We are in control - As much as we'd like to pass the burden of responsibility to somebody else, it's time to face the facts #- more often than not, we are the captain of our ship, not just a passenger.

There's no doubt about it, sometimes things happen that you simply have no control over - people do get hit by a random bolt of lightening, homes are randomly ransacked by an intruder, innocent people are hurt by the actions of irresponsible drivers - we certainly don't maintain total control over all situations. However, we are able to control much more than we like to admit.

We can control how we respond to the random, unfortunate occurrences that inevitably comes our way. You need not look further than to observe the way victims of the 9/11 and Katrina disasters rebuilt their lives after encountering almost unimaginable adversity. The world is full of incredible stories of people who lost limbs who became marathon runners, lost their sight and became artists, lost their courage only to become lionhearted champions.

We may not always control the events, but more often than not we control the course of our lives. This is a difficult reality to come to terms with in a society that tends to perpetuate the “blame shift” mentality. “I did this because John Doe did that.” This mentality has exerted an enormous impact on education. We look for excuses rather than solutions and alibis instead of accountability. Moving forward, the acceptance of individual accountability will indeed be the determining factor in the individual and collective success of our society. Here's why:

In the past several weeks at Dana L. West High School, our staff and students have had an opportunity to participate in a number of events that have placed a spotlight on the concept of individual accountability. In a period of two weeks, former professional football player, Steve Grant, professional musician Phil Accardi and professional educators Kim and Carolyn Loucks gave presentations to our students. Three very different presentations from very different people.

What was the common theme from each presentation? The importance of accepting individual accountability in order to achieve success. Grants's goal was to be a world class athlete (seven-year NFL veteran of the Indianapolis Colts and Tampa Bay Buccaneers). Accardi's goal was to be a world-class professional musician (eventually traveling across the United States and the world and performing in front of thousands). Kim and Carolyn's goal was to provide students with the tools necessary to become the next great doctor, scientist or mathematician (both ending up as 20-plus year educators in working with teachers, administrators and students).

All spoke of the same magical ingredient for success - Acknowledgment that they, and we, are in control of the vast majority of our lives.

We, after all, choose our actions and our ambitions. They chose worthwhile, positive activities to motivate their actions. They chose wisely. They chose solutions over excuses and accountability over alibis. Choosing your attitude is important. I hope you choose wisely. Our success as a society depends on it.

Shawn Bissetta is principal of Dana L. West High School in Port Byron.