Author: A Husband, Father and Principal with a focus on learning, leading and connecting with others.

This past year has seen incredible changes in education and in our society. No one could have predicted what has occurred due to COVID-19 and how it is still impacting us. Educators have been challenged in so many ways, yet also have grown through these experiences. This past year has not been easy on educators but some have found a way to make the best of the situation to support students and each other. In many ways, education is being re-invented right in front of us and leadership is being re-defined. However, this is not true for all educators and leaders. Why do some people have failures but still push forward and find success while others cannot get out of their own way and stay stuck with the past?  I think many leaders ask themselves these same types of questions as they are driven by how they can provide support to others and they want to maximize their opportunities. From my perspective, the importance is knowing “what is within your grasp” for each challenge and then focusing your attention and being intentional with your efforts with those endeavors.

Leaders need to recognize that everything that happens is within 1 of 3 areas:

1. What is within their control 
2. What is out of their control 
3. What is within their influence 

How leaders handle the challenges and experiences they face determines the effectiveness of their leadership. It is important they recognize which area each circumstance falls under.  This determines if they are able to be successful or if they struggle through the situation. Simply put, leaders must recognize “what is within their grasp” so they are not putting time/effort into areas that will not have any impact. For example:

• If it is within their control – leaders must take responsibility for the action. This includes being honest, vulnerable and authentic with those they serve. Leaders must lead the way through tough situations with their character which is demonstrated by how they handle the situations, the effort they put into the work and how they model optimism. They must communicate clearly and effectively so all stakeholders are on the same page.
• If it is out of their control – leaders must trust those they support within their system or organization. Trust is one of the most important traits leaders can demonstrate and sharing that they trust those that make decisions in these instances will help those people around them feel a sense of calm and stability so they can focus on their specific roles and the work within it. It may not always be the decision a leader wants, but when you trust those you work with you are demonstrating key character traits such as loyalty and commitment which is needed to be part of a successful team and organization.
• If it is within their influence – Leaders must be thoughtful and wise to how they handle these situations. We must remember that our purpose is to positively influence and develop others. To do this, we must love those we serve, listen to their thoughts/concerns and then work with them to help find a better way. This includes validating their efforts and helping them feel valued as part of the team. The importance must be placed on collective efficacy or teamwork.

How leaders handle situations and “what is within their grasp”, allows a leader’s influence to grow as they appropriately focus on solving problems and serving others. It also allows a leader to connect with others by demonstrating “what can I give” to others and leading the way with authentic and transformational leadership. Each of the 3 mentioned areas above provides leaders with opportunities to demonstrate who they are as a person and leader, provide the vision for their school and take action through their efforts/actions to support others.

A single person can make a significant difference.  Leadership entails skills that can be developed over time. By understanding “what is within your grasp” as a leader you will be able to be proactive, demonstrate strength in challenging times and yet model the vulnerability that unites people behind a shared vision. True leadership occurs by intentional efforts when you work extremely hard to improve your own learning and that leads to growth. It is never too late to change or adapt to create something better. We owe that to our students and staff that we serve. I encourage you to reflect and better understand “what is within your grasp” as a leader. Comment below or reach out to me at leadlearnerperspectives@gmail.com

Learn

Engage

Adapt

Delegate

Empower

Reflect

Serve

As we enter the new calendar year there will be many SM posts about “your 1 word”, Hopes for 2021 and much more. These all are valuable and can have impact as it provides Hope as it helps someone reflect, find gratitude and move forward.  As many of you recall from earlier posts, I do reflect often and value this important aspect of leadership. Recently, I was reflecting upon my journey and where I am currently at as a leader and how do I find new opportunities for growth.  I think many leaders ask themselves these same types of questions as many educators are driven by how they can provide support or help others and they want to maximize their opportunities. The challenge is knowing how to turn the page on your leadership journey and how do you reinvent yourself as a leader for continuous growth. I must remember that leadership is a privilege. When someone is in a leaders role, your influence may affect the trajectories of peoples entire future careers (and often their lives).  This blog post shares some insights I have about my own journey and helps me maximize the opportunities I have so I can be the best version of myself as a leader.

Leadership is the moments and experiences you provide for others – The people you serve may remember your PD and style of leadership. But they will remember more vividly all the little things you do for them. How you encourage others, support and inspire them. I must remember to find value in these opportunities that really make the monumental difference for others.  They happen every day and can happen every hour.  Taking the time to listen to someone’s concerns, share a note of praise and just be there for them may be some of the most significant things I can do this year moving forward with those I serve.

Keep the focus on people and family first – In my role there are constant demands to increase academic student performance, respond to emails, complete reports and justify our school goals. I get that these are important but I must remain focused on people first.  Great schools exist because of its people, not because of a singular program, technology or fancy building. I must continue to stay true to people and find ways to value them and what they bring to our school community.  One of the most important things to do is remind your staff that family comes first. I must remember to model this by not emailing staff on weekends (unless absolutely necessary) and giving staff grace when they need to leave a little early to get to their child’s b-ball game, medical appointment etc..

Recognize others and be happy for their accomplishments – I must admit, there are times when I too, do want and need to be validated for my efforts.  It is a basic human instinct.  But I must also remember that I must stay focused on helping others and if I do that then in turn, I will grow too.  I do hope my staff will remember how I encourage them, treat each person in our school like they are important and value their contributions.  It is important to celebrate their wins or areas of growth as that will stimulate further growth and it cements what our focus is on in our building – people and their growth.  As Simon Sinek shares, “Leadership is not about being in charge. It’s about taking care of those in your charge.”

