It has helped me stay away from drugs/alcohol and other bad influences.
At the taks (TAKS) test
Make better choices.

QUESTION 7: Have you ever told anyone else what I Am Sovereign means? If so, how many times (and why)?

YES: 9 Votes NO: 27 Votes N/A: 5 Votes Total # of Times Taught to Someone Else: 35 Times

Analysis of Survey Results

I was not surprised by some of the results of this action research project.

What did not surprise me was that the results were mixed. In other words, some students obviously took to the I Am Sovereign personal leadership material more readily and enthusiastically than others, and the material clearly influenced some more than others.

I entirely expected this.

I also was not surprised by the significant amount of positive feedback I received about the material. Moreover, it felt great to know that teaching these concepts to my students really did lead to positive and productive results in the lives of students.

I was surprised by some of the results of this action research project.

What surprised me the most was my erroneous assumption that the I Am Sovereign material would be more influential and have more of an impact on my advanced, K-level students than it would on my more average, L-level students. I had believed going into the process that the K-level students would take to the material more readily because they were already smarter and more mature than my L-level students—speaking collectively and not individually.

In reality, the data strongly suggests that the exact opposite is true!

Another element of my erroneous assumption was that students who already knew more about personal leadership principles and practices—and who heard more about them at home from their parents—would naturally be more interested in the subject.

In actuality, it was the students who knew less about personal leadership principles and practices—and who heard less about them at home from their parents—who took to the topic and gravitated toward the subject with more innate interest and curiosity to discover and learn.

A close scrutinization of the data illuminates some of these fascinating—and, I admit, unexpected—divergences.

FIRST: 69 percent of L-level students answered affirmatively when queried whether the I Am Sovereign phrase had ever entered their mind outside of my classroom, compared to only 35 percent of the K-level students.

SECOND: When asked to explain when and how remembering the I Am Sovereign phrase helped them, 56 percent of the L-level students shared a personal anecdote in answer to the question, whereas only 24 percent of K-level students did the same—less than half!

THIRD: While there was one question where a higher percentage of K-level students responded (94 percent) compared to only 80 percent of the L-level students, most of the K-level students responded "NO" to this particular question, which was: "Have you ever told anyone else what I Am Sovereign means? If so, how many (and) why?"

In fact, all but one (1) of the 17 K-level students responded "NO" to this question, and the one (1) person who did answer "YES" chose not to quantify how many people he or she had shared the mantra with. As such, the per-student average for teaching someone else was zero (0) percent for K-level students. On the other hand, nine (9) out of the 45 L-level students (20 percent) answered "YES" to the same question.

Why do these and other, similar discrepancies exist between the K-level and L-level students?

While it may be impossible to provide a definitive collective answer to this question, I believe evidence exists to support two different hypotheses.

HYPOTHESIS #1: In general, K-level students came from homes with parents who were much more supportive of, and involved in, their students' education than were parents of L-level students. Moreover, parents of K-level students tended to be better educated and more gainfully employed themselves. As a result, it is almost certain that the average K-level student received a lot more SAL-oriented parenting and training at home than L-level students.

HYPOTHESIS #2: Because of these differences in home environments, it is possible that K-level students were more apt to see themselves as being "above," "too cool," or "two smart" for the I Am Sovereign personal leadership material for the simple reason that they were likely already engaging in similar personal leadership-oriented education and discussions at home. Conversely, it is possible that L-level students approached the material with more humility, authenticity, and interest because the concepts—generally speaking—were simply newer and fresher ideas that they were not as likely to be hearing about regularly at home.

Assuming that these two hypotheses are rooted in reality underscores the absolutely vital role parents play in the lives and educations of their students. This role is—and always should be—PRIMARY.

It also underscores the incredibly important role that educators play in the lives and educations of their students. This role is—and always should be—SECONDARY or TERTIARY.

These hypotheses align in fascinating ways with another contrasting phenomenon I observed between my K-level and L-level students. While my K-level students were almost always smarter, better behaved, more mature and responsible, and more adult-like in their classroom bearing and behavior than my L-level students, I discovered over time that my L-level students were usually more authentic, teachable, lively, and interesting than my K-level students.

