Standard 3: Cultural Leadership
School executives will understand and act on the understanding of the important role a school’s culture plays in contributing to the exemplary performance of the school. School executives must support and value the traditions, artifacts, symbols and positive values and norms of the school and community that result in a sense of identity and pride upon which to build a positive future. A school executive must be able to “re-culture” the school if needed to align with school’s goals of improving student and adult learning and to infuse the work of the adults and students with passion, meaning and purpose. Cultural leadership implies understanding the school and the people in it each day, how they came to their current state, and how to connect with their traditions in order to move them forward to support the school’s efforts to achieve individual and collective goals.
Element 3A. Focus on Collaborative Work Environment
The school executive understands and acts on the understanding of the positive role that a collaborative work environment can play in the school’s culture.
The school executive understands and acts on the understanding of the positive role that a collaborative work environment can play in the school’s culture.
Department Curriculum Planning Day: Each department had the opportunity to participate in a curriculum planning day dedicated to discussing data, planning and creating CFAs, and lesson planning. I had the opportunity to engage teachers in the process of understanding their data from the fall NCFE exams. From this, we created plans for the upcoming semester by using the Understanding by Design model, creating both CFAs and daily lesson plans and activities. This day was also used to develop the team/family atmosphere within the school and individual departments through use of ice breaker activities and protocols around the required reading The Science of Learning and Development. Below are the following artifacts: an email drafted to the social studies department prior to our meeting, a photo of the social studies team working collaboratively in response to the assigned article for the day, and a video of the social studies department debriefing the exercise and how it relates to their own teaching and learning in the classroom.
Element 3B. School Culture and Identity
The school executive develops and uses shared vision, values and goals to define the identity and culture of the school.
The school executive develops and uses shared vision, values and goals to define the identity and culture of the school.
NEHS Community Bus Rides: One of our goals as a school was to involve parents in the decision making of North Edgecombe as well as build a strong sense of community and support in partnership with parents for our students. I, along with the administrative team, organized community bus rides for staff members to attend in order to better understand the students we serve as well as reach out to parents by asking them their hopes and dreams for their children. This event alone increased parent participation by 30% based on a comparison of the previous year's attendance data at the Title 1 meeting versus this school year's attendance data at the Title 1 meeting. Parents stated that they enjoyed having the opportunity to meet their child's teacher in an informal manner and that the experience was the first they had experienced in their child's entire educational experience. Below are two videos of parents from the community bus rides sharing what their hopes and dreams are for their children.
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Student Leadership Committee: The mission of the Student Leadership Committee at North Edgecombe High School is to preserve and defend the rights and privileges of students, promote self-governance, guarantee a student voice and involvement in school decisions, and serve the common interest of our student body. As the principal resident, I served as an adviser for the committee with my principal mentor and two teachers. Students were interviewed for an opportunity to serve in this capacity. In addition to serving in a leadership capacity, students are learning more about global issues, finance, and the decision making process necessary to operate a school. I led students weekly through the affirmations they used to uplift one another and themselves. These affirmations allow students to affirm who they are, why they are important, and how they can use their leadership to impact and change the world around them. To the right is a photo of the students who serve on the leadership committee. Below is the link to the application we created prior to interviews and a video of students reciting the affirmations together.
Element 3C. Acknowledges Failures; Celebrates Accomplishments and Rewards
The school executive acknowledges failures and celebrates accomplishments of the school in order to define
the identity, culture and performance of the school.
The school executive acknowledges failures and celebrates accomplishments of the school in order to define
the identity, culture and performance of the school.
Staff Meeting Harambee Circle: Prior to every staff meeting, administrators lead staff members in Harambee, the Swahili word whose meaning is "Let's All Pull Together". During Harambee, staff members meet in a circle to share highlights of their day/week or to appreciate and empower another staff member in the circle. These sessions allowed all staff members the opportunity to reflect on their weekly experiences, connect with other staff members as they share their successes and areas of growth, and celebrate the achievements of one another in a genuine and authentic manner. The video on the right is an activity I led with staff members before our staff meeting. This activity allowed staff members
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PBIS End-Of-Year Trip: As a PBIS school, students are encouraged to make positive behavior choices that will ultimately help them succeed academically. To reward students for making positive choices all year, I organized the PBIS End-Of-Year Field Trip with my PBIS team. To identify the students who qualified for this event, I began by organizing each student by name and grade. After this initial step, I identified which students were ineligible to attend based on requirements set by the PBIS team. This information was sent to the PBIS chair to make contact with the students who were eligible. Below is the document I created to organize the list of students and the flyer the PBIS team created to share with staff and students about the event.
Element 3D. Efficacy and Empowerment
The school executive develops a sense of efficacy and empowerment among staff which influences the school’s identity, culture, and performance.
The school executive develops a sense of efficacy and empowerment among staff which influences the school’s identity, culture, and performance.
Staff Shout Out Videos and Student Shout Out Board: As principal resident, I oversaw the staff and student recognition program. Staff members were able to publicly recognize other staff members by submitting their names and accomplishments via Google Forms. Those shout outs were shared publicly with our staff in a short video format. Additionally, staff members were able to recognize students for their accomplishments and achievements in various capacities of their school experience. Those shout-outs are posted to a bulletin board in the front office. Below is the video I created and sent weekly to staff members highlighting their shout outs from other staff members. This created a sense of unity between all staff members as well as pride and positive energy towards self and others.