Lead with optimism and fuel it with passion – Leading the work in schools is demanding and in many cases overwhelming with uncertainty, negativity and demands placed upon us.  I must find ways to lead with optimism and fuel that positivity with a desire to help others (which is my passion).  People can sense someone’s emotion and that can either ignite or distinguish their own efforts for growth. The more I can model for others how to lead with positivity and be focused on intentional efforts to grow, lead with vulnerability and lean into conversations then it can help them connect with me in an authentic way.  I must be humble in my confidence yet courageous in my character as I model vulnerability and share my mistakes. This creates a shared ownership or collective efficacy in our work that ultimately will lead to trust.

A single person can make a significant difference.  Everyone has the same opportunities in life. However, some people are content with the status quo, don’t take the time to reflect and are not willing to continually learn.  This blog post shares some of my reflections as I take the next steps in my leadership journey and how I can help others grow. As John Maxwell shares, “Leaders become great, not because of their power, but because of their ability to empower others.” It will also help me to remain humble and stay hungry for growth as a leader.  True leadership occurs by intentional efforts when you work extremely hard to improve your own learning and that leads to growth. I encourage all leaders to reflect upon your experiences to help define your next steps. When you can self-analyze your past and what you learned from those experiences, it allows you to focus on spending the right efforts towards building excellence. It is never too late to change or adapt to create something better. We owe that to our students and staff that we serve. Comment below or reach out to me at leadlearnerperspectives@gmail.com

Learn

Engage

Adapt

Delegate

Empower

Reflect

Serve

When we think of the concept of a leader, we picture someone who has found success, things come easily for them and they are respected by everyone.  While some of this may be true, in reality many leaders would share with you their journey as a leader has been anything but smooth, has consisted of many challenges and long hours of work. Furthermore, many leaders would share with you they have had more failures than successes.  As we think about this further, why do some people stop growing when they have setbacks while others push forward and continue to strive for excellence.  How do failures refine leadership?  Here are some perspectives and what I have learned from my own failures. This awareness helped me to recognize that “Failure is not the opposite of success. It is part of success.”

1. Importance of reflection – Trying new strategies is important for growth and most of these resulted in failed attempts.  This has caused frustration and setbacks but over time I have come to recognize that growth doesn’t happen just by trying a new approach but by the reflection of the experience. When we reflect it is natural to think of our setback but we must refocus our mindset on our efforts to improve by recognizing how to be more strategic, consistent in our work and intentional with our purpose.  In any moment, we have 2 options:  we can step forward into growth and lean into our experiences or step back to where we do what we have always done.  Fear is what holds most people back from trying something new. However, the amount of fear is the same in people who are reluctant to try something new and for those that take the steps of change. I encourage you to reflect upon your last opportunity where you tried something new and why it worked or why not and most importantly – what will you do differently next time?

2. Be the Leader you would follow – Early in my leadership career I was mis-guided about what I thought a leader should be. This included how to behave with others, my approach to situations and my day to day focus. After honest conversations with the staff I served, which was not easy, I recognized I needed to focus on being ME. I strived to be the leader that I would follow if I was a classroom teacher. I focused on my character and how I treat others by being sincere, authentic, admitting my mistakes and leading with positivity. I should always help the other person feel as if they are the most important person in the schoolhouse. I now believe that Modeling is the tipping point and is supported by our listening and communication. Leaders know lots of information but who we are matters more.  How we treat others will be more impactful than any PD or well crafted email that we can send.

3. Make it about others – Having a title is irrelevant in today’s society as any person can be a leader.  Leadership is not about your title but how you empower others and influence their actions and behaviors that lead to growth.  This anonymous quote resonates with me:  “If serving others is below you, then leadership is beyond you”.  There are many long hours of a leader’s job involving deadlines, reports, hours of supervision and endless emails and phone calls. All of these are important parts of the job. But when we struggle to remember our purpose it may be helpful to remember this scenario:  during your first interview for a teaching position remember what you said you were going to do for students as you sat in the interview chair.  You can probably remember that emotion, nerves and excitement that focused on helping others. Those same emotions are what we need to remember about leading others – it comes back to the heart and focuses on others.  There is a quote that John Maxwell has shared many times that inspires me about my work with others: “Humility is not thinking less of yourself but rather it’s thinking of yourself less.  If we focus our attention, time and energy by pouring ourselves into others then our influence increases”.

4. Mindset is most important – Leading others causes many hard conversations. At times, we can get sidetracked on procedures, policies and traditions – these are not bad things but they are not the most significant part of helping lead others. It is our mindset. There will be tough moments but I try to remind myself to never have a bad day but recognize the opportunities we each have in a day to make it special. This phrase by George Corous reminds me of the importance of being optimistic:“Being positive doesn’t mean ignoring the negative. Being positive means overcoming the negative”.  One way to be positive is to show gratitude towards others and build others up. This can be done by handwritten notes, sharing genuine praise and simply listening to someone when they need it.  There are many challenges and some will result in setbacks. This could be angry patrons, staff sharing negative vibes behind your back or others wanting “what we have always done”.  Leaders must remember, when you cannot control what is happening, we must challenge ourselves to control the way you respond to what is happening. This is where you will get your power and motivation from to press forward.

