Standard 6: External Development Leadership
A school executive will design structures and processes that result in community engagement, support, and ownership. Acknowledging that schools no longer reflect but, in fact, build community, the leader proactively creates with staff, opportunities for parents/guardians, community, and business representatives to participate as “stockholders” in the school such that continued investment of resources and good will are not left to chance.
Element 6A. Parent and Community Involvement and Outreach
The school executive designs structures and processes which result in parent and community engagement, support and ownership for the school.
The school executive designs structures and processes which result in parent and community engagement, support and ownership for the school.
ECPS Blue Ribbon Commission: The Blue Ribbon Commission (BRC) is a diverse group of Edgecombe County stakeholders tasked with collaborating with the broader community to make informed recommendations to the Edgecombe County Board of Education and Central Services staff about district priorities over the next several years. The purpose of the commission is to define the future we imagine for our students and learn about opportunities and challenges we face in pursuit of that vision, specifically in the areas of equity; educating the whole child; and attracting, retaining, and developing human capital. I attended several of the meetings that occurred during the school year and assisted in organizing the school visit to North Edgecombe High School in March of 2018. During this visit, members of the community, such as parents, school board members, and central office staff, were able to participate in a school tour led by our student leadership committee as well as engage our students . Below is a photo of students presenting at the Blue Ribbon Commission meeting at Tarboro High School in Tarboro, North Carolina. The second artifact is the presentation I assisted in developing with my mentor principal. This presentation was shared with the guests that visited North Edgecombe.
STEAM Night: The I-Zone Schools (Coker-Wimberly Elementary, Phillips Middle, and North Edgecombe High) organized a collaborative event called STEAM Night to promote students and their families participation in STEAM-based activities. Qualitative and quantitative data from the previous school year showed a low parent and community participation with school events. To increase stakeholder investment each of the schools in the I-Zone, STEAM Night was developed for families to "discover the fun of STEAM through hands-on activities". This event was led by teachers, instructional coaches, and Multi-Classroom Leaders at each of the three schools. Participants that led sessions included teachers, instructional coaches, Multi-Classroom Leaders, and community partners such as Cummins, Edgecombe Community College, and the Edgecombe County Public Health Department. As principal resident, I provided support for this event by promoting this event's flyer to community stakeholders by form of phone calls and providing flyers to their businesses. I also organized the attendance data for the evening that was later used to help shape the informal feedback survey that was sent to staff and parents to assist in planning for the next STEAM Night. I have included the following artifacts below: the flyer sent to all stakeholders to inform them of the event, two photos of the event (including one of me and my student participating in a hands-on activity), and the survey sent to staff members at the completion of the event.
Element 6B. Federal, State and District Mandates
The school executive designs protocols and processes in order to comply with federal, state, and district mandates.
The school executive designs protocols and processes in order to comply with federal, state, and district mandates.
District Testing: During my principal residency, I served as the back-up testing coordinator. As such, I was required to attend several training sessions about specific tests given by the district and state at my school, such as benchmarks, ACT, and EOC/NCFE exams. This training provided me with specific details and instructions necessary for executing all required exams to students. I was also able to disseminate this information to teachers to provide them with the necessary information to prepare them for testing. The examples below are documents from meetings I attended during the school year to prepare teachers and students for testing. The email posted below is an email I sent to staff members to assist them in preparing required accommodations for identified students.
NEHS Crisis Plan: In an effort to ensure that all students and staff members are safe during the entirety of the school day, I organized and assisted my mentor principal in the development of the school's crisis plan that was shared with central office. This sensitive information informs the district of our school's specific plan of action in case of an emergency during the school day. This information is also shared with staff members during routine practice drills as required by the state of North Carolina to ensure that they are also knowledgeable of the processes and procedures they must lead students in following. Below is an email sent to our district's Director of Children's Support Services. I have also included the page in the crisis prevention plan that details the members of the North Edgecombe crisis prevention team.