In short, both my students and I tended to have more fun and enjoy class more in my L-level periods than in my K-level class.

Why was this?

Again, I cannot provide a perfectly accurate answer to this question. However, I believe that part of the reason for this contrasting classroom phenomenon arose from the fact that my K-level students were much more concerned about their grades than my L-level students. In other words, my K-level students were so focused on getting an "A" in my class, that they often forgot to enjoy the process of discovery and learning involved in earning that "A."

My L-level students, on the other hand, were much less focused on their grade, which opened them up to being more present and curious in each new moment of educational discovery. This, in-turn, allowed them to be more authentic, humble, and teachable when approached with new material with which they were unfamiliar. And because they were unfamiliar with more than their K-level counterparts, they were ultimately learning more as well. As a result, they participated more actively in group discussions, were less concerned with what their peers might think about them for participating in those discussions, and were therefore more willing to embrace new learning opportunities of all kinds.

I found these observations to be incredibly interesting, enlightening, and surprising. Moreover, it was a powerful reminder to me personally of the importance of not letting my own educational progress from the past retard my pedagogical potential in the future.

It is good to be smart, responsible, high achieving, and successful.

But it is far better if we are also authentic, humble, teachable, and real.

Conclusion

My experiences teaching and implementing SAL principles and practices into a ninth grade English classroom at a large public high school in Houston, Texas, during the 2009-10 school year underscore the importance and value of universally incorporating Pedagogies of Personal Leadership and Character Development (PPLCD) in the classroom, home, community, and virtually everywhere else.

If your goal as a parent, educator, or citizen is to develop other citizens who are good, peaceful, and productive human beings who make the world a better place for their presence therein, you must continually teach, model, and reiterate the lessons that lead to that desirable end.

There is no other way.

Clearly, the data from this action research project illustrates that you don't need to be a superintendent, principal, teacher, coach, parent, or personal leadership expert to see the value in SAL-oriented instruction. Students themselves—from a very young age—can readily discern this value once it is brought to their attention and intentionally presented to them in positive and productive pedagogical patterns.

Nevertheless, it remains up to leaders, managers, educators, and parents to ensure that their various charges—i.e. children, students, subordinates, et cetera—are appropriately, readily, and repeatedly exposed to the material until they become habituated self-learners (and leaders) for life.

In Your Journal

Compare and contrast the PPLCD teaching styles of Lynnda Crowder-Eagle, Kehl Arnson, Thresa Brooks, and Dr. JJ. If YOU were to be taught in a classroom setting by one of these four educators, which teacher would you prefer, and why? What style do you think would work best with YOUR personality and learning style? If your answer to this question is: "none of them," then what alternative style would you prefer or suggest, and why?

Which method would most closely resemble your own style if you were to become a teacher of PPLCD, and why?

Do you think it is important to align your own teaching style with your own personality instead of trying to copy another educator's style or approach? Why or why not?

—Dr. JJ

Wednesday, January 21, 2026

Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA

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Chapter 9 Notes

1. Jensen, J.R. (2005) I Am Sovereign: The Power of Personal Leadership. Charleston, SC: Booksurge Publishing LLC.

2. This phrase is borrowed from the morning mantra that Principal Kehl Arnson made famous at Campbell High School in Smyrna, GA, as recounted in BOOK THE SEVENTH, chapter 6.

3. Anonymous examples of this student work can be reviewed in Dr. JJ's Doctoral Dissertation, see pages 1051-1055 of my doctoral dissertation (Volume 4, pages 141-145).

4. Many of my students had developed a habit of “sucking their teeth” -- an act that involved the quick rubbing of the inside of their front lips against their incisors, which would make a brief, spitting-like noise -- to communicate a lack of motivation, disagreement, dislike, disgust, disdain, bad attitudes, etc. As a teacher, I found this habit to be both annoying and disrespectful. I had to practice patience with them for this habit, which was so ingrained in many of them as to become an involuntary response whenever they felt picked on or otherwise "put out" in any way.

Wednesday, January 14, 2026

I Am Special

Chapter 8

I Am Special

Pedagogy of Personal Leadership &

Character Development

EXAMPLE #4

Thresa Brooks
1951-2012

The late Thresa Brooks was an African American woman and career educator. Before her death in 2012, she spent over 40 years teaching students and changing lives in traditional classroom settings.