5. Connect to other leaders – Leadership and Learning are indispensable to each other. Results happen over time, not overnight. You must work hard, stay consistent and be patient. Yes, you can do this alone by reading, podcasting and writing. However, you can go much further if you invest time to connect to other leaders through developing your PLN. Connecting with others allows you to grow in your vulnerability to share failures and experiences, listen to others as they share feedback and apply it to your setting. As leaders continue to grow, they will strive to reinvent themselves and find new ways to stretch their thinking. This results in innovative practices and growth and can be most effectively done by a connected network. This can also positively impact those you serve as when a leader takes risks, then teachers will be much more likely to take risks; resulting in students taking more academic risks too. 

  Everyone has the same opportunities in life. However, some people are content with the status quo, don’t take the time to reflect and are not willing to continually learn.  When you analyze your failures, it helps you to remember the things you have accomplished, your setbacks and what you need to do to continue to grow as a leader.   It helps to make you humble and stay hungry for growth.  True leadership occurs by intentional efforts when you work extremely hard to improve your own learning and that leads to growth. I encourage all leaders to reflect upon your failures as that is part of the growth process in leadership. When you can self-analyze your past and what you learned from those experiences, it allows you to focus on spending the right efforts towards building excellence. It is never too late to change or adapt to create something better. We owe that to our students and staff that we serve. Comment below or reach out to me at leadlearnerperspectives@gmail.com

Learn

Engage

Adapt

Delegate

Empower

Reflect

Serve

As I progress in my journey and role as an educator, things have become more clear.  This is even true during a pandemic and despite many new challenges this year, I have continued to evolve in my thinking around leadership. During my early morning workouts I listen to podcasts to help find time to intentionally learn around leadership topics.  One of the recent podcasts was describing finding leaders is similar to the analogy like mining for gold in our history of our country. This resonated with me and left me thinking about this at a deeper level. The speaker mentioned that when you mine for gold you must search long, uncover lots of dirt and typically there is no gold but rocks/dirt. But if you search hard enough, look in the right spots then you may be fortunate enough to find gold. This helped me to process where I am at in my journey as I want to stay humble and hungry as a leader. I recognize I have lots of faults, but still I want to learn and grow into a more impactful leader and help others by influencing their thinking, developing their skills and giving them confidence to help influence their growth as a leader. As I was thinking about leadership and my journey, I think this applies in the following ways about developing leadership:

Finding a Mentor 

I truly believe all educators go into their roles to be great and have a desire to help others. But along the way, life gets busy and in many cases, well intentioned educators become stagnant and stop growing. In large part, this is because they never found a Mentor. The Mentor is someone who can help coach, inspire, support and develop their skills.  I have to admit, I am not sure if I have ever had a true mentor or someone that was willing to invest small amounts of time in myself. Fortunately, I have found a strong PLN that has been transformational and pushes my thinking. If you do have a mentor, it is important that you:

• Ask them for honest feedback
• Watch how they model leadership
• Reflect on How do they uplift and support others
• What do they do to continue to grow
• Ask what skills are your strengths and how can they be elevated
• Work with them so you can take true leadership opportunities

Being a Mentor

If you are in education long enough you will have the chance to be a mentor to someone new or someone just beginning a new role. In these instances, we each have an opportunity to choose – be their mentor or simply support them as a colleague. While both are important, there is a distinct difference. When you have the opportunity to be the mentor that means you are committing to intentionally spending some time with the other person, leaning into their conversations to learn who they are, develop trust and share that you want to help them succeed. It also means you must have honest conversations about what they do well and areas they can improve. Obviously, the other person must be at the point in their career where they are ready to have a mentor (see below) or otherwise your efforts will be lost.

Finding People who want to be leaders

In my role as an administrator, my focus in recent years has been foremost on “finding potential leaders so I can help them develop their strengths and create sustainable change for our school community.” I have learned the importance of the value of a strong team and recognize that despite my best efforts, our school will be much more impactful for kids if we are a stronger team of many leaders compared just to myself leading. My goal has been on developing and influencing others. I have had the pleasure to work with many wonderful people who care about kids and work hard and do have a positive impact. But that doesn’t mean they all have the desire to be leaders.  So here are some things I look for in people that tell me if they have the innate abilities to develop as a leader. Very simply, I focus on Attitude not Aptitude but I ask myself are they:

• Gifted – Does someone have the skillset within them that allows them to connect with others easily, see the big picture, communicate effectively and do they influence others.  If you want to know who your leaders are – when you have staff together and people can sit anywhere, ask yourself who do they sit by?  This doesn’t always mean that person is a positive leader but that person does have influence; and influence is a critical component to leadership.
• Grounded – One of the most important traits of leadership that I see in many quality leaders is character.  Someone’s character is a defining point that allows sustained success. So in my role with developing others, I see if someone has true character. In other words, do they care more about themselves or do they care about others. For example, if you look at someone’s professional social media are they always in every picture or are the pictures focused on others? This is a tipping point to telling you are they “a giver to others or a taker”. 
• Growing – Leadership is a process not an event. It takes time and requires that someone is willing to give a little more and work a little harder. Many educators do lead at times, but only a few aspire to become level 4 or 5 leaders where others follow them because they develop and influence others. In my work, I do believe all educators do lead and can become leaders. I strive to provide opportunities for anyone to grow as a leader and provide them feedback, listen to their needs and support their work. That is important and all of my staff deserve that.  However, I do focus much more of my energy and efforts on the top 20% as they are the ones who have committed to growing as a leader and this creates stronger teams with the concept of the multiplier effect. I intentionally sit down with these people and we discuss what they need to be challenged, empower them with opportunities to lead, discuss areas of growth and we do intentional reflection discussions. It is not perfect but we are spending intentional time on trying to help others grow into leaders.

