Leadership Quotes

Believe in Me - Poem - Inspirational/Educational

Slowing down to move fast

The change process has many steps ... much research and many articles and books write about and describe the steps in the process. In "real life" and in practice, changes increase the tension in the proverbial rubber band. The astute leader knows to pull/stretch/push to a point before breaking the band ... In my current experiences, many changes have been presented, implemented, planned, and "digested" ... now it is time to let the momentum continue, the changes set in, and allow for some breathing room. My aim is to reduce the pressure on the rubber band, hold steady with what seeds have been planted, and move from change to support. Support for new directions, support for new attitudes, support for new experiences, and support for new approaches. What is quite affirming is the degree of acceptance, the high degree of acceptance for the current reality. This new reality differs greatly from the reality once known at my school. This reality allows for learning support in the classrooms. This reality allows for innovative approaches to instruction. This reality is wonderful, rewarding, and affirming to be part of.

I am slowing down for now - in an effort to support a fast moving start! Thank you to the brave and courageous learning facilitators with whom I spend high quality time every day!

Useful iPad guide for principals from another blogger

Link to essential-ipad-guide.pdf

Change can flow smoothly with the right people

The faculty at the school where I am working are really supportive of new ideas and change. Yes, the change process is challenging, and there are a lot of unknown variables, but, post-90 days ... we are still changing, and we are still progressing, and we are still making a huge difference in the educational lives of children.

This year we started with an overview and understanding about some overall change plans including new leadership, new technology hardware and assessment. We also started with personal 1-1 meetings with the new superintendent and all teachers. These meetings allowed for clarity about mission, purpose, vision, expectations, fears, hopes, and plans. All in all, the faculty have been WONDERFUL with the new changes.

There has been a renewed energy and focus on curriculum, instruction, and assessment. Student behavior is outstanding and the school-wide focus on PBIS appears to be a success! The Board of Education has been incredibly supportive and progressive in its support of new leadership approaches and initiatives. The MAP testing has gone smoothly (thanks in a large part to the fantastic leadership of the principal, the un-ending and selfless work of the tech guru, Jim G., and a great deal of support from Daniel as well). Teachers are learning and implementing instruction with the new Interactive White Boards. Regular, job-embedded, sustained training has, is, and will continue to take place. New report cards are in the works as a direct result of teacher input about current reporting procedures.

Twenty-five percent of the staff are engaged in a voluntary on-line learning community "in - house", another twenty percent of the staff are engaged in a voluntary development and growth journey with the superintendent. Everyone is working very hard and very intentionally on behalf of students! Staff are enrolling in courses and professional development opportunities. All in all, it's a great learning community! Student achievement continues to be a source of pride at the school, the recent ISAT results (state assessment from last spring) show great results and great learning.

Each day and each week, we make collective progress toward the future. We are experimenting with Web 2.0 technologies, Voice Thread, Prezi, for example, and we are engaging students each and every day in the learning process.

I'm looking forward to keeping the community updated on our many areas of success and progress as we continue our 170 year tradition of Educating the Minds of Tomorrow.

Quick movie about time ... its value

http://therealizemovie.com/

Pennoyer's PBIS in the news!

Program accentuates the positive through supports, interventions

Comments

October 7, 2010 

By DEBORAH BAYLISS dbayliss@pioneerlocal.com

Teachers and administrators at a local elementary school are using innovative ways to help students stay on track toward academic success as well as develop good citizenship skills.

The state-funded program is called Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS).

» Click to enlarge image

Pennoyer fourth-graders Monica Knurek and Nicole Blachowski laugh Sept. 16 during lunch at the school in Norridge. Pennoyer Elementary School is implementing the state-funded Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports program to help students with academics and citizenship.
(Brian O'Mahoney/Staff Photographer)

» Click to enlarge image

Pennoyer seventh-graders James Lopez and Victor Iskra talk Sept. 16 during lunch at the school in Norridge.
(Brian O'Mahoney/Staff Photographer)

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Pennoyer third-grade teacher Sarah Adkins talks Sept. 16 with a student during lunch at the school in Norridge.
(Brian O'Mahoney/Staff Photographer)

Administrators at Pennoyer Elementary School, 5200 N. Cumberland Ave., said they find the program proactive and like that it establishes behavioral supports and social cultures needed for student success.