Professor Brooks—as her students called her—taught kindergarten through grade eight over the course of her teaching career. When I met her in 2009, she was teaching eighth grade language arts at Tapp Middle School in Powder Springs, Georgia. No one knew at the time that this remarkable educator and human being was just three years away from passing.

How incredibly blessed and fortunate I was to cross paths with her when I did!

Brooks received her undergraduate degree in Education from Northwestern State University in Louisiana. She also earned two Master's degrees in Christian Education and Divinity from the Morehouse College School of Religion in Atlanta. In addition to being a certified teacher, she was also an ordained pastor who founded The Church of the Lamentations Resource Center in Mableton, Georgia.

Prior to starting her own congregation, Brooks worked part-time in Georgia's Metro State Prison for four years (2004-2008). During that time, she counseled women convicted of murder, armed robbery, vehicular homicide, and other serious crimes. This counseling work was performed both one-on-one and in small groups. She also ministered to larger groups ranging from 28 to 200 people on alternating Sundays. Of the 200 prisoners released during her ministry, only one (1) returned to jail—an extraordinarily low recidivism rate that she was very proud of, and which impressively underscores the profound impact Brooks had on the lives of prisoners she helped to rehabilitate.

The day I visited Brooks' classroom at Tapp Middle School, I was substituting for her co-teacher. This afforded me the opportunity to observe Professor Brooks in action. Before sharing her remarkable story, I should note that Tapp is not a private school. Nor was it a well-endowed public school in an affluent neighborhood. At the time, it was a Title I school in a lower-middle to middle-class neighborhood on the southern side of Cobb Country School District, which was closer to inner-city Atlanta than the more affluent suburbs in the north. Much like Campbell High School, Tapp Middle School had a diverse student body with an African American majority and a White minority.

Having worked extensively with middle school students as a substitute teacher in Cobb County School District, I knew how challenging eighth graders can be—no matter what the racial or socioeconomic demographics. Nevertheless, I also observed that classroom behavioral issues were less common in suburban schools and more common in schools that were closer to inner-city Atlanta. As such, I was doubly awestruck as I visited Brooks' classroom and witnessed the masterful touch of her firm, but caring leadership approach, which bucked every imaginable demographic trend and stereotype I had ever read about, heard of, or personally experienced and observed on the middle school level.

It is, after all, no secret that eighth graders in general carry a reputation for being disrespectful, inattentive, loud, obnoxious, and rowdy.

Thus, you can imagine my shock and awe to beheld such incredibly well-behaved students responding so positively and productively to Brooks' extraordinary grace, poise, and success in every single class she taught—all of which were full of eighth graders! With God as my witness, that remarkable teacher had those students in the palm of her hand! In the totality of my experiences as both a student and professional educator, I had never seen anything quite like it. She was the most influential and powerful classroom teacher I had ever witnessed—before or since—including my own father, who was himself an unusually talented master educator who spent many years working with both high school and middle school students during his two decade career teaching English.

The respect that those students showed to Brooks, and the maturity they displayed in her presence seemed like an impossible feat—almost an otherworldly achievement. Indeed, Brooks' students behaved much more like advanced placement high school (or even college) students—or even mature adults—than the middle schoolers they actually were!

Whenever Brooks spoke, they listened quietly, respectfully, and attentively. Whenever she gave them an assignment, they dutifully obeyed her instructions and studiously completed their work.

Having struggled with my own share of rowdy middle school students as a substitute teacher the previous four years, I was astonished—even mystified—by what I saw unfolding before my eyes in Brooks' classroom.

It was a MIRACLE!

How did she do it?

Her approach was highly personalized and very unorthodox, especially for postmodern classrooms.

Immediately after the tardy bell rang, the first thing Brooks would say to her students was, in a peaceful and calming voice was: "Peace to the Scholars," to which the students would then respond back to her in unison: "Peace to Professor Brooks."

Then, in an atmosphere of complete silence (her students had been conditioned to be silent once the bell had rung), she quietly, but clearly asked her students the following rhetorical questions:

"Why am I here Today?"

