SEEing to Lead

Ryan Scott was kind enough to have me as a guest on his Big Ed Idea podcast! We had a great conversation about supporting, engaging, and empowering those you lead!

Dr. Dan Kreiness was kind enough to have me as a guest on his Leader of Learning podcast! We had a great conversation about supporting, engaging, and empowering those you lead!

Krista Leh is the Founder / Lead Professional Learning Designer & Facilitator at Resonance Educational Consulting where she is passionate about Helping educators create sustainable, scalable SEL systems. She was an ASCD Emerging leader in 2012 and has definitely fulfilled that title. She currently co-hosts the SEL in EDU podcast that is sponsored by PA ASCD.

Key Takeaways:

• One of the biggest misconceptions about SEL is that it's all about relationships.
• There are 5 central competencies to SEL.
• There are interpersonal and intra personal competencies.
• SEL is comprised of who you are and what you do everyday.
• The 3 main factors needed to create a sustainable SEL system are cultural, structural, and behavioral.
• You can see, feel, and hear when people feel as if they authentically accepted and honored for who they are as a person.
• We can't always clearly see what is happening when we are in the middle of an event.
• Leaders need to realize their responsibility to stand for those they serve.

Stay in Touch:

Twitter: @Resonance_Ed

Web: https://www.resonanceed.com/

SELinEDU Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/2gEh999Scirvr9ZWbKGuup?si=f3c70801895943db

Kecia McDonald currently serves as a Complex Area Resource Teacher for English Learners in Kailua Kona, West Hawai'i. She is certified K-12 in Health and has been a Teen Health teacher, a Curriculum Coordinator, Test Coordinator, Title I Coordinator and substitute teacher. She is a 2020-2022 Hawai'i State Teacher Fellow and a 2022 NEA Foundation Global Learning Fellow. Kecia is the public school proud mother of two young men and a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer. She loves to travel and has moved 26 times. You can find her on Twitter @mcdonald_kecia or follow her travels on IG @what_hi_see

Key Takeaways:

• You will be a better teacher and administrator when you realize and enact education being about relationships and interacting with other human beings.
• Nobody will innovate or take risks until a community that is safe has been built.
• Teaching is professional yet at the same time deeply personal. It's a holistic profession.
• Building relationships creates a community. Building report creates an institution. We all want to work in communities.
• The light bulb moment is the click moment when it comes to building relationships.
• It's important that you pause and take time to let people know that you see, hear, and know them.
• Leaders need to model relationship building for their teachers.
• It's important to help teachers start improving by focusing on their strengths and building from there.
• Schools should be joyful places of learning.

Stay In Touch:

Twitter @mcdonald_kecia

IG @what_hi_see

Daphne McMenemy is an educator, author and speaker.  Her first book, Gracie, is based on her personal experiences in the classroom. Gracie is a young girl whose learning is brought to life when her teacher introduces her to coding and a new way of thinking. As a child and young adult, Daphne was focused on becoming an educator with purpose, to improve the lives of her students and make an impact on their educational journey. As an educator for the past 17 years, she has created opportunity for children in her classroom to explore learning in innovative ways. Using STEM to engage children as young as kindergarten age in discovering learning through coding, she develops numeracy, literacy and computational thinking skills through creative exploration. Her experience in the classroom has proven to support even the most hesitant learners in building confidence in their abilities and engaging in the learning process.  Daphne is committed to building relationships, meeting students where they are, appreciating each individual, and finding opportunity to engage and motivate students in creative, innovative ways. Her newest venture allows her an extensive creative outlet as Managing Director of Code Breaker Inc.

Key Takeaways:

• We have to adjust our expectations if we are going to empower students and teachers.
• Empowerment comes from letting go of control, building trust, and creating responsibility.
• Students will become leaders if given the opportunity.
• Empower others by saying we have a problem, how are we going to fix it. Then let them take responsibility.
• It’s important to lead by example and then support people to reach your expectation.
• We need to meet those we lead where they are at the current moment.
• Everyone has a right to be in an environment that treats them as a leader and then meets them where they are instead of meeting the current leaders where they are.

Stay in Touch:

Twitter: @McMenemyTweets

daphnemcmenemy.com

codebreakeredu.com

Jaime Donally is a passionate technology enthusiast. She began her career as a math teacher and later moved into Instructional Technology. Her desire to build relationships has brought about opportunities to collaborate with students and educators around the world. She provides staff development and training on immersive technology as an edtech consultant. Her latest adventures include the launch of Global Maker Day and the #ARVRinEDU community, events and presentations. She works as an author and speaker to provide practical use of augmented and virtual reality in the classroom.