"This is our first year participating in the program," school Superintendent Michael Lubelfeld said. "We're participating because it's research-based and has proven success."

PBIS has a database component that tracks problems such as bullying, tardiness and non-completion of homework.

"We do not have a high incidence of bullying at the school," Lubelfeld said. "But when it does occur we provide counseling and find out what causes the student to bully. We also provide counseling for the student who was bullied and try and provide the child with the tools to protect him or herself."

Lubelfeld said the school, which serves 417 students, also reaches out to families in bullying situations or when homework is consistently not completed and have come across instances in the home that have called for intervention on the student's behalf.

Another component of the program rewards students for doing the right thing as a way to encourage others to follow the example of good citizenship.

Pennoyer uses what the school calls the "Hawk High 5s," where students receive high-fives from a teacher after the teacher observes a student demonstrating positive behavior around the school.

"Within the first two weeks, we had 384 high-fives with the goal of 500 to earn a schoolwide reward of an extra 15 minutes of recess," said school social worker Pam Stutzman.

Students can also win small prizes through raffles each week.

Professional Development - If you build it ... they will come! Reflections

OK - I'm now past the "90 day mark" as a suburban school superintendent. As a one-school district, the superintendent wears "many hats": executive leadership, personnel/HR, business/operations, communications, technology, building/grounds, you name it!  I work with an exemplary principal, one who has led the school for the past 14 years. She is fantastic, she is a wonderful leader, and she is the lead on student services, curriculum & instruction, and all school matters. She is a true partner!

During the July board meeting, we participated in team building/visioning with a Field Services Director from the IL Association of School Boards. The Board was asked to "dream" ... among other dreams for the school district, the Board indicated they wanted increased technology for students and staff, they wanted increased professional development opportunities for teachers, forward thinking and 21st Century curriculum, instruction, assessment, technology, and communications.

With that mandate, and the shared visioning experiences and desires with the principal, we set the plan into motion ... In some of the earlier blog postings, I have shared graphics (PREZI), and posts about the macro-professional development plans for the year.  I'm thrilled that more than 25% of the teachers have signed up for the Edmodo project - already we have a district Edmodo account and a district Voice Thread account. In addition, nearly 25% of the teachers have signed up for the in-depth interview/study coaching project as well.

Another extremely positive sign is the openness and welcoming attitude all teachers have shown with drop-in walk through observations, and a regular sharing of professional development opportunities. Today I shared an email from the West 40 (local Regional Office of Education - ROE/Intermediate Service Center - ISC) identifying a "web 2.0" opportunity with each participant getting a free "tool" for participating.

The point is not that teachers are signing up for workshops, the point is that the energy in the school is palatable and it is due in part to the Board's leadership, the administrative support of this leadership, and the faculty's openness to change, growth, progress, and learning.

Truly, if you build it they will come (an old adage) is proving to be a true adage in my real life experiences.

More on transitions

I find myself caught between websites, blogs, PLN's, social media experiences ... etc. ...

I'm now going to focus energy on a blog for "work" ... as opposed to a blog for a blog's sake ... I have learned tons since I entered the blogosphere last year ... now I value Twitter and the value of the PLN (Professional Learning Network), I have a new position in a new school district, and my energy and efforts are moving from general growth to coaching, guiding and leading a new system.

For now, I will focus on writing and posting to my "work site":

www.pennoyersuperintendent.lifeyo.com

I may return to the blogspot ... I may not ... I am in transition, trying to find my way ...