"Whose Life will I Touch in a Positive Way?"

'What will I Do with the Rest of my Day?"

After pausing to allow her questions to sink in, Brooks would then continue by saying: "Heads up, hands together, eyes closed. You have 90 seconds to plan your day."

At this cue, the students then became even quieter than before as they proceeded to strictly obey her explicit instruction.

At the completion of this silent, mental planning session, the students and Ms. Brooks would then proceed to recite in unison—and from memory—the following poem, which Brooks had authored herself.

I Am Somebody

I am somebody,
I am very special,
I am here today because
I want to learn something that I did not know.
I promise I will not cause problems for my teachers, classmates, school, friends, or myself.

I will let nothing stop me from achieving my goals.

I will not let you stop me from achieving my goals.

I will help you to achieve your goals.

I will achieve the goals that I have set for myself.

With you or apart from you my friend.

Following Brooks' and her students' recital of this poem, she would proceed with her prepared lesson plan for the day.

She would then repeat this same process and pattern—verbatim—in every other class throughout the rest of the school day.

Everything about all of her classes was organized, intentional, meaningful, and thoughtful—and her students never stopped behaving like model students. In the two days I was there, I cannot remember a single student acting up or out. Indeed, if any student came even close to doing so, a gentle—but firm—reminder from Brooks reoriented the student to the behavioral expectation she had clearly established for every student in all of her classes.

I had never experienced anything like what I observed in Thresa Brooks' Tapp Middle School classroom.

It was astonishing.

It was breathtaking.

It was unprecedented in my experience.

And it was absolutely beautiful to behold.

I should note here that Brooks was not merely conditioning her students into obedient clones of brainless drones who would merely follow her every order. While the beginning of each class was highly regimented and marked by rote routine, her lesson plans were much more open and flexible, thereby providing all students with a variety of thoughtful opportunities to develop and expand their critical thinking skills, contribute to classroom discussions, consider the impacts of their own thoughts and behavior, and make personal plans for future improvement.

It was absolutely REMARKABLE.

After the first day, you can imagine how entranced by—and curious about—this wondrous educational environment I had become. I simply had to dig deeper and conduct some Action Research to learn more about the impacts and influence this was having on Brooks' students.

In order to gain a better understanding of these impacts and influence, I created a questionnaire and surveyed 58 (about half) of her students. The results of this survey are located below.

Power of Words Leadership Questionnaire

Question 1: Every day you recite Professor Brooks' poem, I Am Special. How long did it take you to memorize it?

Answers: less than one week: 43 students. 1-2 weeks: 10 students. 1 month: 2 students

Question 2: Do you like reciting I Am Special each day?

YES (48 votes) NO (9 votes)

Question 3: If yes, then why? What benefits do you get from the poem and/or planning your day each class?

Note: To preserve authenticity, student answers are reproduced verbatim as they were originally written, including errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation.

"It helps me plan my day even though this is my last period."
"It gives me my time to get all my focus together so that I can be ready for the day."
"What I got from the poem planning the rest of my day and how to act the rest the day and believen myself."
"It makes me think about how my life will be different today and how Not only me, but others around me should be treated."
"It helps me to learn new things each day."
"Because it helps us relax and think."
"IT TELLS ME THAT I AM SPECIAL."
"I dont bother students (sometime) and I get my work done"
"It tells me that I am some body and I could always do my best.
"It lets me know that i am some body and I can do good for myself. And planning my day helps me know how to plan and what I choose to do."
"Being respfull, doing what I'm told and doing what I'm asked."
"Because I like how you get Plane yor day to Show how your futer is going be."
"It helps to guide me and try to do my best for the remainder of the day."
"It calms me down. It also let me know everyday I am somebody and I am very special."
"Because it helps me stay on track more."
"I get motivated and it makes me feel good."
"I get to think through what I've done, and what I need to do today."
"I get that the poem teaches me that I am somebody and I am very special."
"Keeps my confidence up"
"It calms me down when I am mad I Just get relaxed."
"because it helps me have confidence planning your day helps you stay out of trouble."
"I chose yes because it shows me that I am special and that when I plan my day I can achieve the things that I plan."
"Yes because, it lets me know that I can be whatever I want to be and that I am somebody im not invisible. I am able to plan my day and make wise choices."
"The poem Makes Me feel Special as a person, and it Keeps Me out of trouble."