Time is a limited resource and if you understand the importance of finding the right people it will help you over time in your work as a leader. Leadership is all about influence – nothing more and nothing less. I have reminded myself that I need to continue to look for my own mentor who can push me, serve a mentor to others and always be willing to help those that aspire to grow as leaders.  A single person can make a significant difference.  Everyone has similar opportunities in life. However, some people are content with the status quo and are not willing to continually learn to develop as a leader.   True leadership occurs by intentional efforts when you work extremely hard to improve your own learning and that leads to growth. It is never too late to change or adapt to create something better. We owe that to our students and staff that we serve. Comment below or reach out to me at leadlearnerperspectives@gmail.com

Learn

Engage

Adapt

Delegate

Empower

Reflect

Serve

If you have ever listened to a podcast involving educators they typically invite the guest to share at the beginning a little about themselves. In short, the guest tells their story or journey.  Recently, as I was listening to a podcast and heard the guest share their story that involved challenges and how they worked to get to their current status. This reminded me that everyone has a story. However, most of us have never either had the chance to share our story or even thought about what you would share if we were asked to share it with others.

There is great value when you stop, reflect upon your past and share the joys, challenges and learning experiences of your journey. It is your story. When you have the opportunity to do this you remember the precious moments that became memories and the people that you have had the chance to learn and work with.  Furthermore, it helps to keep you grounded, stay true to your core beliefs and focused on what matters most.  

When I stopped and thought about what is my story, the following were my takeaways that resonated with me that have impacted my life as an educator and my journey.

My Story and the learning experiences from it…….

• Who I am as a person is more important than the title of my position.
• How I treat others makes a more significant impact than any email I will send or PD that I can ever lead.
• My greatest successes were the result of collaborative teamwork with others. It was through our collective hard work and desire that we achieved great success.
• There have been many setbacks, but with each one I learned the value of staying true to my core beliefs.
• Growth has occurred because my passion to strive for excellence overcame setbacks and I was willing to give a little more, work a little harder. Growth has had as much to do with my attitude than my aptitude.
•  Despite the long work hours and overwhelming amount of tasks, it is fairly simple – it is all about supporting others and helping them find success.
• We all make mistakes despite our best efforts. Don’t be hard on yourself but rather use each day as a reset and focus on being the best version of yourself.
• If you want to grow as a leader, don’t wait for others to come to you. Instead, recognize you can add value to any setting and if you want to grow then focus on intentional tasks to get you there. Your growth is your responsibility.
• Don’t compare yourself to others but rather focus on you and are growing in your current role. If you maximize your opportunities in your current role then others will notice you.
• Reflecting upon your experience is the key to growth. This allows you to stretch yourself, formalize your thinking and allows you to be open to new ideas that stimulate further opportunities.
• Your legacy is more important than your resume. In other words, how you help develop others is more important than the accomplishments you put on paper. It is about people – always.

A single person can make a significant difference.  Everyone has the same opportunities in life. However, some people are content with the status quo, don’t take the time to reflect and are not willing to continually learn.  When you analyze your story, it helps you to remember the things you have accomplished, your setbacks and what you need to do to continue to grow as a leader.   It helps to make you humble and stay hungry for growth.  True leadership occurs by intentional efforts when you work extremely hard to improve your own learning and that leads to growth. I encourage all leaders to reflect upon your story. When you can self-analyze your past and what you learned from those experiences, it allows you to focus on spending the right efforts towards building excellence. It is never too late to change or adapt to create something better. We owe that to our students and staff that we serve. Comment below or reach out to me at leadlearnerperspectives@gmail.com

Learn

Engage

Adapt

Delegate

Empower

Reflect

Serve

During complex times keeping things simple and focused on the right work is most important. This is easier said than done.  There is no easy way, no secret but simply a focus and intentional efforts to stay true to your core beliefs.  How this is achieved may vary from one leader to another, but I have found that keeping in mind simple but powerful statements, quotes  and ideas resonate with me.  I think it is because they stir up emotion. Emotion drives my passion and keeps me humble to recognize I can always get better and hungry to learn.  Here are my perspective on Words to remember for Leaders and the key areas of leadership they represent.