Key Takeaways:

• Ongoing training and continuous support is essential for any type of technology integration.
• Adoption of any new technology has to start with the end goal in mind.
• Immersive Tech can be extremely helpful for students with learning disabilities.
• Immersive Tech opens up opportunities that aren't bound by location, restricted by budgets, or limited because of your mobility.
• If innovations are too disruptive they won't thrive.
• Stay away from buying technology that only serves one use.
• The key is to empower your students to show you what is possible with new technology.

Stay Connected:

Twitter: @JaimeDonally

As a Digital Learning Coach in Walpole, Massachusetts, Jed Stefanowicz provides job-embedded professional development and instructional coaching for academic technology. Through conferences, workshops, and coaching, Jed aims to engage and build staff/student digital learning capacity, keeping the focus on practice over product. As a 25 year elementary educator, speaker, blogger, and current Massachusetts Teach Plus Policy Fellow, Jed shares his passion for effective tech integration to transform teaching and learning, creating engaging and equitable digital learning environments and experiences that activate, innovate, and motivate digital learning. He is the Author of Take AIM at Digital Learning: Activate, Innovate, Motivate.

Key Takeaways:

• It's important to take an empathic approach if you are to support all teachers.
• Building diverse teams is essential to successfully innovating in your school.
• Learning is the intersection of 3 things and that is what creates activation: meaningful, measurable, and memorable.
• It's important to prioritize experiences, showcase moments, and highlight events to memorialize student learning.
• The new four Cs are compassion, connection, culture, and climate. These build motivation and student agency.
• Drop the D when talking about shared and distributed leadership. Those should not be destinations but instead processes. For example share the leadership, distribute the leadership
• If kids don't care that's not their problem, it's the teacher's problem. If teachers don't care, that's not the teacher's problem that's the leader's problem.

Get In Touch:

Twitter: @Stefanowicz135

Stephanie Howell is the CEO of Gold EDU, a founder of Global GEG, and the EdTech Lead for Pickerington Local Schools. She is key to the embedding and implementation of EdTech tools across her schools and organizations. She has a masters in Curriculum and Instruction.

Key Takeaways:

• You have to teach using your own style and not the person's next door.
• We have to take time to get to know people and what drives them if we are to support them.
• "Gripe Jams" are super important for solving problems and building relationships.
• It is key to have multiple mentors
• Teachers can help students take ownership of their learning by creating small communities.
• You have to build relationships with teachers by being involved and speaking positivity in their life.
• Find a way to combat imposter syndrome.

Get in Touch:

@MrsHowell24

JaVonda Tucker is currently an assistant principal with Dinwiddie County Public Schools. Prior to becoming an assistant principal, JaVonda was a special education teacher at the school where she currently works. Along with holding a master’s degree in education administration, she also holds a master’s degree in criminal justice. JaVonda is also the proud mother of a 12 year old son.

Key Takeaways:

• S.E.L. Needs to look different for all people
• You cannot effectively implement social emotional learning for students and staff without knowing them as individuals
• You need to know and understand yourself before being able to know and understand what others need
• Try turning the tables with teachers as a way to pull them from their present state of mind
• Journaling is a great way to practice reflection
• Be visible to know your students and staff
• Don’t be afraid to tell your story. There is always someone that needs to hear it.
• Do not lead from your office.
• Listen to lead better.

Contact:

Twitter: @JaVondaTucker

Dominic is a proud principal, educator, innovator, husband and father.  He is an expert in educational leadership, school culture and climate. Dominic is passionate about social- emotional learning and feels that every child deserves to have fun, feel excited to learn and is happy to go to school.

Key Takeaways:

• Work life balance is essential, but more of a negotiation.
• One of the powers of being a Principal is the ability to have more of an impact on teachers and make your own schedule to do just that.
• Learn and lead with S.W.A.G.
• S + W + A = J!
• Being authentic and sticking to who you are as a school is key when sharing your story on social media.
• Being a principal is just being a teacher on a bigger scale.
• Everyone falls into the 40, 40, and 40 rule.
• Make sure to take an "it's OK" perspective to be effective from day-to-day.

Contact:

Twitter: @DominicArmano

Emily Barnes is a mom of two little girls, Elliott (3) and Scottie (2), and is married to her best friend who is an electrical engineer with Caterpillar. Emily recently moved from Central Illinois, where she served as an Assistant Principal in a K-5 building and Student Services Coordinator in a district of 4,500 students, to Sumner County, Tennessee where she currently serves as an Instructional Coach, but will be transitioning into the role of Assistant Principal for a brand new middle school on a new K-12 campus, called Liberty Creek, in the fall of 2022. Emily is one of the few people who can literally say that she is living her dream and is thankful and blessed every day to get to do what she does and to love the people she loves.