Question 4: On a scale of 1-10, how much does Professor Brooks' poem, I Am Special, inspire or motivate you to be a better students and/or person? (Circle a number)

Number of student votes are in parentheses.

One (0 votes) Two (1 votes) Three (2 votes) Four (2 votes) Five (2 votes)

Six (5 votes) Seven (4 votes) Eight (10 votes) Nine (11 votes) Ten (21 votes)

1-3 motivates me a little (3 votes) 4-7 motivates me somewhat (13 votes) 8-10 motivates me a lot (42 votes)

Question 5: What is your favorite line in the poem?

I am Very Special (21 votes)

I am Somebody (11 votes)

I want to learn something I did not know (8 votes)

I will let nothing stop me from achieving my goals (7 votes)

I promise I will not cause problems (3 votes)

Left blank (1 vote)

Question 6: If you were to rank Professor Brooks' influence in your schoolwork and life compared to your other teachers this semester, what would that rank be? (Circle a number, with one (1) being your most influential teacher and seven (7) being your least influential teacher throughout your seven class periods).

#1 (22 votes) #2 (7 votes) #3 (5 votes) #4 (11) #5 (2 votes) #6 (7 votes) #7 (3 votes)

Most Influential: 1-3 (34 votes). Average Influence 3-5 (18 votes) Least Influential 5-7 (12 votes)

Question 7: When Mrs. Brooks has you recite her poem, or plan your day, do you mostly think it is: (Circle two items)

Cool (10 votes) Repetitive (4 votes) Helps me prepare for class (30 votes) Goofy (2 votes)

Inspirational (27 votes) Annoying (6 votes) Shows that she cares (26 votes) Funny (2 votes)

Positive Perceptions (93 votes) Negative Perceptions (14 votes)

Question 8: On a scale of 1-10, how much does Professor Brooks' teaching style and personality influence you to make good decisions in your schoolwork and life? (Circle one) Student votes are bolded in parentheses.

One (0 votes) Two (0 votes) Three (2 votes) Four (2 votes) Five (0 votes)

Six (4 votes) Seven (3 votes) Eight (6 votes) Nine (5 votes) Ten (36 votes)

Question 9: In the space remaining, write down a specific experience you had where something Professor Brooks said or taught you helped you make the right decision in your schoolwork or personal life.

Note: To preserve authenticity, student answers are reproduced verbatim as they were originally written, including errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation.

"don't try to be someone else its always good just to be your self. And dont talk about any body because it hurts."
"She said 'If you do not plan your day I will plan it for you.' Then I shaped up."
"She said that that if you got good grades then my parents will be proud of me."
"She said to listen it may save your life. When she said that I thought about because when we dont listen we get caught into some bad situations."
"I was about to get in a fight one day, But once I came in her class and did the Poem, I then thought about it, and didn't get in a fight."
"Sometimes when she tells the class about the times she goes to prisen to talk to and help the women that are there to be better. That tells me to be careful so that I won't end up in that position."
"treat others how you want to be treated and don't live in the past."
"When she told me that attitude is everything in life."
"Proffesor Brooks has told us to think before speaking. I did this once before saying mean words to my younger sister."
"Mistakes, directions, and choices I make in life."
"She told me if I believe it, I will achieve it. the I am Somebody motto it inspires me everyday"
"To do your hardest and focus on school and not Gossip."
"She said that the reason she is being hard on us is cause she cares. That made [me] think that I was special."
"Whenever someone does something wrong, she always has something behind it to tell us. That is a good thing. She always has a story to tell us and I just love Mrs. Brooks. She is like my mom but at school."
"She has inspired me, and told me things that can guide through my everyday life."
"When she tells us storys about jail it makes me wanna be always good."
"Rule your life don't let others control you. Someone tells you to do their homework u say no."
"She help me to do better on my class work and She also help me with me by making good choices."
"Telling the truth may save your life. Which tells me to always tell the truth, because you never know what's gonna happen."
"To not let others stop you"
"When I was taking the "CRCT" [Georgia's required standardized test] I remembered a proverbial she wrote that said "Alwase do more than is required of you" and affected my by me doing my best."
"Not to hang out with bad influence Because that can get you in alot of trouble and change you."
"Same thing that professor Brooks taught and helped me was her proverbials. they just mean something to care and be you."
"Some kids were making fun of me because my nose is big and I remembered: I am somebody, and I am very special. I ignored them and go to My Class"
"She told us to always be prepared and that helped me because one day I didn't feel like bringing my science book but I brought anyway and I had to do a project that involved my book and I got a 100"
"When someone was talking to me and I just egnord them and they STOP!"