Culture

• Be the thermostat not the thermometer

• It’s people, not programs, that make school great
• “Confidence” is the most powerful thing a principal can give a teacher and a teacher can give a student
• Shout praise, whisper criticism

Working with others

• Better to Under promise and then over deliver
• Raise the praise – minimize the criticize
• 1 person cannot make a team, but 1 person can break a team
• The conversation is the relationship

Leadership Growth

• Don’t focus on change as much as you focus on growth
• Leadership isn’t about being in charge. Leadership is about taking care of those in your charge – Simon Sinek
• Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts – Einstein
• You don’t have to be great to serve others, but you do have to serve others to be great
• We shouldn’t expect kids to learn the way we teach, we should strive to teach the way they learn – David Geurin
• Go slow to go fast
• The difference between today and tomorrow is us
• Never lose sense of passion, purpose or pride
• Leaders train people well enough so they can leave but leaders treat them well so they don’t want to – Richard Branson

Core Beliefs

• Be firm with your principles but flexible with your practices – David Geurin
• You can never go wrong by doing the right thing – Mark Twain 
• Educators are not in it for the income, they are in it for the outcome 
• Lead from your feet, not your seat

This year is unlike no other due to so many external factors and the constant unknowns. How leaders maximize positive momentum for their work and their teams is through consistency and a focus.  True leadership occurs by intentional efforts when you work extremely hard to improve your own leadership.  I encourage all leaders to reflect upon your past experiences or failures as you strive for greater growth. I am curious what statements or ideas resonate with you and help you to stay focused with intentional efforts.  This will allow you to focus on spending the right efforts towards the important work of leading others. It is never too late to change or adapt to create something better. We owe that to our students and staff that we serve. Comment below or reach out to me at leadlearnerperspectives@gmail.com

Learn 

  Engage 

    Adapt 

       Delegate 

         Empower 

           Reflect  

             Serve 

Leading the work within a school is a significant opportunity and responsibility. It is a great opportunity as you can impact the lives of so many students and help set them up for success. Likewise, it is a big responsibility as you determine their current experience and impact potentially 3 generations including their parents, student themselves and potential children. The experience you provide for others as far as the skills, attitudes and beliefs and how that will lead them throughout life is the purpose of our work. When you reflect upon these words, it may seem daunting and overwhelming.  However, I believe this helps one to recognize the importance of Collaborative Leadership.  It is vital that leaders continually grow with their skill set, but to maximize their impact, leaders understand developing others through a culture of Collaborative Leadership has much greater return and stronger foundation over time.

Through my experiences of leading others and learning from other leaders, here are key components to creating a Culture of Collaborative Leadership and some practical examples of this in action in our school.

Create a culture of Trust to set the Vision

All work starts with people and ends with people.  It really is that simple. But the work of schools is most complex as we strive to create a forward thinking vision of teaching and learning for the school. This is best accomplished when leaders create trusting relationships.  Leaders create trust over time through their Character  (how we interact with others) and through their Competence (how well we do our job). Specifically, we must find ways to have consistent 1:1 interactions with our school community. I recognize the more opportunities I can interact with students, staff and families in small settings then I have a greater chance to help them feel cared for and valued.  Currently, our admin team creates “Motivational Monday videos” which are 1-2 minute video reflections that we share weekly with our students and families. We reflect upon our lives and share reflections that revolve around character but demonstrate vulnerability and authenticity. We developed this idea from the work of @Joe_Sanfelippo and his “1 minute walk to work”. We have found that our videos create regular opportunities for human interaction and help build relationships. Ultimately, we strive to create the conditions where people feel cared for, supported and nurtured. As the principal, I believe I can work on this daily and it starts by modeling the behaviors we want from others in my words, actions and attitudes. A Vision statement or mission statement truly are just words, but it is through how people interact with each other and treat each other that models the culture and vision of your school.

A focus on equity – how do you help ALL students, staff and families

Collaborative leadership at the heart means the “collective working together to get desired results”. For schools, the collective means ALL staff, ALL students and ALl families have opportunities to be heard, share ideas and be part of the work of the school community.  We have found the following ways most efficient and successful as a way to support this work:

• Have feedback mechanisms in place on consistent basis

For our students, our admin team meets with students frequently through “feedback loops” where we have 3-4 questions and listen to our students. We then share the themes back with our staff to help plan our next steps of our school purpose.  For our staff, we strive to provide several points of feedback throughout the year either through 1:1 listening sessions, google forms or simply stopping by their rooms to chat.  Listening to those we serve is a priority for us.  For our parents/guardians, we use quarterly “Coffee with Principals” where anyone can come and share ideas, concerns and be part of our work.  Currently, we are getting ready to launch with our families a Book Study where staff and families will together read and discuss strategies and skills middle school students need to thrive.

•  Set a vision for your school and reflect upon the work frequently

Our vision is focused on being student driven and centered on the needs of our learners.  Schools must constantly adapt to changing times and the COVID-19 Pandemic has resulted in even greater feedback from our school community to best meet their needs.

Build Capacity in Others to lead

As we lead the work of our school community, we have always focused on the importance of “growth”. In other words, as professionals we recognize that in order to strive for excellence we cannot focus on being perfect but rather being intentional with our efforts and try to get a little better each day.  Building the capacity of our people through a culture of collaboration and providing opportunities for them to be empowered is the most important work I can lead for our school.

For our teachers, we strive to have our Professional Learning teacher designed and teacher led as much as possible. We also incorporate a Genius Hour where they have choice upon their learning.  In recent years,we have shifted towards each staff member having a Personal Growth Plan which is simply where they describe the areas they want to grow in, the strategies they will work on and how that will impact our students and school goals.  This poster is displayed within their classrooms as we believe that being visible and intentional is a driving motivation for many.

