100 Posts in 100 Days This is the third post in a mini-series about lessons learned from working with parents. When I earned and accepted my first principalship, it was in a school bearing some similarity to the one where I had first taught. It was a Title I elementary school in a suburban area… More #29: When “Best Practice” Failed
100 Posts in 100 Days May 24, 2022 This isn’t the post I had pre-written and scheduled for today. But it is the post I needed write and the one that was scheduled will come another day. This morning, I was walking our dogs and listening to the podcast Renegades: Born in the USA. It… More #25: Grief
100 Posts in 100 Days Our group’s pattern of behavior had been that certain voices dominated conversations while other voices were rarely, if ever, heard. We were going to be having important decision-making conversations during this retreat and it felt essential to ensure that all perspectives were part of the dialogue. So, I came up… More #19: Talking Tokens
100 Posts in 100 Days In yesterday’s post, I shared 10 shifts I made this year in the way I plan our leadership meetings. Shift #3 was about levels of empowerment and shift #4 was about planning for decision making. Making decisions can be hard. Making decisions in a group can be harder. That “inside… More #18: Decisions, Decisions
Graphic: www.pixabay.com Part 1 of a 3 Part Series In Part 1 of this Check In/Check Out series, I described how meaningful it has been to be a member of teams that regularly utilize check in routines. The quality of our relationships and the quality of our work have both benefited. My memories of those… More Check In, Check Out (Part 2)
Making regular check-ins a ritual and routine for connecting and supporting.… More Check-In, Check-Out (Part 1)
Hello Friends and Colleagues! I trust you are off to a wonderful start to your new school year! With the first weeks behind us, I am excited to share with you the beginning of a new feature here on the website: Curated Collections. I love the excitement of walking through museums and galleries, room by… More Curated Collections: Your Learning and Leadership Docents
One week ago, a group of teacher leaders completed their two year study of literacy coaching and leadership, a journey of learning and self-discovery as educational leaders. Our culmination and commemoration included the writing of personal mission statements of coaching or leadership. Our statements are an artifact of all we have learned, believe, and aspire… More Beacons, Filters, Anchors, and Mirrors: Crafting Personal Mission Statements
This site began last October and then quickly went “quiet”. Just after launching the site, I accepted, a new leadership position at my school, moving from a focus on the Lower School to a focus on all levels in our school. Typically, this kind of role change occurs between school years rather than mid-year. Unique… More Empowerment: Moving Beyond Delegation and Establishing Great Teams
Our school leadership team, grades Preschool-12 and leaders of our operations departments, has made a commitment to each other this year to collectively grow in our effectiveness as a team. One strategy that we have recently implemented is a daily stand-up meeting, or as we call it, “The “Convo”. After all, our school mascot is… More Leadership “Convo”