Key Takeaways:

• Shout out to Matthew X Joseph and the power of connections.
• Shout out to George M Ferro for the concept of betting on oneself.
• Relationships and connections are critical to people's success.
• Schools can have a fun atmosphere and high expectations at the same time.
• Modeling and psychological safety allows authenticity to take center stage.
• Taking ownership of mistakes you make allows for growth.
• Leaders need to model grace and accountability.
• Use objective information and specific questioning to increase self awareness.

Contact:

Twitter: @mrs_eebarnes

Jon shares, speaks and leads educational professional learning for educators internationally. Jon has been named a County Teacher of the Year, 2019 Top 100 Educational Influencer, an NBSA 20 to Watch Educator, an Apple Distinguished Educator, and Google Certified Innovator. Jon is the co-author of The Eduprotocol Field Guide, and The Eduprotocol Field Guide Book 2 (both Amazon #1 best-sellers) and contributor to the Eduprotocols Math Edition (another #1 Amazon best-seller!).

Jon recently wrote the conclusion for the #1 Best Seller 100 STOP Series first edition.

100 No-Nonsense Things that ALL Teachers Should Stop Doing

Jon created the CUE Rock Star series (Rock Star Teacher, Admin, and Specialty events) and as the former Chief Academic Officer and Executive Director of CUE, led and designed highly effective professional learning for over 60,000 educators over the last 6 years. Jon has over 17 years in the classroom, as well as site admin and County Assistant Superintendent experience.

Key Takeaways:

• It's important to see schools from different lenses. Make sure to notice different perspectives and use that.
• Focus on "I get to" instead of" I have to".
• Adopt a "pain is mandatory, misery is optional" mindset.
• Leaders are responsible for "lighting up the room".
• Clarity is key to staff support and engagement.
• Is there's a huge honesty issue between teachers and administrators when it comes to evaluations.
• It's important to advertise that your school is keeping pace with the modern changes and requirements of education.
• Empathy should be a key outcome for our students so that in the least we are raising good human beings.
• Be the crazy friend serving doppio espresso instead of Café Americano. Try that new restaurant.
• Make sure we are educating and building relationships with the big picture in mind

Contact:

Twitter: @jcorippo

Email: jcorippo@gmail.com

TikTock: @jcorippo

Facebook: Empoweredventure

Andy is a former educator and current Community Manager for Swivl. He lives in the Fort Worth, Texas area with his wife and four children.

Andy was a Social Studies teacher and coach from 1999 until 2014, when he became a technology coach and district administrator. Andy recently started a new career at Swivl where he connects with educators and like-minded individuals as part of transforming the educational community.

Key Takeaways:

• Swivel has multiple tools that make conversations easier for students by creating safe spaces.
• It's important to make space sometimes before responding. It offers the opportunity to de-escalate and feel an increased level of comfort, which creates better conversation.
• Space offers a variety of entry points for people in a conversation.
• We have to be careful not to over rely on technology. Think the $100 solution for a $1 problem.
• It's more about the attitude towards doing things differently than the ability to actually do them.
• Flexibility is going to be the key factor in successful education moving forward.
• We need to narrow our scope of tools, keep them flexible, and focus on fewer items rather than more to build our ability to provide for all students.

Contact:

andy4edu@gmail.com

Dr. Monica Burns is a Curriculum and EdTech Consultant, Apple Distinguished Educator and Founder of ClassTechTips.com. As a classroom teacher in New York City, Monica used digital tools to create an engaging, differentiated learning experience to meet the unique needs of her students. Monica started her blog ClassTechTips.com in 2012 to help make EdTech easier for fellow educators, and launched the Easy EdTech Podcast and her membership site the Easy EdTech Club to support educators who want to simplify and streamline technology integration.

Since starting ClassTechTips.com, Monica has led workshops and webinars, and provided keynote presentations to teachers, instructional coaches, administrators and tech-enthusiasts at numerous national and international conferences including SXSWedu, ISTE, FETC and EduTECH. Monica is the author of EdTech Essentials: The Top 10 Technology Strategies for All Learning Environments (ASCD, 2021), Tasks Before Apps: Designing Rigorous Learning in a Tech-Rich Classroom (ASCD, 2017) two quick reference guides for ASCD on Distance Learning Essentials and Classroom Technology Tips, as well as several other publications.