We also recognized the importance of empowering our students so they develop as leaders and they can determine the type of school we have.  We do this through several student groups including  Eagle Ambassadors, Sources of Strength and Student Council. The work they lead includes running a Welcome 6th grade Eagle Camp, leading school tours, hosting parent events, working with elementary schools, leading SEL work with our students and providing input on administrative decisions.

As Principal, one of my core beliefs, is developing others and this also includes partnering with our parents.  We are so proud of the work our parents/guardians support our school with including our Parent Ed Camps that focus on SEL topics and mental health.  This allows our families to have a much greater understanding of how to support their child’s needs.  Each year we strive to meet the needs of our families at deeper levels, so this year we have created “Parent Liaison for new families” where our own parents work with new families to help them be connected and answer questions.

Evidence of impact

As we work with our school community, it is most essential to determine if our efforts are providing the growth towards the results we need.  We call this “evidence of impact”.  To determine if your strategies are working, you must use data and feedback from others and analyze this at regular intervals.  It is important  to use the right data. As Albert Einstein has said, “Not everything that can be counted counts, not everything that counts can be counted”.  We can collect lots of data but it is vital to analyze the quantitative and qualitative data to determine if the school is making progress. We do this through analyzing the academic skills of our students, how connected we are as a school community and listening to the needs of all stakeholders so we can pivot, adjust and be flexible with our practices. In our current pandemic with COVID, our work with our staff in the academic area has solely focused on enhancing our feedback to our students. We believe that feedback is the key to deeper learning and we measure this by how well our students demonstrate, create, and articulate the processes and skills of their classes.

A single person can make a significant difference.  But one person doesn’t make a team but one person can break a team.  Leaders must create the conditions of their school where collaborative leadership is the central point that all work revolves around.  The focus and work of the leaders do make a difference as they set the tone and influence a school’s culture.  As a leader I must adapt and understand what I must do differently to be the most effective leader for our school community.  True leadership occurs by intentional efforts when you work extremely hard to improve your own learning and that leads to an improved school. I encourage all leaders to reflect upon how you build Collaborative Leadership within your school. When you can self-analyze your past and what you learned from those experiences, it allows you to focus on spending the right efforts towards building excellence. It is never too late to change or adapt to create something better. We owe that to our students and staff that we serve. Comment below or reach out to me at leadlearnerperspectives@gmail.com

Learn

Engage

Adapt

Delegate

Empower

Reflect

Serve

Each school year inevitably gets very busy in the fall as academics are in full swing, professional learning is occurring and there is an insurmountable amount of logistics to take care of.  Most important is building culture within the school environment and engaging families.  This year, despite my best efforts to stay positive and organized, it has seemed like the workload has increased to a level that I can no longer keep up with.  In fact, the stress of the job has had a significant impact upon my work life balance.  

As I strived to get back to a better version of myself, I recognized how I was leading had changed. Change in the sense of what my focus had been had shifted and this had allowed me to find time for professional growth, personal well being  and positional growth.  Here is how I re-imagined leadership:

1. Focus on the things that I can control  

As a leader, we must prioritize our work and know what must be done now and what can wait (and what may not get done and that is ok).  This prioritization allowed me to focus on things  I can control and those that truly  make a difference …..supporting its people. In other words, I blocked out the negative posts and naysayers who constantly found what was wrong instead of trying to help find solutions.  Furthermore, when we think of “focusing on things we can control” that specifically includes the following:

• Put others first and focus on the best in people
• Empower others to help make a difference
• Celebrate the successes of our work and embrace our failures
• Make decisions on what is best for kids

2. Communication must be adapted to meet the needs of all stakeholders.  This means the information I  share with students, staff and families must  be adapted to each group. For example, for our staff I have strived to build in many positive feedback methods or ways to help them feel valued. Specifically, I have tried to find more time for 1:1 conversation, written notes and ways to build them up. They need it and deserve it.  For Families, it includes providing listening sessions to hear their struggles and suggestions on how we can improve. For our students, the communication included making video clips to connect with our students while they were distance learning. Overall the adapted communication should be:

• Concise 
• Consistent and authentic
• Connect back to the work of the school 
• Provide platforms for feedback 

3. School Community Engagement 

As leaders innovate ways to move schools forward, sometimes we forget one of the most essential ways is to involve the people outside of the building. In other words, it is important to build partnerships with the parents/school community and strive to make meaningful, trusting connections with the parents that you can partner with on behalf of the students.  To create this climate, leaders must provide the platform for parents and reasons for them to work/learn with you.  This rapport is developed one conversation at a time when you get the chance to listen to the parent and share your beliefs on how you want to help support their child.  Does this take time – most definitely; but creating trusting relationships with the parents is one of the most important things leaders can do.  This year I have incorporated many daily 1:1 Zoom calls with a parent and their child in an effort to help a struggling student.  It also has included Zoom sessions with all parents as a way to be transparent about our work. I have reminded myself the best way to develop parent engagement is by listening and then supporting them to help be part of the solution.