My New Web Presence and Effort - Including a new Blog

Commentary from Ed Week

We Must Shift From Teacher Quality to iTeaching/i Quality

More iPad app suggestions from a colleague

1. Readdledocs - 
2. Digits - a good calculator with a tape.
3. Newsy - video news source.
4. Roboform - a password manager application.
5. Kindle - reading books.
6. iBooks - reading books.
7. Quick Office HD - for creating and viewing office documents on the iPad.
8. Say It Mail It - for creating a very quick voice recording and then EASILY mailing it to myself as a reminder or to someone else.
9. ToDo - a task manager that syncs with ToodleDo via the web.
10. GPS Drive HD - a navigational unit for the iPad.
11. Doodle - an easy way to schedule appointments with many people.
12. Dragon Dictation - voice to text that can be pasted into emails or documents.
13. NPR - National Public Radio
14. USA Today - for the news junky.
15. Google Earth - pretty cool!
16. Howcast - videos on how to do anything.
17. AP News - for the news junky.
18. WordPress - for posting to my blog.
19. Solitaire City - for a get away!
20. GoodReader - pdf viewer.
21. iAnnotate PDF - a very good PDF application with similar features to Readdledocs.  (Plus, you can write and highlight with this application.)
22. DocsToGo - sync files from your computer to the iPad.

iPad apps for education

As a new user of the iPad, I am seeking (and finding) quite a few suggested applications. From colleagues in professional associations, and the Tweets from my PLN, I have been learning a TON.

The iPad is becoming a NEED rather than a WANT in terms of productivity, coaching teachers, staying connected, and leading.

Here's one link to a source of apps from one leader ...

http://www.eduleadership.org/wp-content/essential-ipad-guide.pdf

First Animoto Video

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

Pilot Choice-Based Professional Development

Recently the faculty looked at plans for growth and professional development from a multi-modal and differentiated perspective. As research about student learning shows, students learn and grow more when they have choices and a “voice” in their learning. In my experiences, adult learners also learn and grow more when they also have choices and a voice in their learning and development. As readers of the blog know, I consider myself (and all administrators) in a position to coach, guide, and mentor the professionals in our schools! It is incumbent upon we leaders to support, nurture, guide and grow the teachers and teacher leaders in our schools. My two cents worth regarding choice based adult growth has a few options. One involves learning through technology and another involves learning through analytical study with interviews and observations and coaching

From my extensive PLN (examples shared through Twitter posting) I have been exposed to countless applications and web-based offerings that teachers can use to impact student learning directly. One example that I am beginning to work with is Edmodo. Through a “facebook” like interface, with a “moodle” like infrastructure, Edmodo is my first effort at engaged, collaborative, “high tech” learning at my school. My aim is to identify 3-5 Web 2.0 instructional tools this year to interested teachers through the voluntary/pilot Edmodo project. The first of these modules will be about using Voice Thread for educators. I will report back via the blog about successes, challenges, and “take-aways” from this experience. So far, there are several teachers who have voluntarily signed up for this pilot learning-by-choice professional development initiative. Teachers can sign up at any time and they can engage in any, all, or none of these modules throughout the school year.

Another option for growth and coaching involves a teacher going through a structured interview with me; an interview typically used for selection, but in this professional development concept, one used for development. After the interview, the teacher will be observed by me, not for evaluation, but for development purposes. Among the topics in the post-interview and post-observation conferences will relate to the themes of excellence predicted to be observed from the interview, and the themes actually observed during the observations. In addition, a growth plan may be mutually developed by looking, in-depth at the interview “results” and suggestions.

By offering options and providing choice and voice, the staff development has a greater likliehood of becoming job-embedded!

My first Prezi

Pennoyer Professional Development on Prezi

Twitter - new connections for me

Recently, my interactions with Twitter have opened up new professional connections and instructional opportunities and growth plans for the school district where I am the superintendent. Twitter is a professional learning network (PLN) for me - through the tweets of others, I am linked to the educational leadership world I am excited to be a part of. Through the lists/connected groups like #edchat, I can find resources like the blog at: http://edutechintegration.blogspot.com/p/tutorials.html - endless leaders, teachers, 'techhies', around the country and the world with whom I share professional interests. Twitter is also connecting me with local news outlets for breaking news and information. I re-tweet (share others' tweets) when I feel those who follow me might like the information. From time to time I share an original tweet with a link or information or a request for information or to promote a project at my school. The social media opportunities and networking and learning and growth I am realizing and enjoying through Twitter is/are something I want to share with you with the hope you can benefit from its power as I am.

