The Elevator to the Third Floor:
How Three Transformative Leaders Taught Me That Educational Leadership Is About Sacred Purpose, Not Prestige
For many years, I thought educational leadership was glamorous.
As a Federal Work-Study student at Medgar Evers College, I had the opportunity to work in the Office of the President. To a young woman from Trinidad and Tobago, living in Brooklyn with ambitious dreams, simply taking the elevator to the third floor felt significant.
Students stopped on the second floor.
Administrators went to the third.
Every morning, I entered a space filled with possibility. At the center of the office sat a model depicting a bold vision for the future of the Crown Heights community—an academic hub designed to serve learners throughout Brooklyn.
I was captivated.
The office was busy, purposeful, and important. Dr. Nan Fisher carried herself with confidence, precision, and grace. Her instructions were always clear. Her expectations were high. What fascinated me most was her ability to manage so many responsibilities while remaining accessible.
After outlining the day's priorities, she would often say:
"If anybody needs me, I am on cell."
At the time, I thought that was leadership.
Years later, after becoming a leader myself, I proudly repeated those exact words to my own assistant at the first opportunity.
I thought I had discovered the secret.
I had not.
The real lesson was still waiting for me.
My Next Assignment Placed Me in Dr. Betty Shabazz's Office
Her leadership looked nothing like what I had experienced before.
There was less activity.
Less fanfare.
Less visibility.
Yet there was something far more powerful.
Purpose.
Dr. Shabazz spoke sparingly, but every word mattered. She reviewed documents carefully. She demanded excellence in written communication. When time allowed, she offered guidance on research papers, résumés, and the discipline of concise writing.
She taught quietly.
She led intentionally.
She invested in people without seeking recognition for doing so.
One phrase became permanently etched into my memory:
"Find the good and celebrate it."
Then tragedy struck.
The world mourned when Dr. Shabazz succumbed to injuries sustained in a fire at her home. I mourned with the world.
But I also mourned personally.
For years, I wrestled with questions about family, love, responsibility, leadership, pain, and faith. I wore a commemorative pin bearing her words—Find the Good and Celebrate It—for months after her passing.
I did not fully understand why her death affected me so deeply.
Not then.
Perhaps it was because she represented something I had not yet learned how to name.
Years Later, in 2025, I Finally Decided to Begin—and Complete—My PhD in Education
At almost the same time, I was conceptualizing what would become The MAGNIFICENCE™ Framework.
Professionally, I was facing one of the most significant leadership challenges of my career. I was advocating for a stronger commitment to data-informed decision-making in education and attempting to persuade influential leaders that educational data should be used not merely for reporting, but for meaningful action and measurable impact.
During that period, memories of Dr. Shabazz returned with surprising clarity.
Almost as if she were sitting beside me.
Those memories—and what felt like her presence—strengthened my conviction that data are not collected merely for the sake of reports.
Data are collected to improve lives.
And then, again, almost as if she were in the room, I heard Dr. Shabazz.
"Michelle, you are a brilliant writer."
"Michelle, if somebody does not fight for these single mothers to get an education, who will?"
"Michelle, you talk too much. Let the work and your written words speak for you."
In that moment, I began to understand.
I finally understood why Dr. Fisher's instructions were so clear and why she remained accessible after leaving the office.
That is what good leaders do.
They create clarity and remain available.
I finally understood why Dr. Edison Jackson displayed the Crown Heights vision model so prominently.
Decades later, much of that vision became reality—not because it was a decorative display, but because visionary leadership creates plans that outlive the people who begin them.
The model was never about appearance.
It was about commitment.
And I finally understood why Dr. Shabazz invested so deeply in her grandson, responded to school calls, and still found time to encourage the daughter of an immigrant single mother who would carry those lessons for nearly twenty years.
The lesson was never about prestige.
The lesson was always about people.
Educational Leadership Is More Than Former Teachers Aspiring to Become Ministers of Education
Educational leadership is more than organizations producing policies.
Educational leadership is more than collecting data for reports, presentations, or political talking points.
Educational leadership begins with understanding that students' learning on the floor below the administrative offices matters.
It is the ability to develop a collective vision, understand the evidence, and bring stakeholders together to create meaningful, measurable change.
- A commitment to growth.
- A commitment to innovation.
- A commitment to critical thinking.
- A commitment to sustainability.
- A commitment to impact that extends beyond a lesson, a semester, a budget cycle, or a political term.
It is leadership that recognizes every child, every teacher, every parent, and every community as worthy of investment.
- Educational leadership is not about being seen. It is about helping others become seen.
- It is not about occupying offices. It is about expanding opportunities.
- It is not about titles. It is about transformation.
Today, When People Ask Why I Am Pursuing a Doctorate in Education
Despite the costs, my answer is different from what it would have been years ago.
I no longer see educational leadership as glamorous.
I see it as sacred.
Looking back now, I realize that Dr. Nan Fisher taught me vision, Dr. Edison Jackson demonstrated legacy, and Dr. Betty Shabazz embodied purpose.
Together, they taught me that educational leadership is not about occupying the third floor.
It is about ensuring that every child on the floors below has an opportunity to rise.
Because true educational leadership is the courageous act of finding the good in every learner, every educator, every family, and every community—and celebrating it with purpose, excellence, and unwavering commitment.
And perhaps that is why, after all these years, Dr. Betty Shabazz's words continue to guide me.
Find the good. And celebrate it.