Key Takeaways:

• The framing of technology may change, but when not it comes to essentials.
• Technology should be used to curate, assess, and create.
• Use open ended tools when introducing tech to build rich discussions and create anchors for teachers.
• Slim tools down and create an efficient technology tool belt.
• We make time for we value.
• The Disney movie experience.
• Simplicity is key.
• We need to purposely embed digital citizenship and citizenship and media literacy into our everyday teaching.

Contact:

Twitter: @ClassTechTips

Email: hello@classtechtips.com

Website: https://classtechtips.com

Dr. Maribeth Edmunds is an experienced principal and central office director with a demonstrated record of excellence in public schools. She is dedicated to high academic achievement for all students in environments that encourage, respect and nurture every child, in every class on every day. Dr. Edmunds’ career spans over 40 years, having taught secondary English and Reading for 20. After earning degrees in English Education, Reading and Administration, Dr. Edmunds successfully defended her dissertation to earn a doctorate in Educational Leadership, Management and Policy from Seton Hall University.

Dr. Edmunds is skilled in curriculum development, assessment, and coaching. As a former principal and director of professional development, she mentored aspiring administrators and novice teachers. She is highly experienced in supervision of instruction, strategic planning and talent management. Dr. Edmunds is a published author of numerous articles an blogs, with a recent publication in a book entitled Things I Wish I Knew ….. Dr. Edmunds is the creator and host of #EdmundsOut video series on social media platforms. You can view her videos where she shares her musings in order to inform and entertain. 

Lastly, Dr. Edmunds volunteers on behalf of children and adults with autism. She serves on the Board of Trustees of Eden Autism Services, chairing their Committee on Aging and Medical Needs. You can follow her on Twitter @DrMBEdmunds where she connects with educators from around the world.

Key Takeaways:

• Understanding others and their differences is a key aspect of building community.
• Spend time working to build a relationship with your teachers.
• Create and utilize small acts that build value.
• Give yourself grace so you can keep showing up through mistakes.
• Capitalize on forced changes by utilizing the tools we have been given based on what teachers need and what makes sense.
• It's incredibly important to think about the way we know work and school.
• Help people find their purpose in work because people deserve to be heard.

Connect:

Twitter: @DrMBEdmunds

Cameron is an experienced teacher with the past 11 years as a STEM Coordinator and Digital Learning Coach. His main focus is on educational technology and implementing digital learning in the classroom.  In Cameron's  role as a Digital Learning Coach and STEM Leader, he works with staff and students to provide opportunities to transform their learning experience with a range of different tools. He has a strong belief and mindset in life long learning with a Masters Degrees in Sports Business and Digital Learning. Cameron's also  a Team Leader with #aussieED, Level 2 Google Certified Educator, Microsoft Innovative Educator, and can be connected with on Twitter.

Key Takeaways:

• Virtual learning has to be individualized.
• Decide what your goals are first. Then select the tool that helps you achieve that.
• Adapting to technology requires explicit teaching.
• Build relationships by listening to needs.
• Good instructional strategies work for teachers as much as they do for students.
• Building trust takes authenticity.
• Social media is key for sharing and learning.
• Safety is key for taking risks.

Connect:

camross12@gmail.com

Santos Gonzalez has spent the last 25 years working as a teacher and administrator at several schools in South San Diego. For Santos, education was a pathway out of poverty.  She grew up understanding that education held the promise of opportunity and choices.  She has spent her entire career making sure that her work delivers on that promise for every child she serves. She is now serving as a Leadership Coach with the L.A.E.P organization providing, coaching and professional learning opportunities to district, site, and teacher leaders at no cost to participants. Her work focuses on equity and meeting the needs of the whole child.

Key Takeaways:

• Achievement gap verse opportunity gap.
• Equity is only achieved by serving the whole child.
• Culturally responsive practices and social emotional learning contain instructional strategies to close the opportunity gap.
• Teachers are affected by trauma much like students.
• Leaders need to practice vulnerability to be authentic.
• Hire instructional coaches to do the work you can't get to.
• Leadership is never about you. It's not personal, it's about getting the job done the best way possible with the best person possible.
• Build capacity by having a compelling vision

Contact:

Email: gonzalez@laep.org

Coaching Website: gonzalez@laep.org/21csla

LinkedIn: Santos Gonzalez-Verardo

Facebook: Santos Gonzalez-Verardo

Join me as I am a guest on William Parker's podcast Principal Matters.  Make sure you subscribe and follow him wherever you listen!

Jay Billy is the proud principal of Ben Franklin Elementary School in Lawrence Township Public Schools in Lawrenceville, New Jersey. Jay has been in educational administration since 1996. He was awarded the 2016 Exemplary Elementary Educator award from the State of New Jersey, Department of Education. As a PIRATE leader, Jay is passionate about school culture, continuous learning, innovation in school and supporting the whole child. He has presented at numerous conferences around the state and the country on subjects such as building positive school culture, becoming a PIRATE leader, using social media, classroom management, student engagement and equity. Jay is the author of the book, “Lead With Culture: What Really Matters In Our Schools” published by Dave Burgess Consulting.