It is illuminating—to say the very least—that a majority of her students either liked, or found value in, Brooks' strategies. For example, 48 of the 58 students surveyed reported that they actually liked reciting the poem each day (more than 80 percent).

Then, when asked how much Brooks' poem inspires or motivates them, 72 percent of the students circled an eight, nine, or 10—all three of which options fall in the "motivates me a lot" category.

Fifty-nine percent (59%) consider her to be among the most influential of their teachers, while only 19 percent view her as average and 21% consider her to be among their least influential teachers at school.

Question seven (7) asked: "When Mrs. Brooks has you recite her poem, or plan your day, do you mostly think it is: cool, repetitive, helpful, goofy, inspiring, annoying, funny, or shows that she cares," students had equal opportunity to describe the process negatively (4 options) as they did positively (4 options). Despite this numerical equality of opportunity to label the poem negatively or positively, an overwhelming 87 percent of the students selected positive responses.

This empirical data clearly reveals that a majority of Brooks' students not only liked her strategies and found them valuable, but were also able to apply both the principles and practices she taught to real-life decision-making processes both inside and outside of the classroom. Moreover, when asked, students were able to readily provide concrete examples of how Brooks' teaching style was influencing their academic work and personal lives in positive and/or productive ways.

These responses—and their scope and variety—suggest strongly that Brooks' students were not just going through the motions of her rote classroom rituals. They were empowered by those rituals, which were, in-turn, positively influencing and productively enabling their decision-making processes.

Is the message itself really that powerful? Or is there something else—a sort of metaphysical glue—that makes the repeated messages so meaningful to students? Perhaps there is something about Ms. Brooks herself that makes this almost magical difference. The following comments from students indicate that the biggest factor of all may have been the love of and care for the students that Brooks' so consistently demonstrated.

"She said the reason she is being hard on us is cause she cares. That made me think that I was special."
"Whenever someone does something wrong, she always has something behind it to tell us. That is a good thing. She always has a story to tell us and I just love Mrs. Brooks. She is like my mom but at school."
"She has inspired me, and told me things that can guide through my everyday life."
"She is true to us."

Brooks obviously genuinely cared about her students. This authentic love clearly magnified the influence of her tactical teaching techniques, giving added power to her words. Although she was a strict disciplinarian, Brooks was also quick to smile and shower her students with care, attention, and love. At the time of my interview, Brooks admitted that she could retire, but added: "I work because I want to."

Thresa Brooks' educational leadership and classroom teaching style was a unique mix of experience, passion, and her own personal touch mixed with rote learning, personal development, and character education. It worked wonders in her classroom and stands as the single most original, attention-grabbing, and results-oriented example of a Pedagogy of Personal Leadership and Character Development I have ever personally witnessed.

Extrapolating Principles vs. Mimicking Approaches

In sharing this case study of Thresa Brooks, Freedom Focused is not suggesting that all educators meticulously replicate her style and approach with copycat precision. Doing so may work for someone, somewhere, sometime—if they have a disposition and personality similar to Brooks herself.

However, I have learned from my own lifetime of experiences that trying to copy someone else's method exactly usually comes across as contrived, forced, and disingenuous. Furthermore, the same approach does not guarantee the same results for every person in every situation.

Successful educators are not automatons; nor should they seek to become clones of other successful educators.

Each educator must discover over time what styles and approaches work best for them and their own unique disposition, personality, and style.

The answer, therefore, is not found primarily in the pedagogical style or approach, but in the PRINCIPLES rooted in UNIVERSAL LAW. While each individual educator must ultimately discover the pathway that works best for them in terms of practices, all educators can and should apply certain key principles.

