The Match | Integrity
Word: Integrity
Sentence:
Integrity is the safest value we have and the one that gets misused the most.
Passage:
He was a new student. Sixteen. Quiet. Zero credits.
One morning, he walked into school, passed through security, and then turned around and walked right back out.
By mid-day, a staff member reported their car missing from the lot.
We reviewed the cameras. The footage showed the student taking the staff member’s keys from the conveyor belt at security, clicking the key fob in the parking lot, and searching for the car. Clear as day.
When he returned to school, he walked in, dropped the keys at the front desk, and went to class.
I pulled him out of class and we watched the video together. Over and over.
“I didn’t steal the car,” he said.
I pointed to the screen. “Are you getting into the car?”
“Yes.”
“And you didn’t steal it?”
“Nope.”
His mom arrived. We showed her the footage. She asked the same questions. He gave the same answers. Silence followed.
The truth was visible. Undeniable.
And still, he couldn’t name it.
Denial was easier than facing what his actions meant or what the truth might require of him.
That’s the hard part about integrity.
I didn’t start out hiding the truth either. Like most kids, I told it freely until I learned what happens when honesty gets punished. Over time, I learned to protect discomfort instead. To withhold. To stand firm even when the truth was right in front of me.
Leadership makes this tension sharper. When people look to you for certainty, admitting you are wrong feels risky. And when discomfort shows up, leaders usually face a choice. Be vulnerable or deny or hide.
Two of the most powerful words I’ve learned to say are, “You’re right.”
Not because they erase mistakes, but because they realign words and actions.
Most people don’t care about your intentions. They care about alignment. When that breaks, integrity breaks with it.
We never spoke about the car again. My counselor built a relationship with him. He started going to class. Doing his thing.
Then COVID hit.
The next time I saw him, he walked across the graduation stage. He gave me a smirk and hug, and said “Thanks Bro.”
I didn’t know then how much that moment would stay with me.
I never shamed him. Never judged him. I simply presented the truth and left the rest to him.
Integrity can’t be forced.
It has to be faced.
Your Turn:
What would integrity look like if you named the truth instead of protecting the discomfort?
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2 Comments
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on January 30, 2026 at 12:04 am
What would integrity look like if you named the truth instead of protecting the discomfort? It would look like integrity because that is what integrity is and too many people lack integrity as they turn their back on the truth to satisfy and protect others. In this field, especially administration, especially those responsible for ensure high-quality educational experiences, integrity matters more and more. Administrators can not hear or see everything so it takes integrity for true change and growth because the person has to have that intrinsic motivation to do right by others, especially students and kids. Integrity is an all in, not one foot in, one foot out because when you compromise your integrity, it’s gone. Sometimes people make an unintentional decision that causes harm which is different from deliberate harm which is lack of integrity. It’s crazy because my CASL activity at next week’s Principal Professional Learning Session is about Integrity so right on time. Here are some examples I would like to share:
Teenager working at TJ Maxx and my friend came through my line with a torn off price tag for a lower price on a pair of Girbaud jeans. I called for a price check. Friend was upset and could not buy the jeans.
Assistant Principal – went to get lunch with my colleague (assistant principal) at JJ’s fish on Halsted Street. Gave the cashier a $10 dollar bill and the cashier gave me change for a $100 bill. I informed the cashier of the error and she thanked me.
Principal – employee wanted to ban a student from the Winter Ball, an annual dance for 8th grade students, because the student was suspended for cursing him out. I told him we can’t do that, the student had already served his corrective actions. That would be double jeopardy.
Chief of Schools – My Boss’s Boss wanted me to fire two principals in my first year as a Chief of Schools. I refused. I supported the principals and both schools increased in student achievement that school year.
I learned to value Integrity at a young age.
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on January 30, 2026 at 8:20 pm
Thank you for sharing this. What stands out to me in all of your examples is that integrity shows up in the small, often unseen moments long before it ever shows up in the big ones. No applause. No credit. Just a choice to do what aligns, even when it costs something.
I also appreciate the distinction you make between unintentional harm and deliberate harm. That nuance matters, especially in leadership. Integrity isn’t about never getting it wrong. It’s about what we do once we realize we might be.
Your stories are a powerful reminder that integrity is practiced daily, not claimed once.
What would integrity look like if you named the truth instead of protecting the discomfort? It would look like integrity because that is what integrity is and too many people lack integrity as they turn their back on the truth to satisfy and protect others. In this field, especially administration, especially those responsible for ensure high-quality educational experiences, integrity matters more and more. Administrators can not hear or see everything so it takes integrity for true change and growth because the person has to have that intrinsic motivation to do right by others, especially students and kids. Integrity is an all in, not one foot in, one foot out because when you compromise your integrity, it’s gone. Sometimes people make an unintentional decision that causes harm which is different from deliberate harm which is lack of integrity. It’s crazy because my CASL activity at next week’s Principal Professional Learning Session is about Integrity so right on time. Here are some examples I would like to share:
Teenager working at TJ Maxx and my friend came through my line with a torn off price tag for a lower price on a pair of Girbaud jeans. I called for a price check. Friend was upset and could not buy the jeans.
Assistant Principal – went to get lunch with my colleague (assistant principal) at JJ’s fish on Halsted Street. Gave the cashier a $10 dollar bill and the cashier gave me change for a $100 bill. I informed the cashier of the error and she thanked me.
Principal – employee wanted to ban a student from the Winter Ball, an annual dance for 8th grade students, because the student was suspended for cursing him out. I told him we can’t do that, the student had already served his corrective actions. That would be double jeopardy.
Chief of Schools – My Boss’s Boss wanted me to fire two principals in my first year as a Chief of Schools. I refused. I supported the principals and both schools increased in student achievement that school year.
I learned to value Integrity at a young age.
Thank you for sharing this. What stands out to me in all of your examples is that integrity shows up in the small, often unseen moments long before it ever shows up in the big ones. No applause. No credit. Just a choice to do what aligns, even when it costs something.
I also appreciate the distinction you make between unintentional harm and deliberate harm. That nuance matters, especially in leadership. Integrity isn’t about never getting it wrong. It’s about what we do once we realize we might be.
Your stories are a powerful reminder that integrity is practiced daily, not claimed once.