4. Create Trust with those you serve 

Trust is developed by small interactions….relationships are built 1:1. The more opportunities I can interact with students, staff and families in small settings then I have a greater chance to help them feel valued. I have strived to create regular opportunities for human interaction that builds relationships by being more visible in classrooms, in car line and at student events.  I have also strived to create the conditions or environment where people feel cared for, supported and nurtured. This simply means to put people first – always.  Modeling the behaviors we want from others is the best way to set the tone in a school environment. How I respond with words, actions and my attitudes will reflect the mindset we set in our building.This will influence others in their actions and their actions will become habits over time.  Habits will become the culture of a building and this is how you build trust 

Leaders remove barriers and find ways to turn problems into opportunities. They set the tone and have the single greatest influence upon a school’s culture.  As a leader I tried to adapt and understand what I must do differently to be the most effective leader for our school community during this pandemic.  This year is one where my leadership approach has had a”pivot”. I hope this adaptation will allow not only stronger leadership for those I serve but also for me to find a better work life balance and put people at the center of my decisions and time. True leadership occurs by intentional efforts when you work extremely hard to improve your own learning and that leads to an improved school. I encourage all leaders to reflect upon your prior experiences and recognize how you have adapted your work. When you can self-analyze your past and what you learned from those experiences, it allows you to focus on spending the right efforts towards building trust. It is never too late to change or adapt to create something better. We owe that to our students and staff that we serve. Comment below or reach out to me at leadlearnerperspectives@gmail.com

Learn

Engage

Adapt

Delegate

Empower

Reflect

Serve

I remembered the day before I began my first day as a Principal.  While I was excited, I was also very nervous and unsure about the journey I was about to begin.  I thought I was prepared but the more I thought about the “what if’s”, the more I recognized I was not entirely sure I had all the answers.  I wanted to help impact others and support their work on a broader scale beyond my single classroom that I had as a teacher. I knew that also meant my responsibilities were also much greater too. Those memories seem very distant now…but at the same time I feel similar emotions as we embark further into this school year.   The impact of COVID-19, social justice, budget shortfalls, staffing challenges all make this year similar in many ways.  Despite my best efforts to be ready for this year, I know I will not have all the answers. I also know that as a building leader, there is an immense amount of responsibility upon my shoulders as we must keep our students and staff safe while providing high quality learning experiences – all during a pandemic.  The expectations from those outside our building are in many cases unrealistic due to the many challenges and new practices that must be implemented this year.  As I was thinking about this year, I was reminded of the importance of Blazing my own trail as a leader as there is no principal manual for COVID so I will do my best to lead our school community through this year and grow in the process.

The areas below are 5 areas from my perspective that I must incorporate into our work and keep as my “True North” to help keep my purpose right in front of me.  These 5 areas are what all leaders consistently do within their work. These include:

Challenge the status Quo – It is important to remember that teachers will only take risks when the principal takes risks.  From my perspective, challenging the status quo means simply you “try new strategies in a pursuit of an unknown better”. In other words, you are not striving for perfection but rather learning through the process as the focus is on growth. This year is different and if schools will be successful it is because they had teachers who were willing to adapt, pivot and try something new. This can be best achieved as leaders keep the following in mind:

• Importance of having “worthy rivals”.  This is not referring to other leaders who you try to beat our outdo, but rather your professional learning network (PLN) that supports you, helps motivate and provides honest feedback. They can be a springboard for new ideas.
• People outside of your school rely upon communication for their perspectives, so consider what within communication can you innovate this year to connect with families and showcase the positives from your school.  
• Don’t settle for “it’s working” when it can become what attracts great teacher leaders to your community and motivates them to stay and grow within their profession.  At the same time, what makes students excited to come to school?
• As a starting point, help your staff remember their “why” as that will give them the courage to lead and try new things.

Inspire a shared Vision – This year has so many variables and so much new information.  Teachers and your staff may get overwhelmed. It is important that leaders help their staff members remember their purpose and that together we can accomplish anything.  This can be achieved by:

• Always focusing on relationships first.
• Build culture every minute, every day.  This is done through simple conversations and in many cases, listening and being empathetic.
• Use stories as a way to connect staff together so there is a common shared understanding of the work.  
• Bring it back to the kids.  
• Leaders must be a filter. There is so much information thrown at leaders that then is supposed to be shared with teachers. Their key is to only share with staff the key information they must know so their plates don’t get too full.  Keep it simple for teachers so they recognize it is about making connections to students and making learning personal and authentic.
• Communicate to your school community in an authentic way, effectively and efficiently. This is achieved by using consistent messaging , being simple and straightforward. It is also important to be genuine and use multi modal means of communication.

Empower others to act – Leaders must recognize our key role is to help Influence others and develop your team.   This is achieved by investing time with them so you get to know each person and what motivates them.  This allows you to Inspire them to try new approaches and rekindle their “why” they became an educator.  It is also important to seek their input as not only will that allow you greater perspective but also to avoid your own personal blindspots.  It is also important not to rely on the same teacher leaders for everything – find ways to incorporate different people and give them opportunities to contribute.  As leaders, find ways to get your staff excited about what they can accomplish if they work together and then get out of their way and let them do their magic.  

Model the Change – The greatest factor that causes change within a school is when a leader models the change.  People respect a leader by their Competence (which is how well they do their job) and their Character (which is how they do their job).  It takes more than 1 conversation to influence change, it takes repeated efforts that demonstrate consistency, common purpose and resilience. Leaders must remember their words and actions can inspire others and we should never forget that a 30 second hallway conversation may be the important part of a teacher’s day.  In addition, when leaders take responsibility for their professional growth, the teachers notice and that inspires them to also take advantage of opportunities to grow and learn together. Learning becomes the culture of a staff where the principal is a lead learner.