Key Takeaways:

• Clearly communicate your expectations
• The importance of personal conversations.
• Model the behavior that you want.
• Give permission for people to be passionate.
• Ask authentic questions in your hiring process.
• Honor and encourage diversity of thought in your staff.
• Make sure to continue learning and sharing.
• Making connections is key to being the best leader possible.
• Be vocal about the purpose of whatever you are doing.

Contact:

Twitter: @jaybilly2

Email: jbilly455@gmail.com

Christopher Dodge is the Lead Learner of the Orange Elementary Schools, a PreK-6 school district in central/western Massachusetts. Christopher has served the community of Orange for 7 years. In that time, the schools have worked to create collaborative structures and systems that bring stakeholder voice into school level decision making, as well as strategies that promote student success and achievement. Orange Elementary utilizes these systems to promote a vision of serving the whole child, ensuring that students social emotional and academic needs are being met. Aside from his role as principal, Christopher serves on DESE's Principal/Teacher Advisory Cabinet. He is passionate about supporting and mentoring leaders and educators, serving as a consultant with Seaside Educational Consultants and as an adjunct instructor at Assumption University in Worcester, MA.

Key Takeaways:

• You have to consider unintended consequences when modeling behaviors.
• Get accountability partners to keep you on track.
• Sometimes all teachers are looking for is permission.
• Block your time off in your schedule for better productivity.
• Create systems that lead people to do their best work instead of managing people to fit the systems you have.
• Make sure you lean towards yes whenever teachers bring you a suggestion.
• Don't waste time focusing on what could go wrong instead of focusing on what is great.

Contact:

Twitter: @PrincipalDodge1

Instagram: @PrincipalDodge1

Christopher Dodge is the Lead Learner of the Orange Elementary Schools, a PreK-6 school district in central/western Massachusetts. Christopher has served the community of Orange for 7 years. In that time, the schools have worked to create collaborative structures and systems that bring stakeholder voice into school level decision making, as well as strategies that promote student success and achievement. Orange Elementary utilizes these systems to promote a vision of serving the whole child, ensuring that students social emotional and academic needs are being met. Aside from his role as principal, Christopher serves on DESE's Principal/Teacher Advisory Cabinet. He is passionate about supporting and mentoring leaders and educators, serving as a consultant with Seaside Educational Consultants and as an adjunct instructor at Assumption University in Worcester, MA.

Key Takeaways:

• Realize you don't have to do things the same way you have seen them done.
• Be who you really are instead of who you are expected to be.
• Focus on learning instead of the game.
• Support teachers in pursuing their passions.
• Teachers need permission to experiment.
• Passion projects as goals for evaluation.
• Create an environment for risk taking by by changing the structure instead of the expectations.
• It's important to remember we can't do anything without partnering with parents.
• Principles need to shield teachers from being overworked by prioritizing what is valued in education.

Contact:

Twitter: @PrincipalDodge1

Instagram: @PrincipalDodge1

As a current middle school principal Demetrius is committed to creating a climate and school culture that is welcoming and inclusive for all students and staff members and sees strong relationships as the key to helping students and staff thrive. Demetrius is constantly developing his knowledge and skills through connections and reflection.  Demetrius is a graduate of the United States Military, West Point, New York.  After graduation he served 5-years as a field artillery officer in the Army completing two tours in the Middle East.  He lives in Northern California with his wife, Valu, his West Point classmate, and 4 children.

Key Takeaways:

• Living in your community in which you lead is a way to increase authenticity and build relationships.
• If you can lead, you can lead.
• It's important to realize that you don't always see the big picture picture and yet you still have to move forward even if it isn't your idea.
• The people you lead take on your attitude whenever a new initiative is being implemented.
• It's critically important to have 1 on 1 conversations with staff as you move forward with your vision.
• Share student feedback with staff for impact and credibility.
• Hire people who have the skills in the areas in which you need to improve.
• Fight for the people you want to achieve the vision you have.
• You can't improve your situation if you don't try something different than what you've always done.
• You can't be a good leader unless you know how to be a good follower.
• You can only ask good questions if you are truly listening. 
• There's no point in having an open door if you aren't receptive to what people are saying.

