Kennedy School Principal Robert Dandorph has been a teacher and administrator for many years now, but obviously had never dealt with a more emotional day than last Sept. 11.
“We have 650 kids in the school,” Dandorph said. “It was a very traumatic day. The kids were great, but we had a lot of parents who worked in New York and teachers who have husbands who worked there. With no way to contact anyone, there was this mass confusion and no communication. Hundreds of parents pulled their kids out of school, because they didn’t know what was going to happen next.”
Added Dandorph, “It was the worst experience of my educational career.”
While the disaster was unfolding at the World Trade Center, Dandorph went to the school’s third floor. As he peered out of a window, he witnessed the unthinkable – the south tower of the World Trade Center crumbling to the ground.
“There were two teachers standing behind me when we watched the tower fall,” Dandorph said. “One just gasped and the other screamed. And I just thought how lucky we were to be where we were, safe and away from danger.”
About a month after the tragedy, Dandorph attended a conference called the Principal’s Center for the Garden State, which meets regularly on the campus of Princeton University. It’s a professional organization for principals to share ideas and services.
“Our executive director, Carol Wilson, who is wonderful, asked our members to write a story or a poem about how the World Trade Center tragedy affected us,” Dandorph said. “I’ve written poetry before and I love writing, so this was not going to be something new for me. This way, we would be able to reflect with each other, how we all handled that day.”
However, Dandorph had no idea that his poem, “A View from the Third Floor,” would become so widely respected and accepted that it would be featured in a book, “Leadership in Crisis,” which is being published by the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation.
Dandorph will be honored in a dinner hosted by the Principals’ Center for the Garden State in August, when he will be presented with a copy of the book, which will also feature a short profile about Kennedy School.
“To tell you the truth, I was totally shocked when I received word my poem was being published,” Dandorph said. “I never had anything published before. It’s a great honor. I love reading and writing and it’s a thrill to be recognized.”
With his permission, Dandorph has allowed The North Bergen Reporter to reprise his poem.
“A View from the Third Floor”
The call that forever changed our perceptions of life
Jangled in the office, piercing hearts like a knife
“Turn on the TV, you won’t believe your eyes!”
And a plane passes through a building – around me, deep sighs
I watched in horror, with agonizing pain
The reflection of terror, images forever on my brain
I sprang into action, calling teachers to the hall
I explained the event-watching them cling to the wall
By the time I reached the third floor, the tower fires were intense
A second plane had hit again – this act just made no sense
I stood at the window, with forehead to pane
And wondered if somehow a pilot had gone insane
The billowing smoke was rising heavily in the sky,
When suddenly the tower collapsed, right before my eye
Behind me I heard crying, panic and dismay
I know I had to act, but what in God’s name could I say?
The next few hours were filled with parents, students and staff
Some knew where their loved ones were, but what about the other half?
We tried so hard to keep a routine and continue on that day
We knew our Kennedy family needed us to be that way
As in all of the schools across our land
We felt proud to be Americans, our country would stand!
We stayed strong for the little ones, we held on tight
We prayed with our families as we arrived home that night
Days went by slowly, the sadness was great
Teachers used love, we tried to learn from the hate
The beauty of children is a world where hope lies
As their principal, I get to watch the world through their eyes
God bless them for seeing a life filled with peace
I’ll keep teaching and loving them, may my devotion never cease
For the view from the third floor was beyond our control
But 9/11 has forever been burned into my soul
— Robert J. Dandorph