Enlarge the Heart – Culture is the most important thing in a school. This is true every year but this year – the culture of great schools is the factor that will allow schools to find success in the most challenging of times. Leaders must focus more on experiences for staff and help them to remember why they do what they do. Educators don’t get burned out because they don’t want to work hard, they get burned out because they forget why they do the work. We cannot just tell our staff we value them – we must show them. The little things (ex. Handwritten notes, stopping by their room during their plan to check in on them, giving them grace when they make mistakes) go a long way to strengthening a culture. 

This year is unlike no other due to so many external factors and the constant unknowns. Leaders must keep common principles in front of them so they can focus on their worth daily.  The areas mentioned above will help leaders navigate through the storm of COVID-19 impact to help their school have a great year.  True leadership occurs by intentional efforts when you work extremely hard to improve your own leadership.  I encourage all leaders to reflect upon your past experiences or failures as you strive for greater growth by keeping your “True North” as your focal point. This will allow you to focus on spending the right efforts towards the important work of leading others. It is never too late to change or adapt to create something better. We owe that to our students and staff that we serve. Comment below or reach out to me at leadlearnerperspectives@gmail.com

Learn 

  Engage 

    Adapt 

       Delegate 

         Empower 

           Reflect  

             Serve 

Years ago we were on a family vacation driving late at night on a remote highway in an unfamiliar area.  To make matters worse, a driving rainstorm occurred that made driving hazardous.  There were many times we considered pulling over on the side of the road but the shoulders of the road were too narrow and there was traffic behind us that made us keep going.  The drive that night ended safely as we reached our destination but it was very stressful and we had many different emotions.

As I think about this school year, there are some comparisons to that night that I remember that give me similar emotions as we encounter COVID-19 and the impact as we planned to start school. Our school year has finally begun and despite some challenges, we collectively pulled together for a great start to our school year. But we started in Distance Learning and now we prepare to switch to a new format of Hybrid Learning.  This new format will bring a new wave of emotions and challenges that we will need to navigate through to find success.  This blog post highlights how leadership responds to challenges and allows schools to navigate through the storm to find success for students, staff and families.  Here are some areas leaders can use to “Navigate through the storm.”

Remember your “WHY”

I have learned not to get caught up in the never ending workload, stress, external demands upon our time and frustrations that dominate our thoughts. Yes, hard work is needed and there are times I get frustrated. However, I strive to focus on the right work which is helping others feel valued and supporting their work.   It’s important to continue to make positive connections, challenge the status quo and communicate effectively to all stakeholders.  If you make decisions from your “why” and use your core principles to guide your behaviors, then you will be supporting efforts to help others which is our purpose.

Firm with your Principles, Flexible with your Practices

For educators this year is constant change. We are not used to that but due to ever changing health guidance, COVID cases changing and supporting teachers for various types of learning formats, many of our “normal” methods may not serve our staff and students the best.  Leaders must know what their principles are and what they stand for. We must also be willing to adjust how those principles are carried out to best serve the school community. My principles for our school community are relationships and communication. Both of these principles are still a focus this year. However, I must be willing to innovate ways to make connections with students/staff and effectively communicate to staff and parents that is clear, consistent and use multimodal formats. The phrase “Be Firm with your Principles, but Flexible with your Practices” is from education leader @DavidGeurin and it helps me to remember our purpose can remain the same but can be carried out differently for a situation. 

Mindset 

As a leader, you must be comfortable with criticism that others will launch at you.  The key is to focus on your “mindset” and continue to be positive and build  your school’s culture. During turbulent times, people will look to their leaders for guidance, how to respond and reassurance that everything will be okay. Leaders recognize the importance of being authentic with staff and students but also being the calm, steady leader at the helm of the school ship.

Reflection 

When you are in tough moments not all plans will work. Some plans will need to be adjusted and others will fail. What won’t fail are people. Leaders must remember the value of working with their stakeholders to help make decisions and when things are most challenging, seek feedback and reflect upon the work so necessary adjustments can happen if needed.  When you reflect with others, it allows you to see your blindspots and potential areas that may mis-guide the important work of your school.

Serve – Lead – Inspire

As a leader, we must transfer our passion, optimism and beliefs to those we work with.  It is so important to show your team how much you care, even more so during challenging times. Smile – have fun- show kindness and positivity you want in your school.  View challenges that do arise as opportunities to grow and make a positive impact in that situation.  As educators, we went into teaching and working with kids to make a difference.  The true difference is not made when things are easy but rather when there is a difficult situation. A person’s enthusiasm attracts more leaders and energizes them to perform their best for students.  

This year is unlike no other due to so many external factors and the constant unknowns. However, like any year I will make mistakes. You cannot lead without making mistakes.  The importance is not that you make mistakes but what you learn from your mistakes. The areas mentioned above will help leaders navigate through the storm of COVID-19 impact to help their school have a great year.  True leadership occurs by intentional efforts when you work extremely hard to improve your own leadership.  I encourage all leaders to reflect upon your past experiences or failures as you strive for greater growth. This will allow you to focus on spending the right efforts towards the important work of leading others. It is never too late to change or adapt to create something better. We owe that to our students and staff that we serve. Comment below or reach out to me at leadlearnerperspectives@gmail.com

Learn 

  Engage 

    Adapt 

       Delegate 

         Empower 

           Reflect  

             Serve