Reach Out and Connect:

Twitter: @Demetrius_Ball

The Engage Podcast: https://anchor.fm/engagepodcast1

Craig's been married for 25 years to an educator and is a father of three beautiful girls.  He has been in Bergenfield, NJ for 25 years with the last 10 as Principal of Jefferson Elementary School.  Craig is a former Physical Education teacher, Supervisor of Art, Music, and PE, Director of the Alternative High School as well.  He feels he has been blessed with the privilege to work with the children of Bergenfield and thoroughly enjoys each day in this profession.

Key Takeaways:

• It's important to model incremental improvement.
• Create a process for getting better in areas that you need improvement by reflecting.
• Have small conversations with teachers each day.
• Dialog needs to be personal before practice or process before it leads to outcomes.
• Being vulnerable allows you to connect with people and learn.
• Everything must be centered on your personal philosophy if you are to help teachers to the greatest extent.
• Look for, cultivate, and capture the "it" factor. You can teach the other stuff.
• Things don't get brought to our attention unless they're important to the person bringing them to us.
• Use your spirit use your freedom use your style. Own it.

Contact:

Twitter - @crvogt68

Craig Shapiro is a teacher of K-12 HPE/Coach for 33 years.  He is also a speaker and upcoming author.

Key Takeaways:

• Simple steps for transformation are not just a classroom thing, but a life thing.
• The daily steps you take are super important for how you perform overall.
• Anyone can reflect, but that doesn't make it easy.
• It's important to get to know people, but more important to help them get better.
• Many things we do are simple, but people just do not think about it.
• Learn about and make use of habit stacking.
• What you do consistently creates the desire to do the same in others.
• We get what we model and expect.
• Leaders must have empathy and be authentic.
• Pay attention to where your ducks are swimming.
• Make sure people understand the vision and their role in it.
• Focus on the good instead of the small amount of negatives.
• Ask yourself if people say hi to you without being prompted.

Get in Touch:

@Shapiro_WTHS

@Positively_Well

CMSdreambig.com

Georgina is a visionary education leader, an inspiring writer, podcaster, and keynote speaker, and is keen to impact creative innovation across Europe, Middle East & Africa, where she has been fostering change in education for over a decade. She empowers learners, educators, and school leaders with the 21st century skills, creative strategies, tools, and the confidence they need to be successful members of a global community, to thrive in tomorrow's competitive job market.

Key Takeaways:

• It's incredibly important to get feedback from your community, teachers, and students when judging levels of comfort
• Take time to celebrate peoples' strengths vertically across the district instead of just by subject or grade level
• The mind shift that needs to occur is how teachers can teach students to take care of their own learning
• Create structures that last beyond you to build trust and safety
• Build peoples' capacity to innovate

Get in Touch:

@TechyLeaderEDU

@CodeBreaker Leadership Team

@redefineED (IG)

www.redefineeducation.com

Georgina is a visionary education leader, an inspiring writer, podcaster, and keynote speaker, and is keen to impact creative innovation across Europe, Middle East & Africa, where she has been fostering change in education for over a decade. She empowers learners, educators, and school leaders with the 21st century skills, creative strategies, tools, and the confidence they need to be successful members of a global community, to thrive in tomorrow's competitive job market. 

Key Takeaways:

• Create a staff Facebook page to help with onboarding new teachers
• Create staff Buddy systems
• Create a mentor system that that creates deeper relationships than the current required mentor system
• Support teachers from being overwhelmed by following the 3 steps of buddy system, resource bank, and human interaction
• Make sure you follow a tested and successful coaching framework whenever you are engaging and empowering teachers
• Educators want to make their leaders happy. They just need to know they're supported in return
• If teachers could do better they would. So it's up to the leaders to find out what's holding them back and take care of it
• Leaders need to provide space for educators to take risks and then accept them for where they are
• Stick to the appropriate pace that is acceptable by the community and the school when instituting change
• Give teachers agency when it comes to which digital tools they want to use to increase their students agency
• Huge paradigm shift about teachers being told to teach rather than facilitate.

Get in Touch:

@TechyLeaderEDU

@CodeBreaker Leadership Team

@redefineED (IG)

www.redefineeducation.com

Hi! My name is Kerry Flood and I am a special education teacher in the math department at Whitman Hanson. I am also the assistant coach for the girls varsity soccer team and can't wait for our season opener! When I am not working, I thoroughly enjoy spending my free time with my one year old daughter who is my inspiration.

