Whitney Houston's Legacy, A Life Too Short

Photo source.

Such sad news today - Whitney Houston died at the young age of 48. I have always enjoyed, and admired, her soaring soulful voice. What will her legacy be?

Besides being a highly gifted artist, she has established a lasting legacy - a school devoted to the arts, just a few miles from my campus, based in East Orange, New Jersey.

Their mission statement is:

Whitney E. Houston Academy will strive to provide an environment in which every student learn and every staff member can grow. To achieve maximum success in this regard, we will provide challenging educational opportunites for all studentw within a comprehensive, quality instructional program. We will strive to have parents and teachers work as a powerful unit to keep all students focused on education as their primary goal and appropriate behavior as a vital component of a successful learning process. We will facilitate instruction based on our highest levels of professional judgement, knowledge and skills. We will enhance our professional growth through a variety of group inservice programs and individual avenues for learning. We will hold fast to our commitment to high expectations for student achievement and for staff performance levels.

We pledge to respect and nuture individual excellence by encouraging each member of the Whitney E. Houston Academy to discover his/her unique talents and by granting and teaching the freedom to explore areas of special interest. We will enhance our program through the uses of artistic and creative expression as primary motivational tools. We will promote self-esteem, self-motivation, problem solving, and decision-making skills for our entire educational community.

Helping train future artists, especially in a community with limited resources, is a wonderful legacy indeed.