In light of this reality, there are at least four (4) key PRINCIPLES we can extrapolate from Thresa Brooks' highly capable educational leadership philosophy and classroom teaching style.

These FOUR (4) Principles are:

Student success is predicated on the establishment of quality student-teacher relationships rooted in mutual respect and trust.
Building quality student-teacher relationships takes time, effort, and consistent caring on the part of the teacher and student.
Repetition is the KEY to a student's reception and skill.
Successful educators view the classroom as more than just an environment for academic learning. They also see it as a laboratory for life skill, character, and leadership development.

Principle ONE points out the essential role that relationships play in any pedagogical process. Principle TWO, which is a corollary to principle one, is that building relationships requires time, effort, and genuine care and love for another human being. This requires more than just determination and persistence. It also requires patience.

Brooks explained that it would take her 3-4 weeks of diligent, focused, and concerted effort at the beginning of a school year to earn her student's trust and acclimate them to her highly regimented system. It did not happen overnight, or even in a week or two. She explained further that the payoff throughout the rest of the school year made this initial up-front investment in time, energy, and effort entirely worth it. According to Brooks, everything went much smoother once her students trusted her and were conditioned to her unique system. But, it never would have happened if she had been unwilling to invest this diligent, up-front effort.

Maintaining these quality relationships and sustaining her regimented system throughout the year still required continual effort, of course, as any system is subject to atrophy and failure if neglected; but, it was much easier to maintain and sustain after making that early, extensive, and determined up-front investment of time and energy.

Principle THREE is a reminder that repetition is a key to both learning comprehension and skill development. The process of rote learning in an academic environment is akin to the process of becoming highly skilled in any endeavor—be it academics, athletics, music, public speaking, relationships, etc. There is simply no shortcut to diligent practice and energetic effort when it comes to authentic achievement of any kind. You have to put in the time if you want to be successful. The mastery of any subject or skill requires significant investments of study, practice, and repetition over time.

There is no other way.

In the words of two professors of speech:

"Too many students try to study when half asleep, with most of the body inert and quite at peace. [But those who are] earnestly trying to learn ... are not content to sit down and take it easy. They exert themselves—head, hands, trunk, legs—everything that helps." (1)

Principle FOUR: Brooks fully recognized the classroom as being more than a laboratory for language, literature, testing, and grades. She saw it as an effective training ground for life, including future careers and relationships. In the words of one charismatic young African American girl in one of Brooks' eighth grade classes:

"I like Ms. Brooks because she teaches us about more than just language arts.

"She teaches us about life!"

Brooks was never content to let her students "sit down and take it easy." She required them to "exert themselves" in any way that might help them become better readers, writers, thinkers—and most importantly, human beings; and her results are largely inarguable. Ultimately, the reasons she was so successful was because she consistently practiced these four basic pedagogical principles, which are, for the sake of reiteration and therefore reception:

Thresa Brooks' FOUR (4) Principles of Pedagogical Success

The success of a teacher's tactics and strategy is contingent upon the quality and trust of the teacher-student relationship.
Developing quality teacher-student relationships takes time, effort, caring, compassion, and consistency on the part of the teacher.
Repetition is the key to reception and skill.
A really good (solid) EDUCATION is about much more than academics. It's also about LIFE.

At Freedom Focused, we don't ask leaders and teachers to incorporate Thresa Brooks' unique style into their own classroom repertoires. What we do ask is that you carefully consider how to incorporate Brooks' FOUR (4) principles into your own personalized approach and style. If you do, you are certain to succeed with most students most of the time.

Why are you guaranteed this degree of success?

Because these same PRINCIPLES will always be the foundation of any meaningful pedagogical approach that generates lasting success.

Thresa Brooks passed away on October 27, 2012, at the relatively young age of 61. She was 58 when our paths briefly—yet oh, so meaningfully—crossed at Tapp Middle School in Georgia. Despite our loss of this extraordinary teacher, her legacy lives on in the minds and hearts of her many students—and countless others (including me) who were positively touched by her dynamic character and electric personality throughout her incredible life and remarkable career.

Thresa Brooks
Tapp Middle School Teacher of the Year
2008-09