Key Takeaways:

• Take items that are large and intimidating and break them down into separate sections or tasks so people can realize it might not be as bad as originally peers
• Clear a transparent communication is most important
• Don't care about people just one time
• Is provide teachers time during the day to get commitments outside of school
• Clearly communicate opportunities to get involved through personal conversations
• Let newer teachers know that things are gonna be OK even though they're incredibly hard at that moment in time
• Leaders need to hear everybody before narrowing down the information to the best decision

Get in Touch:

Twitter: @whkerryflood

Dagan currently works as the K-8 Capstone Coordinator at Hawai’i Preparatory Academy in Waimea on Hawai’i Island with additional experience in music, digital media, and mathematics instruction. A strong believer in developing student agency and supporting skills for a “future curriculum”, he is an advocate for using design, futures, and music thinking to support productive collaboration among educators. Dagan is also a musician who loves writing, recording, and performing at farmer’s markets and coffee shops throughout Hawai’i Island.

Key Takeaways:

• Leadership is a skill
• We need to model leadership for our students
• Leadership is not about a title so anybody can become a leader if given the opportunity
• Get to know your teachers for who they really are. Be intentional about getting to know people on a personal level
• It's important to give people safe spaces to express themselves as openly as possible
• You need to create the conditions for people to feel as if they can take risks and speak up
• We need to have and model a curious mindset
• Flatter models of the leadership structure need to make their way into education
• Work on keeping your own personal creativity alive
• Non conformity is often a valuable resource
• Plinko is a bad model for leadership

Get in Touch:

Twitter @daganbernstein

Instagram @dagan.blog

website at http://dagan.blog

Music www.daganmusic.com or look him up on Spotify.

Larry's path into education wasn’t  typical.   Upon graduating from Ithaca College, he spent 10 years in radio/television news before travelling across the country playing piano/singing at retirement communities- eventually arriving back in his hometown of Framingham, Massachusetts.  There, while substitute teaching, he became passionate about education and earned his Masters in Elementary Education from Lesley University.

Key Takeaways:

• Make sure you are intentional about building relationships
• Use specific, personalized questions to get great feedback from teachers
• Small actionable adjustments make all the different when building relationships and culture
• Use UDL for staff, not just students
• Focus on listening more than writing when taking notes in a meeting
• Make sure you take time to stop and see what everybody at the ground level thinks. Pay special attention to the needs of your stakeholders
• Self talk is an incredibly important part of your mindset
• Always assume positive intentions
• The process of authentically listening is difficult and takes practice
• Listening and reflection are both two way skills. We subconsciously listen to ourselves talk while listening to what people are saying and then we have to reflect on what we're saying while we reflect on how we listened to them

Get in Touch:

Twitter:   @WolpeMr

Liz Garden is the principal of the Dr. Leroy E Mayo Elementary School in Holden, MA.  She has been an administrator for fourteen years and taught at various levels for eleven years.  She blogs regularly for her staff at www.musingstomotivate.blogspot.com.  Liz has presented on various topics locally and nationally.  She served on the Scholastic Principal Advisory Board. She is an editorial advisor for NAESP's Principal Magazine and was selected to serve on NAESP's National Coronavirus Task Force. Liz is also the Vice President for the Massachusetts School Administrator's Association. When she is not molding future minds as an instructional leader, Liz is dealing with her reading addiction, keeping Amazon in business, listening to her musician husband sing, and chasing around her wild kids!

Key Takeaways:

• Lead by example in all situations.
• Liz Garden's 8 steps to successful change.
• A roadmap on how to support, engage, and empower teachers.
• The importance of visiting other schools when looking to change programming.
• Do not shy away from hard conversations.
• Have open, authentic conversations to help facilitate change.
• Become part of your school community by building authentic personal relationships.
• Be creative to encourage students to learn.

Connect:

Twitter @PrincipaGarden,

Blog - www.musingstomotivate.blogspot.com

Voxer @PrincipalGarden

Brandon Perry is entering his tenth year of education. He recently graduated with his Master in Education from Clemson University with a specialization in Instructional Coaching. Brandon’s main area of experience has been directed in the classroom where he has taught 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students in a variety of subjects. He’s  also been highly involved in making this impact through athletics. Specifically,  through boys’ lacrosse. Brandon has also coached tennis, soccer, and golf.

Key Takeaways:

• Relationships are a two way street, but not the way you think.
• Building trust with parents is essential for success.
• Trust and relationships cannot be forced, but have to be built organically.
• Create support systems to help teachers no matter their years of service.
• It's important for leaders to connect and collaborate with teachers on a regular basis.
• Leaders must be consistently present in classrooms to make a difference.
• Leaders need to practice differentiated leadership to be successful.
• The difference between climate and culture in a building is relationships.

