What's Your Brower Power?


                                                                                                                                (C) 2022 Scott B. Freiberger

Much has been published in recent years about kindness.  In a recent large-scale, psychology-related study called “The Kindness Test” conducted by the University of Sussex in partnership with the BBC, people reported feeling “happy,” “grateful,” “loved,” “relieved,” and “pleased” if someone, even a stranger, had offered assistance, or after they had been the beneficiary of a kind act.  Another experiment found that people reported feeling better about shopping and buying items to gift others rather than simply seeking shiny substances in self-serving situations.   

Researchers have concluded that receiving acts of kindness may have a continuous ripple effect, leading people to pay kind acts forward.  Another researcher found that acting kind towards others may lead to less anxiety and stress in society. Finally, research has found that even toddlers can be taught empathy, kindness, love, and respect. 

Perhaps as a result of the pandemic, many people have been reconsidering priorities and what truly matters in their lives.  Yet years before the world had heard the terms “Coronavirus” or “Covid-19,” a caring, compassionate, and wonderfully witty physical education teacher at P.S. 20 in Flushing, Queens named Scott Brower had made readily apparent his superpower—the ability to connect with and inspire his students.   

Although he was at times a quipster, he was serious when it came to the success of the children he guided as a basketball coach and in all of his classes.  He was passionate about honing his craft, and had recently earned a Masters in Physical Education and Sports Pedagogy from Manhattanville College in Harrison, New York.  Although Scott’s life came to a tragic end on March 20, 2022, his legacy will live on in the students he inspired, the colleagues fortunate to have worked with him, and the many friends and family members whose lives he touched.

I will forever remember educator Scott Brower for his compassion, quick wit, and ability to inspire, even in the most trying circumstances.  What’s your Brower power?

Here are the links for charitable donations in honor of Scott Brower:

https://www.gofundme.com/f/educational-fund-for-anna-grace-brower

https://theleadersreadersnetwork.org/scott-t-brower

https://www.maristbrotherscenter.org/support-the-mhvc/

https://bestfriends.org/homepage

Popular posts from this blog

Todd’s Eight Rules of the Road: Lessons for Leadership and Lifelong Learning

Image
                                                                    © 2025 Scott Freiberger This article is dedicated to my youngest brother Todd "Fantastic,” who lived life the way most of us can only dream, full of adventure, joy, kindness, and an unrelenting desire to leave the world better than he found it. Todd believed that learning was not only something to be done in classrooms or on paper, but it was also a lifelong pursuit, an attitude, and a way of being. He embraced the world with open arms, eager to share what he learned and inspire others to do the same. His philosophy was simple yet profound:  “As long as you're always learning, you're always winning.” To...
Read more

Five Concepts to Cultivate a Compassionate Culture via a Largely Mental Health Lens

Image
By Scott B. Freiberger   (C) 2021 Scott B. Freiberger For many students, these past few years have been far beyond banal (an austere advisory from the U.S. Surgeon General should be a clarion call to inform us all).   Disconnected from daily school life and largely separated by screens, it’s imperative for students, especially in buildings, to build a basic sense of belonging, keep kindness in their consciousness, and encounter intercultural connections.   Tens of terrific tenets, such as establishing self-efficacy, augmenting self-awareness, setting great goals, co-acting, co-functioning, cooperating, and collaborating, need to be mindfully modeled and explicitly instructed. Research [also] affirms that access to interconnected resources will further improve school climate…[and] student equity .   Here are five concepts to cultivate a compassionate school culture via a largely mental health lens.   1. Highlight Health, Safety, and Clear Communication in ...
Read more

Disrupting Leadership: Five Considerations for Professional Learning in the New Normal

Image
Photo credit: Taipei 101 Wind Damper (c) 2019 Scott Freiberger By Scott B. Freiberger  We’ve seen the nascent news.   We’ve contemplated myriad upcoming conundrums and perceive what’s coming down the unpliable pike.   Get your game plan gloves on.   Decisions of gravity require heavy lifting.   In these turbulent times, this instructional coach and aspiring school leader delved into data-driven dialogue with several top school leaders , recognizing research-based, nouveau realities. Which prudent path should school leaders pursue to reimagine learning?   Here are five considerations for professional learning in the new normal. 1. Soft-Serve a Superabundance of SEL This is a tumultuous time for everyone: administrators, educators, and chiefly, children, and I had penned about the importance of infusing social-emotional learning (SEL) into curricula both here and there .   Now nearly  everywhere , children need to feel connected with authent...
Read more