Top 50 Educational Technology Blogs ... Link from Twitter

A link from my Twitter PLN:


top 50 education technology blogs

Power/Reach of social media

This year we started a Facebook page to promote our school district and increase communication. The year started last week ... here are the stats so far:

Facebook user stats

124 monthly active users (+50 since last week)
47 people like this (+14 since last week)
14 wall posts and comments this week (+14 since last week)
791 visits this week (+415 since last week)

Wow! Talk about "reach" ... social media is amazing and powerful ... our goal is to supplement not supplant traditional communication methods ... we'll see how it goes! So far - so good.

First few days on the job ...

I enjoy my new job! It's the first time I have been "new" in 13 years ... being new is scary and energizing. Being new is made much easier when the people with whom you work are as welcoming as the people with whom I am working. Kindness, warmth, interest, engagement, these are all words that describe how everyone has been: principal, office staff, teachers, parents, members of the board, members of the community. I feel fortunate to be the new superintendent at my school/district. 

I have been visiting the classrooms in my one-school school district. I enjoy that the teachers and students appear unphased by my walk in's, walk through's, and visits. My aim is to get to know the school, the school's culture, the teachers, the students, the teaching, learning, - the whole picture.  I like what I am seeing, I like that the school has a clear sense of purpose, order, "with-it-ness". It is great to be back in a school setting (it's been 5 years since I was at the helm of a school).

I truly feel that I can make a difference in the education of the students at the school through leadership, management, focus, energy, and collaboration. We face financial challenges like most other school districts in Illinois (and the nation), we face challenges meeting the needs of global/digital learners, we face challenges meeting the needs of diverse learners, we face challenges of having to complete the same mountain of paperwork that "big" districts are responsible for.

My first few days on the job have been really good. It's a transition for me as much as it is a transition for "everyone else". I look forward to reporting on the transition over the next few days/weeks.

Standards

Clear guidance and clear standards help keep us all on the right page and accountable for success. In Illinois, the Illinois Professional Standards are great "guideposts" for teachers and administrators as they reflect on best practices, educational needs, and professional growth.

Illinois Professional Teaching Standards
#1 Content Knowledge
The teacher understands the central concepts, methods of inquiry, and structures of the discipline(s) and creates learning experiences that make the content meaningful to all students.
#2 Human Development and Learning
The teacher understands how individuals grow, develop, and learn and provides learning opportunities that support the intellectual, social, and personal development of all students.
#3 Diversity
The teacher understands how students differ in their approaches to learning and creates instructional opportunities that are adapted to diverse learners.
#4 Planning for Instruction
The teacher understands instructional planning and designs instruction based upon knowledge of the discipline, students, the community, and curriculum goals.
#5 Learning Environment
The teacher uses an understanding of individual and group motivation and behavior to create a learning environment that encourages positive social interaction, active engagement in learning, and self-motivation.
#6 Instructional Delivery
The teacher understands and uses a variety of instructional strategies to encourage students’ development of critical thinking, problem solving, and performance skills.
#7 Communication
The teacher uses knowledge of effective written, verbal, nonverbal, and visual communication techniques to foster active inquiry, collaboration, and supportive interaction in the classroom.
#8 Assessment
The teacher understands various formal and informal assessment strategies and uses them to support the continuous development of all students.
#9 Collaborative Relationships
The teacher understands the role of the community in education and develops and maintains collaborative relationships with colleagues, parents/guardians, and the community to support student learning and well-being.
#10 Reflection and Professional Growth
The teacher is a reflective practitioner who continually evaluates how choices and actions affect students, parents, and other professionals in the learning community and actively seeks opportunities to grow professionally.
#11 Professional Conduct
The teacher understands education as a profession, maintains standards of professional conduct, and provides leadership to improve student learning and well-being.