How to Connect:

Twitter Handle: @blperry3

Website: https://blueskiesllc21.wixsite.com/website/blog

Sandra Donaghue is a passionate educator in her 27th year - entering her 17th year as a elementary school leader. Sandr is an instructor for the Principal Qualifications Course for Ontario, Executive member of my local Principal & Vice-Principal's Association, Elementary Councilor on the Provincial Association, and Codebreaker Ambassador

Key Takeaways

• Passionate educators are always in a position to be a mentor
• Celebrate others by recognizing the good that they do.
• The supportive of the educator people are rather than the content they are teaching.
• Make sure you feed forward to keep building people up
• Frame conversations for improvement might explaining what cannot be discussed and what can
• Every opportunity is an opportunity to be genuine and authentic to whom you are as a person
• Make certain that your interest in staff members is genuine and not being used as a tool

Connect

Twitter - @sandra_donaghue

Daphne McMenemy is an educator, author and speaker.  Her first book, Gracie, is based on her personal experiences in the classroom. Gracie is a young girl whose learning is brought to life when her teacher introduces her to coding and a new way of thinking. As a child and young adult, Daphne was focused on becoming an educator with purpose, to improve the lives of her students and make an impact on their educational journey. As an educator for the past 15 years, she has created opportunity for children in her classroom to explore learning in innovative ways. Using STEM to engage children as young as kindergarten age in discovering learning through coding, she develops numeracy, literacy and computational thinking skills through creative exploration. Her experience in the classroom has proven to support even the most hesitant learners in building confidence in their abilities and engaging in the learning process.  Daphne is committed to building relationships, meeting students where they are, appreciating each individual, and finding opportunity to engage and motivate students in creative, innovative ways. Her newest venture allows her an extensive creative outlet as Managing Director of Code Breaker Inc.

Key Takeaways:

• Be that teacher for every student
• Reflect on other people's perspectives
• It's important to create spaces where people feel safe to have an opinion different than yours
• Students are not students to their parents. They are their most prized possession who they love with all their heart
• Be cautious of existing power structures when looking to support
• Validation of those who you lead is key if you are to be successful
• Make sure you pay attention to people's proven track record whether it's good or bad
• Pushing people out of their comfort zone requires you to leave your comfort zone
• You have to listen to what's not being said to truly understand what a person means

Connect:

Twitter - @McMenemyTweets

Books:

Gracie

What Happens When I Learn to Code

Grace: The Maker

Web:

www.daphnemcmenemy.com

www.DiscoverGracie.com

www.codebreakeredu.com

Jethro Jones, 2017 NASSP Digital Principal of the Year, is a former principal and host of Transformative Principal and co-founder of The Center for Cyberethics, independent, non-partisan educational institute dedicated to the study and promotion of cyberethics. Jethro is the author of the book, SchoolX: How principals can design a transformative school experience for students, teachers, parents – and themselves! Jethro currently consults schools and districts on redesign efforts that don't seem like another program. Jethro has worked as a principal at all K-12 levels, including a prison school, a district coach, distance learning team lead, and English teacher.

Key Takeaways:

• Student driven learning is key
• Teachers should attempt to fulfill the role of being a compass among us
• Ask and then emphasize why teachers got into teaching
• Only teachers care about standards not kids
• Use content as your playground when teaching
• Support student driven learning
• Help teachers with the work it takes is work it takes to connect different subjects because it's harder for them then students
• Gaining knowledge is not selfish if you share it
• Accepting an event as trauma makes you a victim

Connect:

@jethrojones  - everywhere

YouTube.com/mrjoneseng.

Jethrojones.com

Kathy Iwaniki is a grade three teacher in East Granby, CT.  I have taught grades 2, 3, 4 and 6 in my 33 year career. I am the granddaughter, daughter, mother and sister of educators.

Takeaways

• Getting connected online is important
• Relationships are key
• If you want to have SEL provide time for it
• Make sure you listen to and trust your teachers
• Provide authentic, individualized PD
• Hire good people, give them what they need, and get out of their way

Contact

@kathyiwanicki (twitter)

@mrsiwanicki (instagram)

Iwanicki Adventures In Teaching blog

Dr. Matthew X. Joseph is currently the Director of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment in Leicester Public Schools. He has been a school and district leader in many capacities in public education over his 27 years in the field including Director of Digital Learning and Innovation, elementary school principal, classroom teacher, and district professional development specialist.

Takeaways

• Focus on closing your gaps
• Balanced leadership is key
• Be ok with people doing things their way
• Create priority lists and stick with them
• Learning happens during fun times instead of sticking to standards
• You must promote and support independence of teachers in their classrooms
• Find what people are good at and highlight it
• Don't put limits on yourself

Contact

Twitter: @MatthewXJoseph

Mxjspeaker.com

New Book: Power Of Connections